French Navy aircraft carrier FS Charles de Gaulle and its carrier strike group are set to sail to India where they will be joined by Indian Navy aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya and other units for what was described as the largest naval exercise between the two countries ever. The drill, which is
The French defense procurement agency has accepted delivery of the fourth and final d’Entrecasteaux-class multi-mission ship from the Kership joint venture. Dumont d’Urville, as the unit is called, was delivered to the French Navy in a ceremony on April 5. Like its predecessors, the ship will sail f
HNoMS Maud, the Royal Norwegian Navy’s new logistics and support vessel, arrived to its new homeport of Haakonsvern navy base after a 14,598 nautical mile voyage from South Korea where it was built by Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME). Maud arrived in Norway in late March after visitin
US Navy aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) arrived in Palma de Mallorca, Spain, on April 15, for its first port visit in seven years. The ship completed completed a mid-life overhaul in 2017 and has been working up for this deployment ever since. The visit marks the first liberty port cal
The Royal Norwegian Navy frigate HNoMS Helge Ingstad was refloated on April 10, less than six weeks after she was transported to the Haakonsvern navy base from the seafloor in Hjeltefjorden. Prior to her raising and transport, the frigate spent several months almost completely submerged after collid
Ships from the navies of the US, the UK and France have kicked off the mine countermeasures exercise Artemis Trident in the Persian Gulf. “Mine laying poses a risk to naval ships as well as merchant shipping vessels,” the US 5th Fleet said in an announcement. “As mines threaten maritime traffic indi
The Romanian-hosted exercise Sea Shield 2019 concluded in the Black Sea on April 13. In addition to Romanian Navy units, the annual drill was joined by five NATO ships which are part of the Standing NATO Maritime Group Two (SNMG2). In total, over 20 ships and crews from Romania, Bulgaria, Canada, Gr
Royal Navy Type 45 destroyer HMS Dragon returned to Portsmouth on April 12, completing seven months of drug-busting action in the Middle East. During her time at sea, Dragon carried out eight successful raids on drugs smugglers, capturing narcotics worth an estimated £145 million. HMS Dragon deploye
Royal Navy frigate HMS Montrose arrived in Bahrain on April 3 to start a three-year mission in the Persian Gulf state. Montrose sailed into the UK’s new support facility in Bahrain after a six-month journey, which saw her cover 47,000-miles from her home in Plymouth. From Bahrain, she will conduct r
German Navy F124 frigate FGS Hessen is scheduled to depart its Wilhelmshaven homeport on April 11 to join the Standing NATO Maritime Group 2 (SNMG 2). The air-defense frigate will replace another German vessel currently deployed to the mission in the Aegean Sea. Combat support ship Bonn deployed to
Royal Navy pilots flying UK F-35B jets in Cyprus will mark the first time in over a decade UK naval aviators are operating overseas. Two months of training in the eastern Mediterranean is lined up for the men and women of the Lightning Force in preparation for their first spell of training aboard HM
NATO’s Allied Maritime Command hosted a ceremony on the 70th anniversary of the alliance to ceremonially activate a new command called Commander Surface Forces NATO (COMSURFNATO). This April 4 activation is part of NATO’s Command Structure Adaptation (NCS-A) remarking new NATO at its birthday. One o
A Royal Australian Navy task group composed of a helicopter carrier, frigates, and a submarine arrived in India ahead of the start of exercise Ausindex. This is the second time India is hosting the exercise, which was first held in September 2015 at Visakhaptnam. Landing helicopter dock HMAS Canberr
The Royal Navy is set to deploy a large task group to the Baltic Sea for two months of international operations. Amphibious transport dock HMS Albion will spearhead the “Baltic Protector” mission, involving nearly 2,000 British personnel from all three services. The deployment is the first large-sca
