Secretary of the U.S. Navy (SECNAV) Ray Mabus visited sailors and marines assigned to USS Makin Island (LHD 8) and the 11th marine expeditionary unit (MEU) while the ship was pierside in Singapore, November 22. Mabus opened the event with an all-hands call, lauding the sailors and marines aboard Mak
A detachment of 20 Royal Danish Air Force officers and enlisted service members took flight in their aircraft from the Seychelles one last time on November 19 marking the end of their deployment. The Royal Danish Air Force Challenger CL-604 was deployed to NATO standing Operation Ocean Shield. The D
After a year in refit HMS Example has made her return to the the Royal Navy fleet, and taken her place as one of 14 patrol boats that make up the Royal Navy’s 1st Patrol Boat Squadron (1PBS). The Archer-class patrol boat has a new Ship’s Company, headed by Lieutenant Thomas Stapley-Bunten RN. HMS Ex
The Norwegian Defence Material Agency (NDMA) has contracted Kongsberg Defence Systems to upgrade the combat management systems of the Royal Norwegian Navy’s Fridtjof Nansen-class frigates. Under the agreement, the defense company will also update the ships’ active sonar systems. Kongsberg said the c
The lead ship of the Italian Navy’s FREMM frigates recently accomplished a first for the Italian Navy by launching the Aster 30 missile at the Italian Quirra firing range on November 22. By firing the missile, Fincantieri-built frigate Carlo Bergamini tested the SAAM ESD (surface anti air missile –
U.S. Navy’s future Independence-class littoral combat ship USS Gabrielle Giffords (LCS 10) completed its acceptance trials November 18, the U.S. Navy announced. The trials, which are the last significant milestone before delivery of the ship to the Navy, consisted of a series of in-port and underway
Australian Minister for Defence Industry Christopher Pyne announced that Thales Australia has been awarded a $100 million contract to design a major sonar system upgrade for Collins class submarines. The minister added that Thales Australia will engage other Australian-based companies including Sona
U.S. Navy’s Los Angeles-class fast attack submarine USS Scranton (SSN 757) arrived at Naval Base Point Loma (NBPL) in her new homeport of San Diego, November 21. Scranton arrived after completing extensive maintenance at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard (PNS) in Kittery, Maine, and three months of operatio
Royal Navy’s Type 45 destroyer HMS Daring has been tasked with the protection of merchant vessels and Royal Navy ships sailing through the Bab al-Mandeb strait. The Portsmouth-based warship has provided reassurance in the region, being equipped to tackle possible air and surface threats with her com
Ships from NATO’s Standing Maritime Group 1 left Devonport Naval Base on Monday after a routine visit. The international group, currently comprising ships from the Royal Navy and the Spanish and Portuguese navies and a German auxiliary tanker berthed in HM Naval Base Plymouth last week. SNMG 1 now s
The carrier strike group assigned to the U.S. Navy’s aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson returned to San Diego after completing the composite unit training exercise and joint task force exercise (COMPTUEX/JTFEX), on November 21. During their time at sea, the unit conducted various exercises and complet
DCNS, French defense contractor that will be building Australia’s future submarines, has signed a letter of intent with the Australian Indigenous Defence Consortium (IDC) to explore opportunities to include Indigenous Australians and Indigenous businesses within DCNS’s supply chain. The partnership
The crew of the Royal Navy’s Type 23 frigate HMS Iron Duke have started a period of training under direction of Flag Officer Sea Training (FOST) after completing a maintenance period. This period marks the end of her busy operational period in the first half of 2016, which saw the ship deploy as par
Louisiana-based shipbuilder Metal Shark has announced an expansion project now underway at its waterfront shipbuilding complex in Franklin, Louisiana. The expansion is being undertaken to accommodate increased production needs, the company said. Metal Shark is erecting a fully-enclosed 200’ x 80’ la
