Authorities
New Zealand: Investigations of Death of Solider Nears Completion
The New Zealand Defence Force has confirmed that separate investigations into the death of a soldier who drowned during training in Waiouru are nearing completion. On 25 September, 2012, NZ Army soldier Private (PTE) Michael Victor Ross, aged 29 years, from Kaitaia, went missing while undertaking sm
Crew of USCGC Midgett to Return to Coast Guard Base Seattle
The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Midgett, a 378-foot cutter homeported in Seattle, is scheduled to return to Coast Guard Base Seattle after a 75-day counter-narcotics patrol in the eastern Pacific Ocean, Thursday, at 10 a.m. Members of the media are invited attend the ship’s homecoming at Base Sea
EU NAVFOR Reaffirms Counter Piracy Cooperation with Oman
On 17 March, during a visit by the EU Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) Somalia Operation Atalanta flagship ESPS Méndez Núnez to Salalah, the Force Commander, Rear Admiral Pedro García de Paredes, met with Omani officials in Salalah. The EU NAVFOR Force Commander met the Commander of the Royal Navy of Oman’s
UK: Royal Navy Sailor Gets Medal for 17 Years of Service
A Portchester sailor has been presented with a medal for 17 years of service to the Royal Navy while serving on the icebreaker HMS Protector. In an unusual setting, Leading Seaman Scott Black was given the medal standing on an iceberg off Detaille Island on the edge of Antarctica – one of the most r
USA: Raytheon Company Increases Dividend by 10 Percent
Raytheon Company’s Board of Directors has voted to increase the company’s annual dividend payout rate by 10 percent, from $2.00 to $2.20 per share. The Board also authorized payment of a quarterly cash dividend of $0.55 per outstanding share of common stock, to be paid on May 2, 2013, to shareholder
Australia: Strategic Marine to Build LTAC for Gardline Australia
Strategic Marine, a specialist shipbuilder with operations in Singapore, Australia and Vietnam, today announced it will build the Long Term Ashmore Capability (LTAC) for Gardline Australia Pty Ltd on behalf of the Government of Australia. The LTAC will be a 40-metre On Station Vessel designed for re
Japan: Bonhomme Richard ARG Completes CERTEX
Bonhomme Richard Amphibious Ready Group (ARG) arrived in White Beach, Okinawa, after completing a 10-day certification exercise (CERTEX) with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) in the East China Sea March 21. CERTEX is a comprehensive, complex training evolution that combines the Navy and Mari
USS Freedom Joins US 7th Fleet AOR
The US Navy’s first littoral combat ship, USS Freedom (LCS 1), arrived in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility (AOR) March 20, marking a key milestone in Freedom’s eight-month deployment to Southeast Asia. Arriving within days of 7th Fleet’s 70th anniversary March 15, Freedom follows in the wak
Spanish MPRA Crucial to EUNAVFOR Operation Atalanta
Playing a key role in the EU Naval Force Somalia – Operation Atalanta are the Spanish Airforce P3-M Orion Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Aircraft (MPRA). The aircraft are based in Djibouti and have been a stalwart part of the operation since 3 January 2009, they provide an unbroken expertise ass
USS Providence Returns to Naval Submarine Base New London
Los Angeles class-attack submarine USS Providence (SSN 719) returned to Naval Submarine Base New London following a seven-month regularly scheduled deployment, March 19. Providence, under the command of Cmdr. Michael Quan, returned from the Central and European Command areas of responsibility where
Finland Takes Over Responsibility over WTP’s Protection
On 15 March, the German Autonomous Vessel Protection Detachment (AVPD), deployed with the EU Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) Somalia Operation Atalanta, transferred the responsibility for the protection of the World Food Programme (WFP) ship MV Caroline Scan to an AVPD from Finland. The German AVPD returns
USCG, Salvage Companies & Organizations Take Part in Major Oil Spill Drill
The U.S. Coast Guard, Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, other state and local agencies, along with Chevron Shipping and numerous pollution response and salvage companies and organizations participated in a major drill in Astoria, Thursday, designed to prepare personnel for a coordinated re
USS Bonhomme Richard, 31st MEU Conduct NEO Drill
Sailors aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6) and Marines from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) conducted a noncombatant evacuation operation (NEO) drill while underway off the coast of Okinawa March 15. NEO is the safe evacuation of American civilians and embassy o
Cape Verde: HMS Argyll Rescues Injured Fisherman
Sailors on board a Royal Navy warship operating off the coast of Africa have saved the life of a Japanese fisherman who had suffered a serious head injury. HMS Argyll was on operations approximately 20 miles off the Cape Verde coast when she received the news that a fisherman onboard the Trawler Wak