European naval units on Saturday apprehended three persons off the coast of Libya suspected of organizing migrant crossings in the Mediterranean Sea. In an Operation Sophia action which took place in the morning hours of July 9, German tender Werra was assisted by Italian Navy ship Borsini and other
The British Ministry of Defence has confirmed that it signed a deal to purchase nine P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft (MPA) for the Royal Air Force (RAF). Boeing’s P-8A MPA are being purchased from the US Government via a Foreign Military Sale. According to the MoD, the cost of developing and
Royal Fleet Auxiliary ship RFA Cardigan Bay has returned from her Arabian Gulf deployment which kept the ship away from home for four years and two months. The ship supported mine warfare operations in the Middle East – not just by the Royal Navy’s four minehunters in the region, but by US counterpa
Three Royal Australian Navy ships, three helicopters and more than 1,000 personnel are in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii for Exercise Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) 2016. Flagship of the Australian fleet, HMAS Canberra, led the Australian task group into harbor followed closely by Anzac class frigates HMA Ships
U.S. Navy’s Amphibious Squadron One (PHIBRON 1) held a change of command ceremony aboard amphibious assault ship USS Boxer (LHD 4) on July 7. Capt. Keith G. Moore was relieved by Capt. Patrick V. Foege as Commander of PHIBRON 1 during the ceremony. During Moore’s time as commander he guided the Boxe
Royal Navy’s Type 45 destroyer HMS Defender is set to return home to Portsmouth on July 8 following her nine-month deployment to the Middle East where the ship worked with American and French Carrier strike groups as part of on-going operations against Daesh in Iraq and Syria. During her 263 days aw
A submarine hunting helicopter from Royal Naval Air Station Culdrose has been supporting mine warfare training in the English Channel. The airborne anti-submarine Merlin from 824 Naval Air Squadron teamed up with its surface counter-part for a series exercises to familiarise HMS Hurworth, a Hunt-cla
Her Majesty’s Canadian Ship (HMCS) Fredericton returned home in Halifax on July 5, following a six-month deployment to the Mediterranean and Black Seas on Operation Reassurance. The ship departed Halifax on January 5, 2016, and began Operation Reassuranceduties on January 8, 2016. It served with Sta
American global aerospace and defense company Lockeed Martin, which is in charge of manufacturing the next-generation F-35B stealth fighter jet, recently explained how the new aircraft will be taking off from the Royal Navy’s Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers using the ski jump. For more t
The U.S. Navy has awarded Huntington Ingalls Industries a $272.4 million initial contract for the construction of the U.S. Navy’s next large-deck amphibious assault warship, LHA 8. While the initial contract is for planning, advanced engineering, and procurement of long lead time material, the award
Two BMT Defense Services chiefs recently expressed their views on the fleet support vessels delivered to the world’s navies and on the potential for future vessels to be less single-role specific and more multi-role in their functionality. Looking into the future, Andy Kimber, chief naval architect
A P-8A Poseidon maritime surveillance aircraft joined the U.S. Navy’s 4th Fleet by arriving at Cooperative Security Location (CSL) Comalapa, El Salvador on June 23. The Boeing-built P-8A Poseidon, one of the Navy’s newest aircraft is the platform that is currently replacing Lockheed Martin’s aging P
The U.S. Navy’s MQ-8B Fire Scout unmanned helicopter recently deployed with the USS Coronado (LCS-4) to begin flight operations using its new maritime surveillance radar. According to the Naval Air Systems Command, the AN/ZPY-4(V)1 radar, built by Telephonics Corporation, will be used to improve the
The Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN)’s Formidable-class frigate RSS Steadfast became the first non-United States Navy (USN) ship to lead a multinational group sail to participate in the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) Exercise, the world’s largest international maritime exercise. The frigate led two oth
