Sailors assigned to U.S. 7th Fleet flagship USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19) toured the Australian Anzac-class Frigate HMAS Ballarat (FFH-155) May 9. Blue Ridge Sailors spent time aboard Ballarat learning about how about the Australian navy operates. They were shown damage control bases, machinery control ro
Senior leaders from the Air Force and Navy affirmed on May 8 that the F-35 joint strike fighter remains the centerpiece of the tactical aircraft program and will play a large part in the services’ ongoing modernization plans. Navy Vice Adm. David J. Venlet, F-35 Lightning II program executive office
Guided missile frigate USS Nicholas (FFG 47) assisted partner nation forces with the interdiction of a vessel carrying nearly 2,200 kilograms (4,850 pounds) of cocaine, with an estimated street value of more than $363 million, in the eastern Pacific May 6. The interdiction was conducted as part of O
Phoenix Express 2012 (PE12), a multi-national exercise between Southern European, North African and U.S. naval forces, officially kicked off at the NATO Maritime Interdiction Operation Training Center (NMIOTC) in Souda Bay, May 7. Phoenix Express is an at-sea maritime exercise designed to improve co
Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus announced today the next Arleigh Burke class guided-missile destroyer (DDG) will be named the USS Thomas Hudner. Thomas J. Hudner Jr., a naval aviator who retired as a captain, received the Medal of Honor from President Harry S. Truman for displaying uncommon valor du
The guided-missile destroyer USS Winston S. Churchill (DDG 81) received a visit from Commander, Strike Force Training Atlantic (CSFTL), while at sea, on its progress though a composite training unit exercise (COMPTUEX), May 1. Rear Adm. Dennis E. FitzPatrick, CSFTL, landed on the destroyer via helic
Austal held a keel-laying ceremony for the third Joint High Speed Vessel (JHSV), one of nine Austal-designed 103-metre US Navy Joint High Speed Vessels under contract with the US Navy. Austal invited Representative Jo Bonner to authenticate the keel. He was assisted by Jeff Cellon who is an “A” Clas
Guided missile frigate USS Elrod (FFG 55) with an embarked U.S. Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment (LEDET) recovered 89 bales of cocaine in support of Operation Martillo on April 20 in the Western Caribbean Sea. An SH-60B Sea Hawk assigned to Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron Light (HSL) 60 Det
The U.S. Navy has selected Northrop Grumman to produce the next-generation Fire Scout unmanned helicopter using the Bell 407 airframe. The new variant provides greater range, endurance and payload capacity to ship commander’s intelligence-gathering efforts. According to a U.S. Department of Defense
Rolls-Royce, the global power systems company, has signed a $598 Million contract with the US Department of Defense for 268 AE 1107C engines for US Marine Corps and Air Force V-22 aircraft. In the first year, Rolls-Royce will deliver 70 engines valued at $151 Million. The contract includes four addi
The 2012 Sea-Air-Space Exposition kicked off at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center in National Harbor, Md. with an official opening ceremony and ribbon-cutting April 16. After the ceremony, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Jonathan Greenert took part in a panel entitled “Service Chief U
The first Dutch F-35 Lightning II test aircraft, the AN-1, rolled off the production line in fully assembled condition at the Lockheed Martin factory in Fort Worth, Texas, on 5 April. In the coming weeks, the aircraft will be given a special coating. Lockheed Martin will then test the aircraft’s sys
HMS Middleton demonstrated her minehunting prowess during an exercise with the US Navy – finding a grand total of 13 dummy mines in the Gulf. The two Allied navies worked hand-in-hand for ten days – just one important episode in a busy month for Bahrain-based Middleton And despite the trompe-l’œil o
AgustaWestland, a Finmeccanica company has announced that AgustaWestland North America, Inc. has delivered AW139 aircraft to the Egyptian Air Force via its contract with U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command (AMCOM) Contracting Center for Foreign Military Sales. “We’re fully aware of the team it ta
