Two U.S. Navy amphibious assault ships, USS Kearsarge and USS Boxer have received Battle Effectiveness (Battle “E”) awards. The officers and crew of the amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge (LHD 3) were awarded March 3, while USS Boxer received its Battle E for the fifth consecutive year on March 6
Royal Australian Navy frigate HMAS Darwin has uncovered and seized a large weapons cache after boarding a small fishing vessel approximately 170 nautical miles (313 kilometres) off the coast of Oman. The frigate’s crew initially conducted a flag verification boarding. After assessing the vessel to b
USS Fort McHenry (LSD 43), a U.S. Navy Whidbey Island-class dock landing ship homeported in Mayport, Florida, is participating in Exercise Cold Response 2016. Fort McHenry will be the only U.S. Navy vessel participating in this operation, providing support for U.S. Marines as well as Navy constructi
UK’s Defence Secretary Michael Fallon on March 3 announced additional £642 (approx. $907.2M) million of investment for the Successor submarine programme. New parts and facilities, as well as further design work will be funded by the latest investment which will help to progress work on the four new
Sailors onboard the U.S. Navy dock landing ship USS Rushmore (LSD 47) held a change of command ceremony at Naval Base San Diego, March 1. With the traditional exchange of salutes, Cmdr. Thomas S. Stephens turned over command of Rushmore to Cmdr. Sarah H. DeGroot, who had previously served as the shi
The new LX(R) line of U.S. Navy amphibious combat ships could be built faster than the LPD line and could be procured as early as 2018, a U.S. Senate Defense Appropriations Subcommittee hearing indicated on March 2. U.S. Senator Thad Cochran chaired the hearing to review the FY2017 budget request fo
The U.S. Navy’s Southwest Regional Maintenance Center has awarded General Dynamics a contract for the phased maintenance availability (PMA) of USS Essex (LHD-2). Under the $156,5 million contract, GD will plan and perform depot-level maintenance, alterations, and modifications on the U.S. Navy’s amp
U.S. Navy’s amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6), flagship of the Bonhomme Richard Amphibious Ready Group (ARG), took the Expeditionary Strike Group (ESG) 7 aboard for a patrol in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations. Bonhomme Richard arrived in White Beach, Okinawa February 28 to r
Images: EUNAVFOR Operation Atalanta warships met with their Chinese counterparts in the Indian Ocean to conduct joint training on February 27. Main focus of the training were air operations with the ships’ embarked helicopters. The Chinese ships, tanker CNS Taihu and frigate CNS Daquing, also conduc
Royal Australian Navy’s Adelaide-class guided missile frigate HMAS Darwin has started patrols under Operation Manitou having replaced sister ship HMAS Melbourne. The crew of HMAS Darwin has benefited from mission-specific training in the Kingdom of Bahrain, prior to setting out on the ship’s first p
USNS Grapple, U.S. Navy’s Military Sealift Command ship, departed Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story in Virginia Beach on February 29 to begin its deployment to Africa in the 6th Fleet’s area of operations. With a crew of approximately 45 U.S. Navy divers and Civil Service mariners, Gr
Royal Navy’s Sandown-class minehunter HMS Pembroke has been training off the west coast of Scotland for the past two weeks preparing to join NATO’s Standing Mine Counter Measures Group 1. Crew 1 from the Royal Navy’s Faslane-based First Mine Counter Measures Squadron (MCM1) have been putting the shi
Indian shipbuilding company Goa Shipyards has launched the first fast attack vessel for The Mauritius Police Force – National Coast Guard in a ceremony on February 29. The 50-meter vessel, named MCGS Victory, is designed for coastal patrolling, anti-piracy, anti-smuggling, anti-drug surveillance, an
U.S. Navy has awarded Newport News Shipbuilding, a division of the American shipbuilder Huntington Ingalls Industries, a contract to assist with planning for the refueling and complex overhaul (RCOH) of the aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73). The $185.2 million contract option funds the
