The Australian government announced on October 4 the signing of an interim contract with BAE Systems Australia for the Royal Australian Navy’s Hunter-class frigate program. The Advanced Work Arrangement (AWA) will cover ongoing work on the $35 billion program, ahead of agreeing the head contract. Au
Royal Australian Navy frigate HMAS Ballarat has returned to port with a rescued solo round-the-world yachtsman. Ballarat’s MH-60R ‘Romeo’ Seahawk helicopter recovered Irish national, Gregor McGuckin, from a French scientific research station on Amsterdam Island after he was transported there by Fren
The biennial Five Power Defence Arrangements exercise Bersama Lima is starting in the South Cina Sea on Tuesday. Involving ships, aircraft and personnel from Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore and the UK, the exercise will include live fire and command post exercises over a two-week period.
The new flagship of US 7th Fleet’s amphibious forces carried out a live-fire exercise in the South China Sea on September 27. Joined by the embarked 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), the USS Wasp amphibious ready group (ARG) conducted an integrated Defense of the Amphibious Task Force (DATF) dri
Royal Navy Type 23 frigate HMS Argyll on Wednesday joined a Japan Maritime Self Defense Force task group led by helicopter carrier JS Kaga for maneuvers in the Indian Ocean. Prior to drills with the Royal Navy, JS Kaga’s group was part of the first known Japanese anti-submarine warfare drill in the
The Republic of Singapore Navy commissioned two littoral mission vessels (LMV) and inaugurated a new simulation center in a ceremony at Tuas Naval Base on September 26. The two LMVs, RSS Justice and RSS Indomitable, are the fourth and fifth of overall eight vessels in their class. Shipbuilder ST Eng
Australia’s Defence Science and Technology (DST) research agency has teamed with L3 technologies to boost research on new technologies in undersea command and control systems, spectrum sensing and shaping, and cyber assurance. “The government is investing $80 billion in Australia’s future submarines
The Indonesian Navy has recently deployed an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) with an aerial magnetic range to determine a ship’s magnetic signature. According to UAV manufacturer ECA Group, this is the first time a navy has used a drone to assess a vessel’s vulnerability to underwater mines and other
New Zealand’s Anzac-class frigate HMNZS Te Mana made a port call in Sandakan, Malaysia, marking the begin of the Southeast Asian leg of the New Zealand Defence Force’s (NZDF) five-month engagement across the Asia-Pacific region. “Te Mana’s visits to Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam reflect the import
Australia is taking further steps to improve regional maritime security with an AUD5 million upgrade of Papua New Guinea’s (PNG’s) Lombrum Naval Base on Manus Island. Wharf and shore-based infrastructure upgrades are to be undertaken by Fletcher Morobe Constructions Limited as part of the Australian
The Royal Navy’s icebreaker and polar research ship HMS Protector (A173) is returning to the ice as summer returns to Antarctica. Following several months spent off South Africa, Madagascar and the central Indian Ocean, the Plymouth-based scientific vessel is back among the bergs. “Protector is well
Israeli defense contractor Elbit Systems announced it has been contracted to deliver naval remote-controlled weapon stations (RCWS) for navy and coast guard ships of an unidentified Asia-Pacific country. The contract is worth approximately $173 million and will be performed over a five-year period,
A Japanese Oyashio-class submarine joined a number of other JMSDF units for an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) drill in the South China Sea last week. This is reportedly the first time that Japan’s defense ministry has confirmed the participation of a submarine in a drill in the disputed South China Se
Australia’s largest maritime exercise has wrapped up in the Top End, following an intensive two weeks of realistic and challenging engagements from the air and the sea. This year, a total of 23 ships, 21 aircraft, a submarine and 3,000 personnel from 27 visiting nations participated in the exercise.
