Two high speed support vessels (HSSV) constructed by Austal for the Royal Navy of Oman have been officially named during a ceremony held at Austal’s Henderson, Australia shipyard April 15. The first vessel – RNOV Al Mubshir (S11) – is on schedule for delivery in the first half of 2016 while the seco
Austal has launched the second high speed support vessel (HSSV) it is building for the Royal Navy of Oman. The Australian company said the vessel was ready for the naming ceremony scheduled for April 15. This second, 72-meter, vessel was built under a US$124.9 million contract the company received i
The Royal Australian Navy has revisited the final resting place of a Japanese midget submarine as part of a program to preserve the Second World War wreck. Involved in the attack on Sydney Harbour which resulted in the sinking of accommodation ferry, HMAS Kuttabul, the location of the submarine was
The Australian Minister for Defence has announced that former HMA Ships Tobruk and Sydney will be offered to Australian states and territories for the creation of dive wrecks. After decades of service in the Royal Australian Navy, Tobruk and Sydney were decommissioned in July 2015 and November 2015
Australia and Indonesia concluded a joint maritime security patrol between the two countries’ waters on April 5. Illegal fishing was the focus the fifth coordinated maritime security patrol, code-named Ausindo Corpat 2016. The patrol had elements of the Australian Defence Force unite with the Indone
The Philippine armed forces are hosting this year’s Balikatan which is set to run from April 4 – 16 in the province of Antique, Philippines. Balikatan is an annual multi-layered exercise between the Philippines and the U.S. Pacific Command which spans humanitarian and civic assistance events, and jo
Royal Australian Navy’s first Aegis-equipped Air Warfare Destroyer (AWD), HMAS Hobart, has begun integration and testing of the installed combat system. Testing will be facilitated by Lockheed Martin engineers and technicians who are responsible for testing the Aegis Combat System to ensure the equi
Royal Australian Navy’s landing helicopter dock HMAS Canberra which was deployed to Fiji in the wake of Tropical Cyclone Winston is set to return to Australia March 30. Following a request from the Fijian government, HMAS Canberra was deployed to Fiji on March 1 to deliver humanitarian aid and assis
Dutch heavy lift company BigLift Shipping has shared photos of one of its vessels loading three former Royal Australian Navy, Balikpapan class, heavy landing craft bound for the Philippines. The company said that two vessels were loaded in Darwin and one in Cairns. All three were offloaded in Cebu,
Royal Australian Navy’s Survey Motor Launch HMAS Mermaid was recently conducting hydrographic survey work in Far North Queensland, Australia and visited the wreck of HMAS Warrnambol (I). The Bathurst class minesweeper was clearing a mine-field in the Great Barrier Reef when on September 13, 1947 she
Australian defence contractor Civmec has hosted a delegation of Japanese representatives aiming to land the Australian $50 billion submarine build. Hoping to bring the build of Australia’s future submarine project to Western Australia, Civmec welcomed eight members of a technical evaluation team fro
Royal Australian Navy’s Anzac-class frigate HMAS Parramatta, the sixth ship to enter the Anti-Ship Missile Defence Upgrade programme, is preparing to undock in mid April. The ship has been undergoing a range of modifications at the BAE Systems shipyard in Henderson, Australia over the past 12 months
Although an official announcement has still not been made, Spanish newspapers reported that the Australian Department of Defence has chosen Spanish shipbuilder Navantia as the “preferred bidder” for the construction of two replenishment ships. This news sparked some outrage in Australia as the gover
Royal Australian Navy’s HMAS Cerberus training facility located south of Melbourne, Australia is set to receive a new Kongsberg K-Sim Engine simulator model. The new model will run on the existing Kongsberg K-Sim Engine desktop simulator the Norwegian company delivered to HMAS Cerberus in 2013. The
