Contracts
Babcock, BAE bag £170m worth of Royal Navy contracts
The UK defence ministry’s Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) office signed a seven-year contract with Babcock International Group to keep Royal Navy ships supplied with items essential for day-to-day maintenance and operations. The contract, announced by defence minister Harriett Baldwin in Portsm
BAE Systems gets $33m contract for USS Lassen dry-docking refit
The U.S. Navy has awarded BAE Systems Southeast Shipyards Mayport a $33.6 million firm-fixed-price contract for work on the Dry-dock Selected Restricted Availability (DSRA) repairs of guided-missile destroyer USS Lassen (DDG 82). According to a U.S. Department of Defense announcement, the work will
Royal Navy frigate HMS Montrose wraps up sea trials after upgrade
Royal Navy’s Type 23 frigate HMS Montrose has returned to Plymouth after successful machinery and weapons trials at sea, the navy said. Montrose returned to port three weeks after leaving dry dock where it spent three years undergoing a mid.life upgrade. The ship’s engines have been pushed to the li
Australia’s ASC opens upgraded submarine facilities
Australian government-owned shipbuilder ASC on Monday opened new facilities in Henderson that will increase the efficiency of the maintenance and sustainment of Australia’s submarine fleet. The $13 million upgrade enables the co-location of essential facilities, which will deliver a significant incr
First Canadian company joins UK Type 26 supply chain
Engineering firm WR Davis became the first Canadian company to be picked by BAE Systems to deliver equipment for the construction of the Royal Navy’s new Type 26 frigates. BAE Systems as the prime contractor on the program awarded a C$12m contract to WR Davis Engineering Ltd for the uptake and downt
Royal Navy submarine HMS Astute wraps up maintenance
Royal Navy’s nuclear-powered hunter-killer submarine HMS Astute has returned to the fleet after completing a major capability upgrade and a sea training period. HMS Astute’s sea training process tested all aspects of the equipment and crew, ensuring that she is ready to respond to emergency situatio
Royal Navy refurbishing old Gibraltar signal station
The UK Royal Navy announced an investment of £2 million for the expansion and modernization of Gibraltar’s ‘Windy Hill’ monitoring station. Sitting high above the Strait of Gibraltar, personnel at the monitoring facility keep an eye on 60,000 ships entering or leaving the Mediterranean, or crossing
USS Milius (DDG 69) to forward-deploy to Japan after BMD upgrade
The ballistic missile defense (BMD)-capable guided missile destroyer USS Milius (DDG 69) will be deploying to Japan once it completes testing and certification. The U.S. Navy announced the destroyer would become part of the Forward Deployed Naval Forces (FDNF) based at Commander Fleet Activities Yok
Tods Defence to design and build Type 26 sonar domes
Tods Defence, a Unitech Aerospace Company, announced it has been selected by prime contractor BAE Systems to design and manufacture bow sonar domes for the Royal Navy’s Type 26 frigates. The company announced this contract after a steel-cutting ceremony on Thursday which marked the construction star
UK starts construction of first Type 26 frigate HMS Glasgow
The name of the first Type 26 frigate to be built for the Royal Navy has been announced during a steel-cutting ceremony held at Govan shipyard in Scotland. Pressing the button which officially marked the ship’s construction start, UK Defence Secretary Michael Fallon announced that the first Type 26
US Navy fires first Tomahawks from new Virginia-class payload tubes
The U.S. Navy has test fired two Tomahawk cruise missiles from the newly designed submarine payload tubes on the Virginia-class USS North Dakota (SSN-784) for the first time ever. The tests took place in the Gulf of Mexico near Florida and proved the submarine’s ability to load, carry and vertically
DARPA contracts BAE Systems for submarine sonar enhancement
The U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has awarded BAE Systems a $4.6 million contract to work on enabling submarines to detect other submerged vessels at greater distances, while minimizing the risk of counter-detection. BAE will work under DARPA’s Mobile Offboard Clandestine Co
BAE Systems to develop UK’s first autonomous systems testing service
UK-based defense contractor BAE Systems announced it has been awarded £457,000 to design and deliver the UK’s first dedicated autonomous systems testing service. The grants were awarded by the Solent Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), a locally-owned partnership between businesses and authorities.
US Navy, Marine Corps anticipate F-35B shipboard deployment
U.S. Navy and Marine Corps leaders gathered in Pearl Harbor last month for the “Joint Strike Fighter Sustainment Summit” in anticipation of the first shipboard deployment of the F-35B Lightning II. The attendees focused on planning and preparing the logistical support for the F-35B Lightning II’s fi