The US Naval Sea Systems Command is kick-starting the $21 billion plan to upgrade the four public shipyards to improve their productivity and increase their maintenance throughput in order to support the combat readiness of the navy the nation needs. The Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) Shipyard I
The US 2nd Fleet (C2F) is scheduled to lead the major Baltic Sea exercise BALTOPS 2019, seven months after the command was re-established at Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia. The US 2nd Fleet, which falls under operational control of the US Fleet Forces Command, was set up again after previously bein
US Navy aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) completed its sea trials following an overhaul which lasted three times longer than expected. Ike returned to Naval Station Norfolk on April 1, after getting underway five days earlier. The sea trials were the first time Ike returned to sea
Royal Canadian Navy and Spanish Navy frigate assigned to NATO’s Standing Maritime Group Two (SNMG2) arrived in Odesa, Ukraine on April 1 for a routine port visit. Canadian frigate HMCS Toronto and Spanish frigate ESPS Santa Maria arrived in Odesa after patrolling in the Black Sea with fellow SNMG2 s
US Navy’s Nimitz-class nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) returned to sea March 28 after completing a scheduled planned incremental availability (PIA) which started in the second half of 2017. During the overhaul, the carrier received innovative upgrades, including a
Royal Navy auxiliary landing ship dock RFA Mounts Bay served as the test bed for a mobile US Navy minehunting force during a recent test off the coast of Virginia. The test included helicopters, divers, remote-controlled boats and automated surveying machines and was intended to see whether a task f
The lead ship of the US Navy’s new class of aircraft carriers, the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), will return to operations three months later than originally planned, in part due to issues related to ship’s nuclear propulsion plant. News of the delay comes amid the confirmation of a US Navy plan to r
US Navy and Marine Corps units are wrapping up two weeks of joint drills as part of exercise Pacific Blitz 2019 in and off the coast of Southern California. The scenario-driven field-training exercise kicked off March 12 and is set to conclude on Tuesday, March 26. The exercise involved command and
The Australian government has awarded a contract for the second stage of upgrades at the Royal Australian Navy’s Garden Island base in Sydney. The latest contract represents “stage two” of the Critical Infrastructure Recovery Program which is valued at AUD 286 million. The works represent the govern
Royal Navy’s Type 23 frigate HMS Westminster got underway from Portsmouth to join the Standing NATO Maritime Group 1 (SNMG1) for a deployment to northern Europe and the Baltic. The Duke-class frigate is scheduled to conduct exercises within her task group as well as a variety of port visits that wil
Ship from Standing NATO Maritime Group One (SNMG) 1 and Standing NATO Mine Countermeasure Group One (SNMCMG) 1 completed a scheduled port visit to Plymouth, England, before taking part in an eight-ship maneuver off the UK coast. SNMG-1 and SNMCMG-1 staff took advantage of time in port by having forc
Mine countermeasures ships from eight NATO and ally navies are set to gather in the Baltic Sea at the end of May for the “Baltic Mine Countermeasures Squadron Exercise”. The exercise is hosted by the German Navy’s 3rd Mine Minesweeping Squadron and is in its third iteration. The two-week drill will
The US Naval Air Systems Command has awarded Boeing a $4 billion contract for the procurement of 78 Super Hornet aircraft. The contract for the The Block III configuration aircraft is a multi-year procurement (MYP) of 72 between fiscal years 2019-2021, and six from fiscal year 2018. Navy officials e
Construction on the fourth Italian Navy Multipurpose Patrol Ship (PPA) kicked off with a steel-cutting ceremony at Fincantieri’s Riva Trigoso Shipyard in Genoa on March 14. While being the fourth in its class, this ship will be the first in the “full” configuration, meaning it will be equipped with
