On 3 April 2013, whilst on counter piracy patrols in the Gulf of Aden, Rear Admiral Pedro García de Paredes, who is the Force Commander of EU NAVFOR, met with the Commander of the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) counter-piracy task force, Rear Admiral Giam Hock Koon. The meeting between the two force
On 3 April, German Frigate FGS Karlsruhe handed over counter piracy duties to her sister ship FGS Augsburg in a ceremony held in the port of Djibouti following a successful 5 month deployment as part of EU Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) Somalia – Operation Atalanta. The ceremony was attended by several dis
Whilst departing from the port of Salalah, Oman, after a brief logistic stop, the EU’s counter-piracy flagship, ESPS Méndez Núñez enjoyed a brief rendezvous with fellow EU Naval Force warship HNLMS De Ruyter, who was about to enter the Omani port. ESPS Méndez Núñez did a ‘pass-by’ on the port side o
His Royal Highness the Duke of York visited Royal Naval Air Station (RNAS) Yeovilton to mark the end of service of the Lynx Mk3 Full Mission Simulator (FMS) having himself first flown in it in 1984. As the Royal Navy’s Lynx Mk3 helicopters come to the end of their operational lives and the last airf
Whilst operating in the Gulf of Aden as a part of the EU Naval Force counter-piracy mission, Operation Atalanta, the Dutch frigate HNLMS De Ruyter has refueled from the US auxiliary ship USNS Medgar Evers. The refueling was conducted via a Replenishment at Sea (RAS), an impressive event requiring co
On the morning of 27 March, the helicopter of Dutch EU Naval Force warship HNLMS De Ruyter landed on the flight deck of the Spanish EU Naval Force vessel ESPS Rayo, becoming the first helicopter from another Operation Atalanta unit to land on the Spanish warship. This helicopter landing occurred as
The Deputy Operation Commander of EU Naval Force, Rear Admiral Eric Dupont (French Navy) recently visited Djibouti when on a regional visit to the Operation Atalanta area of operations. During the visit he met with Lieutenant Colonel Wais O. Bogoreh the Commander of the Djiboutian Coast Guard. Admir
Currently it is the 12th rotation of the P3C Orion Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Aircraft (MPRS) and its support group, serving since 20 February with the EU Naval Force. German navy aircraft are contributing to maritime security around the Horn of Africa based in Djibouti for almost ten years.
The crew of hunter-killer submarine HMS Trenchant have passed the nine-month barrier on their marathon tour of duty in the Indian Ocean. The Plymouth-based boat has clocked up 277 days on patrol since leaving Devon last year, continually maintaining the UK’s submarine presence east of Suez. She sail
The Spanish Oceanic Patrol Vessel ESPS Rayo, as part of the EU Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) Somalia – Operation Atalanta, has taken advantage of her second port visit in Djibouti to conduct training on 20 and 21 March 2013 with the Djiboutian Navy and Coast Guard. The Boarding Team of ESPS Rayo and Spani
IMO has pledged its support to assist in the implementation of a new Code of Conduct concerning the prevention and repression of piracy, armed robbery against ships and illicit maritime activity in west and central Africa, which has been adopted at a Ministerial meeting in Cotonou, Benin. The Code i
Some contributing nations support the EU Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) Somalia – Operation Atalanta with specialised assets to counter piracy off the Horn of Africa. Estonia supports Operation Atalanta with a Vessel Protection Detachment (VPD) on board the French frigate FS Courbet. VPDs are ready to emba
On 17 March, during a visit by the EU Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) Somalia Operation Atalanta flagship ESPS Méndez Núnez to Salalah, the Force Commander, Rear Admiral Pedro García de Paredes, met with Omani officials in Salalah. The EU NAVFOR Force Commander met the Commander of the Royal Navy of Oman’s
Playing a key role in the EU Naval Force Somalia – Operation Atalanta are the Spanish Airforce P3-M Orion Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Aircraft (MPRA). The aircraft are based in Djibouti and have been a stalwart part of the operation since 3 January 2009, they provide an unbroken expertise ass
