The US defense department has decided to withdraw its invitation for China to take part in the upcoming large-scale exercise Rim of the Pacific in Hawaii. This was announced by Pentagon spokesman Marine Lt. Col. Christopher Logan who said the decision was part of the US response to China’s actions i
A 2015 expedition aboard the Colombian Navy research ship ARC Malpelo discovered the famous shipwreck of 300-year-old Spanish ship San José which is believed to have sunk with a cargo gold, silver, and emeralds worth billions of dollars. The shipwreck was discovered on November Nov. 27, 2015, but Wo
Defense contractor Lockheed Martin on May 23 announced a successful test firing of two production representative Long Range Anti-Ship Missiles (LRASM) from a US Air Force B-1B bomber. In the event over the Sea Range at Point Mugu, California, a US Air Force B-1B from Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, rel
US Navy’s Arleigh Burke-class guided missile-destroyer USS Milius (DDG 69) arrived at US Fleet Activities (FLEACT) Yokosuka to join the forward-deployed naval forces (FDNF) in Japan. The arrival of Milius to the 7th Fleet on Tuesday, May 22, adds another upgraded Aegis Baseline 9 destroyer to the wa
The Italian Navy’s FREMM frigate ITS Alpino (F594) has arrived in Norfolk, Virginia, for the first stop of her North American tour. The tour will help Fincantieri, and the Italian industry, showcase the FREMM frigate design Fincantieri is offering for the US Navy’s next frigate, dubbed FFG(X). Alpin
The navies of US and France have concluded a “historic combined exercise” as the last French Navy Rafale jets took of from the flight deck of US Navy aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77). The exercise, named Chesapeake 2018, began in April this year at Naval Air Station Oceana and continue
Naval personnel aboard US Navy hospital ship USNS Mercy and fast transport ship USNS Brunswick have arrived in Vietnam and Thailand for the final mission stops of this year’s edition of the international humanitarian and disaster response exercise Pacific Partnership. Engagements kicked off in Khanh
US shipbuilder Bath Iron Works (BIW) marked the construction of future Arleigh Burke-class destroyer Harvey C. Barnum Jr. (DDG 124) at its shipyard in Bath, Maine, on May 17. The start of construction milestone signifies the first 100 tons of steel being cut. The ship, a Flight IIA: Technology Inser
The US Navy has shared a video of its Freedom variant littoral combat ship USS Milwaukee (LCS 5) launching Longbow Hellfire missiles as part of the Surface-to-Surface Missile Module (SSMM) developmental testing (DT) The live-fire missile exercise took place off the coast of Virginia on May 11 and sa
The US-led humanitarian assistance and disaster relief readiness exercise Pacific Partnership 2018 arrived in Vietnam as personnel aboard the hospital ship USNS Mercy (T-AH 19) arrived in Nha Trang on May 17. This year’s Pacific Partnership mission in Nha Trang will be joined by personnel from the J
US Military Sealift Command operated ships USNS Mercy (T-AH 19) and USNS Brunswick (T-EPF 6) met with the Royal Canadian Navy frigate HMCS Vancouver while underway in Asia Pacific, on May 15. While it was not stated, the exercise likely took place in the South China Sea as hospital ship USNS Mercy d
The US Navy has awarded Lockheed Martin a $23.1 million contract for follow-on production of enhanced laser guided training rounds (ELGTRs) to support the service’s Paveway II Laser Guided Bomb (LGB) weapons training. The award exercises the initial option of the contract negotiated in 2017 and exte
The US Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) will be adding solar technology to its Hybrid Tiger unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) as it seeks to achieve a flight duration of over three days for the system. NRL has awarded Alta Devices a contract to deliver its light-weight solar technology for the UAV. Alta
US shipbuilder General Dynamics Bath Iron Works (BIW) hosted a keel-laying ceremony for the US Navy’s future Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Daniel Inouye (DDG 118) on May 14. Irene Hirano Inouye, the ship’s sponsor and wife of the late Sen. Daniel Inouye, was in attendance to authe
