HMS Ledbury has sailed into Poland for the start of a NATO exercise involving ships from partner nations including Norway, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany and Estonia. The two-week exercise will see the personnel take part in a number of warfare serials including hunting for dummy mines, di
This past weekend, two NATO ships assigned to Standing NATO Maritime Group TWO (SNMG2) paid a visit to the port of Tunis. The port visit provided the crew of the SNMG2 ships a welcome break from the high tempo supporting NATO’s counter-terrorism Operation ACTIVE ENDEAVOUR (OAE), actively deterring t
On Tuesday, 29 October 2013, SNMCMG1 marked 40 years of service afloat with a ceremony in port, during the harbour phase of Exercise STEADFAST JAZZ 2013. More than 260 crewmembers from six SNMCMG1 ships participated in this event along with former commanders of the Group and official guests from all
German frigate FGS Niedersachsen, which is currently deployed with the EU Naval Force, recently carried out two friendly approaches on dhows. To help strengthen mutual understanding and trust between the EU Naval Force and local seafarers, as well as obtain first hand information about possible pira
The harbour phase of the maritime part of the Steadfast Jazz exercise is well underway in Gdynia, Poland. Dutch command ship HNLMS De Ruyter, Italian destroyer ITS Duilio, six ships of the Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Group One (SNMCMG1) and the British minehunter HMS Ledbury are now preparing
Whilst visiting Royal Naval establishment across the UK, Officers from the Royal Netherlands Navy’s called into Royal Naval Air Station Culdrose for a briefing with ‘Sub-Hunting Aircrew’ on tactics and procedures. The Dutch Navy’s Principle Warfare Officers Submarines – PWO (SM) Course visited 824 N
On Tuesday 22 October, EU NAVFOR Force Commander, Commodore Peter Lenselink and members of his staff, visited RFA Lyme Bay. RFA Lyme Bay recently joined EU Naval Force’s Operation Atalanta. During the visit, the Force Commander visited the different departments on board and met the crew members of t
Italian frigate ITS Libeccio carried out a ‘Friendly Approach’ on Sunday 20 October. During the approach, the warship’s crew received information about the movements of maritime traffic in the area and strengthened relationships with local seafarers. The understanding between the maritime community
Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel met with Russia’s Minister of Defense Sergey Shoygu two days ago during the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Defense Ministerial in Brussels, Belgium. The leaders discussed a range of issues of mutual interest, to include updates from the August 2+2 meeting,
A Royal Navy warship has joined forces with Indian colleagues for a demonstration of capability and improving mutual understanding. HMS Westminster, currently on deployment in the Indian Ocean, has arrived in the Indian port of Mormuguo, Goa in preparation for Exercise Konkan. The exercise will run
Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal paid a special visit to HMS Sultan on Friday 18 October 2013 as the Guest of Honour at the establishment’s Ceremonial Divisions. In addition to inspecting the Guard of Honour the Princess Royal presented awards and medals to worthy recipients. Escorted by Captai
In late October and early November the Latvian and Polish territory and the Baltic Sea will be the theatre of the largest NATO and Alliance partner-countries exercise this year, codenamed Steadfast Jazz 2013. The operations at sea will be carried by twelve ships representing eight NATO countries. Po
Since her departure from her home port of Las Palmas in the Canary Isles on 15 July 2013, Spanish Ocean Patrol vessel, ESPS Meteoro, has certainly been very busy. The warship has sailed over 14,000 nautical miles and the crew has carried out a range of activities off the Somali Coast. ESPS Meteoro c
This week Royal Navy frigate HMS Somerset has hoisted the recently endorsed Somerset county flag from its yardarm for the first time in an operational setting. The flag was flown during Exercise Joint Warrior. The red dragon on a yellow background is flown throughout Replenishment at Sea evolutions