Royal Navy Type 23 frigates HMS Westminster and HMS Monmouth returned to their homeports in Portsmouth and Devonport, respectively, on December 14. Westminster returned after an eight-week stint in the North and Baltic Sea where she trained with other NATO and ally ships as part of NATO’s largest ex
Swedish defense technology company Saab announced it has launched a new laser rangefinder named Vidar. Vidar is currently in production for the situational awareness system that Saab will deliver for Australia’s new Arafura class offshore patrol vessels. Luerssen Australia awarded Saab the contract
The Australian government has awarded a contract to BAE Systems Australia’s new subsidiary ASC Shipbuilding that provides the framework for the design and build of nine Hunter-class frigates for the Royal Australian Navy. The country’s government and ASC Shipbuilding signed the contract after ASC Sh
The new landscape of the Australian Osborne Naval Shipyard is taking shape with steel now being raised into place for the Hunter-class construction yard. “It’s estimated the $535 million Osborne South project will create up to 600 jobs,” Christopher Pyne, Minister for Defence, said. As informed, the
US 7th Fleet and Indian Navy officials convened the 21st Executive Steering Group on bilateral naval cooperation in New Delhi, India, on December 12. During the two-day conference, Commander, US 7th Fleet, Vice Adm. Phil Sawyer and Indian Deputy Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Adm. G. Ashok Kumar reviewe
The UK and France have every interest in successfully completing the future cruise/anti-ship weapon (FC/ASW) program, the House of Commons Defence Committee and the Assemblée nationale’s Standing Committee on National Defence and the Armed Forces said in a joint report. The report marks the culminat
The Royal Australian Navy’s future submarines will be named the Attack class, with the first submarine being named HMAS Attack, the navy said. Chief of Navy, Vice Admiral Noonan AO RAN, said the name ‘Attack’, represents the inherent stealth, long-range endurance and lethality of a submarine. “The f
Although the US Navy and Marine Corps are working to rebuild the readiness of their forces while growing and modernizing their aging fleet of ships and aircraft, achieving readiness recovery goals will take years. This is due to the fact that both services continue to be challenged to rebuild readin
The US Navy’s Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) completed a Live Fire With A Purpose (LFWAP) exercise on December 6. Two Integrated Air and Missile Defense (IAMD) Warfare Tactics Instructors (WTI) led teams aboard Abraham Lincoln through LFWAP. They’ve spent the last month w
The Royal Saudi Naval Force (RNSF) has handed over command of Combined Task Force 150 (CTF 150), one of three task forces operated by Combined Maritime Forces (CMF), to the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN). Commodore Darren Garnier of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) officially assumed command of CTF 150 on
Royal Navy Type 45 destroyer HMS Dragon has seized £1.6m of narcotics on the infamous ‘smack track’ – the heroin smuggling route between the Makran Coast of Iran and Pakistan and East Africa. Less than two weeks after seizing three tons of cannabis on the so-called ‘hash highway’, the Portsmouth-bas
The Canadian government has decided to invest in eight new search and rescue (SAR) lifeboats for the Canadian Coast Guard. On behalf of the coast guard, Public Services and Procurement Canada is acquiring the new high-endurance SAR lifeboats from Chantier Naval Forillon of Gaspé, Quebec, and Hike Me
The European Union Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) celebrated ten years of maritime operations on December 8. Commanded from its military HQ in Northwood, London, the European Union Naval Force was officially launched on December 8, 2008. Codenamed Operation Atalanta, it is a naval force generated by EU Mem
Three shipbuilding teams have received funds from the UK to continue developing their plans for the construction of Type 31e frigates. On December 10, 2018, the country’s Ministry of Defense (MoD) awarded three contracts for the Competitive Design Phase. The contracts have been awarded to consortia
