British and American battlefield medics practised wartime operations and procedures off the coast of the United Arab Emirates aboard the UK flagship HMS Ocean. A specialist US medical team joined the helicopter assault group for the casualty drill, one of the tests of the Plymouth-based warship in h
The crew of Spanish Navy’s offshore patrol vessel ESPS Relampago took part in a range of maritime training exercises with the Seychelles Maritime Police, Coastguard and Air force during their visit to the Seychelles. The first day of training focused on briefings about search and rescue (SAR) proced
Days after setting sail from South Georgia, Royal Navy frigate HMS Portland reached what is officially known as the most remote populated island on the planet. The South Atlantic island is called Tristan da Cunha and houses the 6,765ft volcano Queen Mary’s Peak. At 38 square miles, the size of Coven
Royal Navy patrol vessel HMS Clyde recently entered the dry dock for her fist dry-docking period in five years. The patrol ship has been almost constantly on duty in and around the Falkland Islands since her last overhaul in 2011. Those patrols have taken their toll of the hull and machinery inside,
Royal Navy’s River-class patrol vessel HMS Clyde in late December arrived to South Africa on what is scheduled to be a two months long port visit. Clyde reached Simon’s Town on December 23 and will stay there until February 20, 2017. Simon’s town is the home of the South African Navy; it is located
The Royal and South African Navies will gather in February next year to commemorate the sinking of South African troopship SS Mendi. After it was rammed in fog off the Isle of Wight on February 21 1917, SS Mendi took 616 South Africans down with her. To mark the 100th anniversary of the tragedy, the
Spanish Navy’s offshore patrol vessel ESPS Serviola returned to her home port in Ferrol, Spain, after taking part in different cooperation activities in West Africa and the Gulf of Guinea. The cooperative security activities with regional navies are organized by the Spanish Ministry of Defense and t
Sailors and marines from the U.S. Navy’s Makin Island amphibious ready group will spend the month of December in the vicinity of Djibouti rehearsing amphibious operations and conducting combat sustainment training. The exercise is dubbed Alligator Dagger and led by Naval Amphibious Force, Task Force
Canada has taken command of the Combined Maritime Forces’ counter-piracy task force operating in the Middle East region. Commodore Haydn C. Edmundson of the Royal Canadian Navy assumed command on Combined Task Force (CTF) 150 after conducting a change of command ceremony with the Pakistan Navy on De
The Royal Netherlands Navy frigate and current flagship of the EU mission off the Horn of Africa, became the first operation Atalanta warship to dock in either Somalia or Somaliland as the ship came alongside Berbera Port on Sunday, December 4. Onboard were EUCAP Nestor’s head of operations, Chris R
The European Council extended operation Atalanta’s mandate to deter, disrupt and repress acts of piracy off the coast of Somalia until 31 December 2018. Operation Atalanta’s two-year mandate extension comes amidst concerns within European Union member states that whilst pirate attacks on merchant sh
Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) Gold Rover left Simon’s town Naval Base for the final time on November 8. Gold Rover first visited Simon’s Town, South Africa in late 2006 and ever since has been a regular visitor. Simon’s Town has proven to be an ideal location within the area of operations to conduct m
German Navy’s Elbe-class replenishment ship Werra is set to return to its homeport in the Kiel Navy base after spending five months underway supporting EU’s maritime operations. Werra departed port in June to join EUNAVFOR’s operation Sophia to help tackle people smugglers, deaths of migrants at sea
The EU naval force in charge of safeguarding shipping off the Horn of Africa has increased its patrols after Somali pirates attacked chemical tanker CPO Korea off the east coast of Somalia on October 22. During the attack a number of shots were exchanged between the six armed pirates, who were in a
