Defense Strategies
Royal Navy diver awarded MBE for daring operations
After the Portsmouth based Petty Officer Diver Darren Carvell, 41, received an MBE in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours for outstanding bravery and commitment to bomb disposal operations, the Royal Navy shared the story of his feats of courage. The story of Carvell’s exploits sheds light on what a day
Canadian CH-148 returns from first operational deployment
Royal Canadian Navy frigate HMCS Ville de Québec returned to Halifax on Monday, completing a six-month deployment with Standing NATO Maritime Group Two (SNMG2). During the frigate’s deployment in European waters, an embarked CH-148 Cyclone maritime helicopter completed its first operational deployme
Russia scrambles corvettes to escort US destroyers in Baltic Sea
The Russian Navy’s Baltic Sea Fleet has deployed two corvettes to escort two US Navy destroyers currently underway in the Baltic Sea. Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Porter transited the Skagerrak Strait on January 20 during its patrol of the US 6th Fleet area of operations while sister ship USS G
Navantia cuts steel for first Saudi Navy Avante corvette
Spanish shipbuilder Navantia held a steel cutting ceremony at its San Fernando shipyard on January 15 to officially mark the start of construction of the first Royal Saudi Navy Avante 2200 corvette. The ceremony was attended by company officials and representatives from the navies of Saudi Arabia an
German minehunter Dillingen deploys to SNMCMG1
German Navy minehunter FGS Dillingen will be departing its Kiel homeport on January 21 to join the Standing NATO Mine Counter Measures Group (SNMCMG1) for a six-month deployment. The vessel will first head for Zeebruge, Belgium, where it will join the international task group. After Dillingen joins
US destroyer Gravely becomes NATO group flagship
US Navy Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Gravely (DDG 107) assumed the role of Standing NATO Maritime Group 1 (SNMG1) flagship in a change of command ceremony in Denmark on January 14. US Navy Rear Adm. Edward Cashman assumed command of SNMG1 from Royal Danish Navy Commodore Anders F
US Navy appoints first SEAL as a Fleet Master Chief
The US Navy has selected a Navy SEAL to serve as Fleet Master Chief for the first time in the service’s history, US Naval Forces Europe-Africa commander Adm. James G. Foggo III has announced. Force Master Chief Derrick Walters will succeed Fleet Master Chief Raymond Kemp as Fleet Master Chief for US
US destroyer Donald Cook resumes European patrol
US Navy’s Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Donald Cook (DDG 75) departed Naval Station Rota, Spain resuming it’s eighth forward-deployed naval forces (FDNF) patrol in the US 6th Fleet area of operations, January 12. Donald Cook was in Naval Station Rota for a training and maintenance
Russia developing improved, longer-range Kalibr cruise missile
Russian Navy ships and submarines are poised to be equipped with a new and improved Kalibr cruise missile that is currently under development, according to a Tass report. The upgraded missile will have a range of over 4,500 km, twice that of the current 3M-54 Kalibr cruise missile (NATO codename SS-
Indian Navy escorts its first WFP vessel in Somalian waters
An Indian Navy frigate reached a milestone recently as it became the first Indian warship to escort a vessel of UN’s World Food Program. INS Sunayna completed the escort for the first time since counter-piracy deployments began in 2008, following an escort request by EU NAVFOR. A WFP dhow was transp
BAE Systems signs Royal Navy aircraft carrier mission systems support contract
UK defense contractor BAE Systems announced it would be providing essential mission system support to the Royal Navy’s two Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers as part of an updated integration services agreement. Through an addition to the Naval Combat Systems Integration Support Services (NCSIS
Dutch air-defense frigate HNLMS Evertsen becomes SNMG2 flagship
The Royal Netherlands Navy’s air defense and command frigate HNLMS Evertsen got underway from her homeport in Den Helder on January 5 to become the flagship of NATO’s Standing Maritime Group 2 (SNMG 2). Evertsen will spend the next six months in the Mediterranean and Black Seas patrolling the region
USS Fort McHenry is the first US Navy ship to enter Black Sea since Kerch Strait incident
Whidbey Island-class dock landing ship USS Fort McHenry (LSD 43) entered the Black Sea on Sunday, becoming the first US Navy ship to do so since the Kerch Strait incident from November 2018 when Russia fired on, and seized, three Ukrainian Navy ships near the the Kerch Strait. USS Fort McHenry, with
After calls for Black Sea FONOPS, US to support Ukraine Navy with $10m investment
The US state department announced on Friday it would support the development of Ukraine’s naval capabilities with $10 million in foreign military financing (FMF). FMF enables eligible nations to purchase US-produced military equipment, services, and training. The department said the investment was i