US 7th Fleet commander on March 15 kicked off a series of celebrations to mark the 75th anniversary of the 7th Fleet at the place where the command was formed 75 years ago. “7th Fleet Sailors have flown, sailed, operated and lived in the Indo-Pacific for 75 years,” said Vice Adm. Phil Sawyer, Comman
General Dynamics National Steel and Shipbuilding Co. has been awarded a USD 15.3 million firm-fixed-price contract modification to a previously announced deal for the execution of USS Mesa Verde (LPD-19) docking phased maintenance availability. This effort provides for repair of engine casualties as
Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri and Barzan Holdings, a company wholly owned by the Qatari Ministry of Defense, could possibly cooperate in the coastal defence surveilllance sector in the future. Fincantieri and Barzan Holdings, responsible for empowering the military capabilities of the national arm
The US Navy’s froward-deployed Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Donald Cook (DDG 75) got underway from Spain, to start a patrol in the US 6th Fleet area of operations. The destroyer’s seventh patrol started on March 12, as the ship and crew departed Naval Station Rota. Donald Cook wi
Royal Australian Navy’s Future Submarines could benefit from new carbon dioxide capturing technology which would allow the submarines to stay submerged for longer periods of time. The Australian national science agency CSIRO is teaming up with engineering services company QinetiQ on a project that a
Australia’s first submarine was most likely lost during an underwater operation off the coast of Papua New Guinea as it returned to Rabaul, according to the findings of a report from the expedition that found the wreck of HMAS AE1. The submarine was discovered during an expedition led by Find AE1 Li
The Royal Australian Navy concluded exercise Ocean Explorer, its largest fleet training activity for 2018. The exercise concluded on March 11 as ten ships and their embarked aircraft returned to Royal Australian Navy Base HMAS Creswell. “Most importantly it has seen more than 2,000 men and women fro
The US Navy’s expeditionary fast transport ship USNS Fall River (T-EPF 4) will be not be able to deploy for a scheduled mission in the Asia Pacific because of further maintenance requirements, the US Navy has announced. Fall River was set to take part in the humanitarian and disaster response-prepar
US Navy and Coast Guard units joined Iraqi Navy and Kuwait Naval Force and Coast Guard vessels for a trilateral exercise (TRILAT) in the Persian Gulf. The exercise concluded on February 22 and was the third of its kind executed since March 2017. The exercise was led by Task Force (TF 55) and is part
Italian-based defense contractor Leonardo has unveiled its new OTO Marlin 40 naval turret at the 2018 edition of Doha International Maritime Defence Exhibition & Conference (DIMDEX) in Qatar. The new OTO Marlin 40 is a system designed for fast, lightweight vessels and suited for anti-missile defense
The US Navy’s Military Sealift Command-operated hospital ship USNS Mercy (T-AH 19) arrived in the US 7th Fleet area of operations on March 10 to serve as a platform for exercise Pacific Partnership 2018 (PP18). PP18 is scheduled to have more than 800 US military personnel stationed worldwide, workin
Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) continued its recent string of success by seizing 132 kgs of heroin in the Arabian Sea on March 6. Her Majesty’s Australian Ship (HMAS) Warramunga boarded her third vessel in just four days, interdicting over USD 30 million worth of heroin. Combined Task Force (CTF) 15
Dutch naval vessels will not participate in the European Union’s counter-piracy operation Atalanta off the coast of Somalia this year. This was stated in a letter sent by Ank Bijleveld-Schouten, the country’s Minister of Defense, to the lower house of the Dutch parliament on March 7. Problems with t
HMAS Toowoomba has strengthened the Royal Australian Navy’s ties to international navies after hosting personnel from the United Kingdom and New Zealand during Exercise Ocean Explorer 2018. A junior officer from each country worked onboard the frigate during navy’s premier fleet warfighting activity
