After spending four years in mothballs and another two undergoing a £90m refit, the Royal Navy’s amphibious assault ship HMS Albion is deploying early next week to become the flagship of NATO’s Standing Maritime Group 2. “It is a huge privilege for us to fly the flag of the NATO task group commander
Italian Navy amphibious ship ITS San Giusto took over as flagship of the EU NAVFOR operation Sophia in the Mediterranean Sea relieving auxiliary ship ITS Etna. Etna left the mission after almost two months of operations fighting human trafficking and smuggling networks. During her time deployed to t
French autonomous systems developer ECA Group announced its participation in the EU-led autonomous systems integration project OCEAN2020. With Italy’s Leonardo at the helm, ECA Group will join partners from 15 European countries to work on the first cross-European military research program to-date.
French shipbuilders STX France and Socarenam joined forces with Belgium’s EDR to try and secure a contract for the construction of 12 mine counter measure vessels for the navies of Belgium and the Netherlands. The two navies are jointly procuring mine countermeasure (MCM) vessels and frigates with B
Warships from NATO’s Standing Maritime Group 2 (SNMG2) will enter the Black Sea to join their mine countermeasure countermeasure counterparts already operating in the region. After SNMG2 ships from the UK and Turkey enter the Black Sea through the Bosphorus, they are scheduled to join Standing NATO
Two European frigates, one from Norway and the other from Germany, arrived at Norfolk naval base Jan. 26 and 28 to join the US Navy carrier strike group assembled around aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman. Royal Norwegian Navy frigate HNoMS Roald Amundsen (F 311) and Sachsen-class German frigate H
Ships from NATO’s Standing NATO Mine Counter Measures Group One (SNMCMG1) under command of Commander Peter Ramboer of the Belgian Navy arrived in Hull, UK on January 26. The group made a routine port visit to Hull as part of their annual schedule of operations. While in Hull, officers made courtesy
The Belgian government on Friday, January 26, decided to give the department of defense its green light for the acquisition of six new mine countermeasure vessels. The order will be placed jointly with the Netherlands Navy which will acquire an identical number of MCM ships. In addition to mine coun
Looking for new technologies to improve the operation of unmanned underwater vehicles, the Royal Navy used the Maritime Enterprise Innovation Scotland Conference (MEISC) to set challenges for developers. During the conference, held at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow on January 24, two speci
The Romanian Navy has deployed one its four Musca-class minesweepers to join NATO’s Standing Mine Countermeasures Group 2 as it operates in the Black Sea. SNMCMG2, with the Royal Navy’s HMS Enterprise at the helm, transited Bosphorus on January 24 and is currently on a Black Sea patrol. In addition
The Estonian naval forces are hosting this year’s edition of the international Baltic Sea ordnance disposal drill Open Spirit. The exercise is taking place from May 11 to 25 and will welcome 800 participants, the Estonian defense ministry announced following a January 23 planning conference which to
Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) developer UMS SKELDAR has joined the European Defence Fund’s OCEAN2020 autonomous systems project with its Skeldar V-200 UAV, the company announced on January 22. UMS SKELDAR is joining the naval surveillance technology project alongside its partner Saab. OCEAN2020 is t
German Navy frigate FGS Mecklenburg-Vorpommern has completed a six-month deployment to the EU-led migrant-rescue operation Sophia and is currently on her way home. The F123 frigate has departed the Mediterranean Sea and is scheduled to enter her homeport in Wilhelmshaven on January 26. During her ti
Royal Canadian Navy frigate HMCS Charlottetown arrived at its Halifax homeport on January 19, wrapping up a six-month deployment with NATO’s Standing Maritime Group One (SNMG1). HMCS Charlottetown joined SNMG1 in August 2017, sailing in the Baltic Sea, Northern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean S
