The Chief of Navy, Vice Admiral Ray Griggs, has promoted Commodore Robyn Walker to the rank of Rear Admiral in the Royal Australian Navy. Admiral Walker is the first female in the Navy to attain the rank of Rear Admiral and to take on the job of Surgeon General for the Australian Defence Force. “Thi
Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) ship Largs Bay has won the Firmin Sword of Peace for her role in the Haiti disaster relief effort last year. RFA Largs Bay supplied hundreds of tonnes of rations and equipment to Haiti after a terrible earthquake struck the Caribbean island last year. The ship, which has
Deputy Commander Operation ATALANTA Rear Admiral Christian Canova and newly appointed EUNAVFOR Force Commander Captain Jorge Manso paid a visit to NATO Operation Ocean Shield Force Commander, RADM Sinan Azmi Tosun, onboard his Flagship TCG Giresun. With representatives of NATO and coalition Counter-
Minister for Defence, Stephen Smith, and Minister for Defence Materiel, Jason Clare, today released the report of Phase 1 of the Review of the Sustainment of Australia’s Collins Class submarines, the Coles Review. The review is being led by Mr John Coles, an independent expert from BMT Defence Servi
The Royal Australian Navy now has enhanced amphibious warfare capability with the commissioning in Fremantle today of Australia’s newest warship, the Bay Class Landing Ship HMAS Choules. Choules, a former Royal Fleet Auxiliary which served the Royal Navy under the name Largs Bay, was renamed after C
A team of 24 troops from Uganda, part of the African Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) received vessel protection training from French and Estonian troops in Mombasa onboard FS FLOREAL, which is operating as part of the EU NAVFOR. The training was planned as part of ongoing improvements in capability and
In Djibouti on 7 December, RAdm Christian Canova FRAN, Deputy Commander EU NAVFOR, transferred six powerful outboard motors which had been confiscated from Somali pirates to Colonel Abdourahman Aden Cher, Chief of the Djiboutian Navy. The engines were taken from small skiffs which had been stopped b
The current year has brought a record-breaking income to Somali pirates hijacking ships and crews for ransom, said deputy director of EU NAVFOR – Operation Atalanta in the interview to online Bruxelles2. According to the admiral, pirates have obtained over $135 mln ransoms in 2011, while in the past
In Djibouti on 6 December the Change of Command ceremony of Commander Task Force 465 was held on board the EU NAVFOR German frigate FGS BAYERN. Rear Admiral Thomas Jugel handed over the responsibility to Captain Jorge Manso, Spanish Navy, in a ceremony attended by military and civilian guests, inclu
On 03 December, EU NAVFOR welcomed the German frigate FGS LUEBCK to EU NAVFOR Somalia Operation ATALANTA. Commanded by Commander Martin Ruchay, the ship and her 219 crew members will operate in the area of operations of the Indian Ocean, Gulf of Aden and Arabian Sea for the next two months. Her task
Huntington Ingalls Industries announced that the company’s Ingalls Shipbuilding division has been awarded an advance procurement contract for work on the U.S. Navy’s third Zumwalt-class destroyer, DDG 1002. The contract is valued at $46 million, with the majority of the work taking place at the comp
In order to meet for underwater navigation capability requirements for the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) the MCDSPO is procuring 34 Underwater Navigation and Integrated Sonar (UNIS) systems, which will allow the RAN to conduct mission planning, accurate navigation and automated hydrographical data rec
The Ministers of Defence of the 27 Member States of the European Union (EU) have started talks in Brussels to try to solve the shortage of … (FIS) [mappress] Source: fis, December 01, 2011; Image: eunavfor
Minister for Defence Stephen Smith and Minister for Defence Materiel Jason Clare today announced that the Government has approved the upgrade of all eight of the Royal Australian Navy’s Anzac Class frigates with an advanced Anti-Ship Missile Defence system. The total project cost is in excess of $65