US Navy ships from Amphibious Squadron (PHIBRON) 1 started integration drills with the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) in preparation for an upcoming deployment. PHIBRON 1 is comprised of the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Essex (LHD 2), the San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock s
Royal Navy’s former fleet flagship and helicopter carrier HMS Ocean was decommissioned on Tuesday in a ceremony attended by Her Majesty The Queen at the Devonport Naval Base in Plymouth. Queen Elizabeth, who is the ship’s lady sponsor, inspected the sailors and was later transported on an aircraft l
German Navy combat support ship EGV Frankfurt am Main has wrapped up its deployment to NATO’s Standing Maritime Group 2 and is now en route to its homeport. Frankfurt am Main is scheduled to enter Wilhelmshaven on March 29 after spending five and a half months underway. The ship deployed to SNMG2 in
A German P-3C Orion maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft (MPRA) and its crew have returned to Djibouti to rejoin the fight against piracy as part of the EU NAVFOR-led operation Atalanta. The P-3C, its crew and supporting staff deployed to the Horn of Africa area of operations on March 23 to w
French shipbuilder Naval Group recently announced the selection of first equipment suppliers for the five future intermediate-size frigates (FTI) to be built for the Marine Nationale. As part of the framework construction contract awarded to Naval Group by the French Defence Procurement Agency in Ap
India and Myanmar have kicked off their first bilateral naval exercise IMNEX-18 which will be held odd the east coast of India. Two Union of Myanmar Navy ships – frigate UMS King Sin Phyu Shin and offshore patrol vessel UMS Inlay – arrived in Visakhapatnam on March 25 ahead of the start of the exerc
Construction of a new naval testing facility at the Portsdown Technology Park (PTP) in Portsmouth, UK, is set to begin soon, UK defense technology company Qinetiq announced as it unveiled the facility’s design. Together with the Solent Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), Qinetiq is investing £23m in
US Navy aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) completed a series of evolutions with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) helicopter carrier JS Ise (DDH 182) in the South China Sea on March 23. The two ships were joined by US destroyer USS Wayne E. Meyer (DDG 108) training drills and sai
Obangame Express, an exercise sponsored by US Africa Command (AFRICOM) and designed to improve regional cooperation, kicked off on March 21 with an opening ceremony in Libreville, Gabon. The annual exercise aims to enhance maritime domain awareness (MDA), information-sharing practices, and tactical
The US Navy is set to commission its 64th Arleigh Burke destroyer in a ceremony in Charleston, South Carolina, on Saturday, March 24. The future USS Ralph Johnson (DDG 114) is the 30th DDG 51 class destroyer built by the Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) shipyard and the first warship named for Me
An Indian Navy Heron unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) crashed soon after taking off from the naval air base in Porbandar, Gujarat, in the morning hours of March 22, 2018. There has been no injuries or casualties following the incident, the Indian Navy said on Twitter. “The UAV crashed in an open ground
Italian-based electronic warfare specialist Elettronica has laid the groundwork for further collaboration with Thales Australia and the Australian systems house Daronmont related to the potential construction of nine new frigates for the Royal Australian Navy. Under the Memoranda of Understanding, t
UK-based engineering consultancy BMT and Turkey’s ARES Shipyard have received a new order from the Qatari Coast Guard which includes an additional nine vessels. The order was officially signed during Doha International Maritime Defence Exhibition and Conference (DIMDEX) last week. The new order cove
Royal Canadian Navy’s Victoria-class submarine HMCS Chicoutimi returned to her homeport in Esquimalt March 21 after a 197-day deployment in the Asia-Pacific region. Her deployment was a historic one in that it marked the first time in nearly 50 years that a Canadian submarine operated in the region.
