Spanish Navy’s offshore patrol vessel (OPV) ‘Meteoro’ has been actively participating in the anti-pollution efforts after the Russian trawler ‘Oleg Naydenov’ sank south of Gran Canaria. The OPV was activated on April 23rd to provide support to the cleaning campaign, since these patrol boats are adeq
On June 3rd, the Finnish Navy received its first three U-700 class (Watercat M18 AMC) landing ships in Raseborg. The new ship class is called “Jehu”. The Finnish Navy has ordered a total of 12 boats from Marine Alutech Oy Ab. “Jehu” is a fast multipurpose boat that has both a large-scale transport c
The UK Ministry of Defence is investing £80 million in new world-class equipment to help train the Royal Air Force and Royal Navy helicopter pilots and rear crews of the future. A £51 million contract with Lockheed Martin UK will support Chinook Mk 6 training and a £29 million contract has been awar
The German submarine U34 joined Standing NATO Maritime Group TWO (SNMG2) and Standing NATO Mine Counter-Measures Group ONE (SNMCMG1) in Tallinn on May 30 for a scheduled port visit. The submarine will be operating in the Baltic under operational control of Commander Submarine Forces NATO (COMSUBNATO
UK Border Force officers were among a rescue team that saved more than 100 migrants in the Mediterranean on Saturday, May 31. HMC Protector, one of Border Force’s cutters, was on patrol for Operation Triton south of Sicily when it was alerted by the Italian Marine Rescue Co-Ordination Centre in Rome
Nearly 370 people – 50 of them children – were saved by HMS Bulwark in her third rescue of migrants in the Mediterranean. The lifesaving incident was one of five being played out at the same time off the Libyan coast as Europe’s navies responded to the humanitarian crisis. The assault ship put five
Royal Navy and Army units are taking part in a series of exercises, alongside thousands of personnel from dozens of participating nations. From early June, UK military personnel will be deployed to Eastern Europe and the Baltic states to take part in a series of military exercises. Collectively name
NATO Allied Maritime Command (MARCOM) welcomed U.S. Naval Force Central Command/U.S. FIFTH FLEET/Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) Commander, Vice Admiral John Miller, and Commander of the European Union Naval Force Somalia (EUNAVFOR)/Commander United Kingdom Amphibious Forces Major General Martin Smit
Spanish Navy’s offshore patrol vessel ‘Rayo’ has just returned to her home port in Las Palmas, Canary Island, after a six-month deployment participating in the EU-led operation ‘Atalanta’ against piracy in Indian Ocean waters. The OPV, under the command of Lieutenant-Commander Rafael Samaniego, had
Royal Navy’s very high readiness helicopter carrier, HMS Ocean, will shortly assume the duties of Fleet Flagship. The Plymouth based ship takes over from HMS Bulwark on the morning of Monday, June 1. The ship will sail next month for the first of a series of exercises that will demonstrate the flexi
The UK Ministry of Defence has awarded a £12.1m contract to JFD for the provision of the NATO Submarine Rescue System (NSRS). The five-year contract includes options through to 2023 and encompasses all aspects of operation and through-life-support. The service will be managed by JFD’s Submarine Esca
Standing NATO Maritime Group 2 (SNMG2) ships arrived in Riga, Latvia, today for a port visit, having recently completed exercises in the Baltic Sea with the Lithuanian Navy. The Group is in the Baltic Sea to reassure allies in the region of the Alliance’s collective defense and to enhance NATO’s mar
A new helicopter-borne surveillance system has been chosen to protect the Royal Navy’s future Queen Elizabeth Class carriers. The MOD and Lockheed Martin UK, as the prime contractor for Crowsnest, have selected Thales as the chosen bidder to provide the radar and mission system at the heart of the C
Royal Navy’s HMS Neptune, the shore establishment at HM Naval Base Clyde, has a new Captain at the helm with the recent arrival of Captain Craig Mearns. A graduate of the University of Aberdeen, Captain Mearns joined the Royal Navy in 1998 as a Supply Officer. His early appointments featured a mix o
