HMS Westminster smashed the actions of three pirate groups in a fortnight – sending the boats to the bottom of the Indian Ocean. The Portsmouth-based warship treated the skiffs to a Viking funeral, blasting them out of the water with her guns and those of her Merlin helicopter. With orange-red flame
Over the past several weeks, guided-missile frigate USS Taylor (FFG 50) and its visit, board, search, and seizure (VBSS) team, have actively patrolled the Internationally Recommended Transit Corridor (IRTC) and provided security assistance to several merchant vessels transiting through the Gulf of A
After four years of spending most of their time over the sands of Afghanistan, the Sea Kings of the Commando Helicopter Force have spent the spring finding their sea legs again. The helicopters – known as the Junglies – have taken part in a succession of training exercises to re-learn the art of fly
Sailors from Tyne were carrying out a routine inspection of the FV Farpesca, a French stern trawler, in the Channel as part of their fishery protection patrol when the skipper asked for help with one of his deck hands who’d suffered a suspected broken arm. The Portsmouth-based patrol ship sent her f
Huntington Ingalls Industries announced on May 15 that its Ingalls Shipbuilding division has received a $133.7 million, cost-plus-fixed-fee advance procurement contract modification from the U.S. Navy to provide long lead time materials for LPD 27, the 11th amphibious transport dock of the San Anton
There were big smiles all round when four air crew from 723 Squadron dropped in for a special visit to children from Darwin’s family cancer charity Camp Quality. The Squadron’s AS350 Squirrel helicopter landed before a delighted crowd of children, parents and volunteers at the Australian Aviation He
Sailors of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) and embarked Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 17 returned to the U.S. 3rd Fleet area of responsibility (AOR) May 11. Vinson is currently transiting to her homeport in San Diego following a six-month deployment to the Western Pacific and Mid
On 11 May EU NAVFOR frigate HNLMS Van Amstel released a fishing dhow and her Iranian crew off the coast of Somalia. The dhow had been pirated 10 days earlier and was being used to carry out pirate attacks on merchant vessels. Yesterday afternoon, during a surveillance flight 400 nautical miles off t
Sailors saluted Prince Charles in the heart of Edinburgh as the three Services paraded through the Scottish capital to celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. Ship’s companies from Scottish-based submarines, vessels such as HMS Defender that are being built on the Clyde, plus sailors drawn from acros
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
HMS Ocean took a brief break from her Olympic security training in London to host members of the public as the helicopter carrier opened her gangway. More than 3,500 people took advantage of the free opportunity to tour Britain’s biggest warship while he was moored in the Thames at Greenwich. Amid h
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
Piracy and armed robbery against ships off the coast of Somalia, in the Gulf of Aden and the wider Indian Ocean will be high on the agenda when IMO’s Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) meets at the Organization’s London Headquarters for its 90th session from 16 to 25 May 2012. A High-Level Segment will
