An eventful 2016 has shown that the Royal Australian Navy’s 33-year old Adelaide-class frigate HMAS Darwin still packs a punch. The frigate deployed on two operations and worked with a number of foreign navies across the globe. The year started with a bang, with the ship’s company viewing the New Ye
Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri has received a South Korean court approval for the acquisition of Saint-Nazaire-based shipbuilder STX France. The French shipyard was owned by South Korean STX Offshore and Shipbuilding who, amid financial problems, decided to sell the French yard under a company-wide
The Royal Navy has awarded British technology company Ultra Electronics a £9.7m contract extension for the supply and production of sonobuoys for the Royal Navy’s Merlin Mk2 maritime patrol helicopter fleet. The company announced Wednesday that its Command & Sonar Systems sonobuoy facility, based in
Spanish Navy’s offshore patrol vessel ESPS Relámpago, currently part of the European Union Naval Force, met in the Gulf of Aden with Task Force 151 Pakistan Navy Ship, PNS Tariq on January 1. During the meeting, crewmembers from both ships cross-decked to the other in order to meet and share common
Sailors from Japanese destroyer JS Yuugiri (DD 153) and U.S. Navy’s USS Shiloh (CG 67) met at sea to exchange holiday gifts on December 28. A week before, sailors from Japanese helicopter carrier JS Izumo visited U.S. aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan for a gift exchange and ship tour. During the m
The U.S. Navy’s unmanned helicopter, MQ-8B Fire Scout, celebrated 10 years of flight on December 18, during a ceremony at Webster Field Annex, Maryland. The helicopter flew 15,000 hours during test and real-world operations since its first flight ten years ago. Fire Scout’s next variant, the MQ-8C w
U.S. Navy’s guided-missile destroyer USS Sampson (DDG 102) concluded its participation in the Oceania Maritime Security Initiative (OMSI) and returned to its homeport of Everett, Washington, on December 23. During the two-month underway, Sampson became the first U.S. warship to visit New Zealand in
The U.S. Naval Surface Warfare Center has awarded Lockheed Martin a $150.9 million contract for the Target Sight System (TSS) on the AH-1Z Cobra attack helicopter. The TSS is a large-aperture midwave forward-looking infrared sensor with a laser designator/rangefinder turret. The system provides the
Scientific Management Associates has contracted U.S.-based KBR for support in providing technical training support services to the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) at HMAS Cerberus, Victoria. Under the terms of the contract, KBR will use their experience in designing and delivering live, virtual and cons
Both James T. Kirk and James A. Kirk were commanders of a super-advanced ‘ship’. The former was at the helm of starship USS Enterprise while the latter commanded the U.S. Navy most modern destroyer, the USS Zumwalt. During a change of command ceremony in San Diego, California, Capt. James A. Kirk wa
Sailors aboard the Royal Australian Navy’s Canberra-class landing helicopter dock HMAS Adelaide helped the Australian Border Force seize 186 kilograms of cocaine and arrest ten men in a counter drug operation last week. HMAS Adelaide intercepted a vessel carrying $60.45 million worth of cocaine and
The U.S. Navy has awarded Huntington Ingalls Industries a $1.46 billion contract to design and build the U.S. Navy’s new amphibious transport dock Fort Lauderdale (LPD 28). USS Fort Lauderdale will be the 12th and final ship of the U.S. Navy’s San Antonio-class of amphibious transport ships. Ingalls
U.S. Navy’s nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73) is preparing to take an extended 40-plus-month break for its Refueling Complex Overhaul (RCOH) maintenance period after nearly 25 years of service. Throughout the first 25 years of an aircraft carrier’s life, it goes through
The U.S. Coast Guard joined the navy for two months of fisheries and law enforcement patrols in the Central and South Pacific under the Oceania Maritime Security Initiative. The mission was concluded on Wednesday, December 14. A Coast Guard law enforcement detachment embarked USS Sampson (DDG 102) a
