The U.S. Navy fired the commanding officer of the Japan-based Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Antietam after the ship ran aground on January 31 in waters near Yokosuka, Japan. Capt. Joseph Carrigan was relieved on March 1 by Rear Adm. Charles Williams, commander, Task Force 70, followin
U.S. Navy sailors and marines assigned to ships from the Bataan Amphibious Ready Group (BAT ARG) deployed for operations in Europe and the Middle East. Amphibious transport dock USS Mesa Verde (LPD 19) deployed from Naval Station Norfolk on February 24 and amphibious dock landing ship USS Carter Hal
The Royal Navy recently hosted the first Joint Expeditionary Force (Maritime) conference in Portsmouth headed by Fleet Commander Vice-Admiral Ben Key and Commander of UK Maritime Forces Rear Admiral Alex Burton. The UK, with partner nations Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands and No
The United Arab Emirates Navy selected French defense technology company Thales to provide improved electronic warfare, anti-submarine warfare as well as security and surveillance capabilities to its forces at the 2017 NAVDEX exhibition in Dubai. The UAE Navy also announced a contract for the purcha
Swedish defence and security company Saab announced it has received an order for delivery of the AUV62-AT anti-submarine warfare training system. The company said deliveries would take place during 2017 and 2018 but did not disclose the customer. AUV62-AT was recently displayed and tested in the UK
Spanish Navy offshore patrol vessel Vigía set sail from Cadiz to conduct a series of activities in Africa as part of the Spanish government’s Defense Diplomacy Plan and a follow-on of the Africa Partnership Station (APS) initiative. These deployments are intended to enhance maritime security and to
U.S. Navy’s Los Angeles-class attack submarine USS Santa Fe (SSN 763) made a port call at Fleet Activities Yokosuka on March 2 during her Indo-Asia-Pacific patrol. “Our crew has had the opportunity to meet our partner Japanese submarine crews that visit Pearl Harbor and are excited to visit their ho
Iraqi and Pakistani naval officers joined the U.S. Coast Guard for a multilateral visit, board, search and seizure (VBSS) exercise at Naval Support Activity Bahrain, Feb. 26-Mar. 9. The exercise, held at the ship-in-the-box (SIB) facility, is the first time in three years that the Iraqi and Pakistan
Two Royal Navy Merlins have embarked French amphibious assault ship FS Mistral, the lead ship of French Navy task group, for the French annual Jeanne d’Arc deployment. The five-month amphibious deployment will take the force – which includes the frigate Courbet – as far east as Japan and Guam, as fa
The keel for the Irish Navy’s fourth Samuel Beckett-class offshore patrol vessel was laid in Babcock’s Appledore shipyard on February 28. Named after Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw, the vessel will have pennant number P64. It is being built under a contract signed between the Irish ministry of
Austrian Jagdkommandos, an Austrian Armed Forces’ Special Operations group, will embark German Navy tender ‘Main’ on March 2 to support EU’s counter-smuggling mission in the Mediterranean Sea. An official send-off ceremony for the Jagdkommandos took place in the Roßauer barracks in Vienna on Februar
Divers from the New Zealand and United States Navy honed their mine-clearing skills during a two-week multinational exercise that took place in Bland Bay, Whangaruru,in February. Exercise Fulcrum, a training activity involving primarily the Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN) and the U.S. Navy, tested div
Australian sailors aboard Darwin-based patrol boat, HMAS Maryborough, marked the 75th anniversary of the sinking of HMAS Perth (I), with a midnight ceremony over the wreck in the Sunda Strait. The service took on special significance this year, with increased efforts to preserve the wreck over which
German Navy’s K130 corvette Ludwigshafen am Rhein left her homeport of Warnemünde on February 28 to join her Swedish Navy counterpart for Baltic Sea drills. The Royal Swedish Navy is represented by the Visby-class corvette HMS Härnösand. Sweden is not a NATO member but regularly takes part in exerci
