Following their recent port visit to the Seychelles, EU Naval Force Warship FS Floréal assisted four Seychelles fishermen who were stopped in the water having suffered an engine failure on their way back to the Seychelles. FS Floreal was just a few hours from the Seychelles when she saw the small
The U.S. Navy’s ninth multilateral Pacific Partnership mission will include an enhanced role for Japan, and simultaneous seaborne and airborne phases, to improve disaster response preparedness in five Southeast Asia host nations beginning in late May. Directly assisting host nations Vietnam, Cambo
Defence Minister Jonathan Coleman says the Government is committed to strengthening the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF), and will be investing $100.9 million of operating funding in 2014/2015. “This significant investment in our Defence Force, combined with the savings and reinvestment achieved t
The frigate ‘Cristóbal Colón’ (F-105), flagship of the Standing NATO Maritime Group 2 (SNMG-2) is currently participating in operation ‘Ocean Shield’ fighting piracy in the Indian Ocean. In the course of a scheduled port of call in the Seychelles Islands, the ship conducted a series of training ac
Australia will acquire another 58 F-35A Lightning II aircraft in a major boost to the nation’s air combat capability, Prime Minister Tony Abbott announced in Canberra on April 23. The additional aircraft will lift the total number of F-35As Australia will acquire to 72, after a previous decision t
At the recent media conference conducted by the Chief Coordinator of the Joint Agency Coordination Centre, Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston (Ret’d), said that the Australian Defence Vessel Ocean Shield had detected an oil slick on Sunday evening in her current search area. Preliminary analysis of t
The U.S. Department of Defense and Republic of Korea (ROK) Ministry of National Defense held the 5th Korea-U.S. Integrated Defense Dialogue (KIDD) on April 15-16 in Washington, D.C. Over the course of the two-day meeting, ROK Deputy Minister for Defense Policy Yoo, Jeh Seung, met with the U.S. Chief
The oil sample collected by Australian Defence Vessel (ADV) Ocean Shield on Sunday within the search mission for missing MH 370 has now arrived in Perth and will be subject to detailed testing and analysis. Australian Joint Agency Coordination Centre (JACC) said that it will provide details of the r
The 25-member Royal Australian Navy counter terrorism taskforce, Combined Taskforce 150 (CTF150), returned to Australia today after a successful five month Middle East deployment, which resulted in the interdiction of significant amounts of drugs headed to fund violent and extremist organisations.
The Chief of Navy of the Royal Navy of New Zealand, Rear Admiral Jack Steer, visited Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) on Wednesday, 9 April 2014. Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe (DSACEUR) General Sir Adrian Bradshaw and SHAPE Chief of Staff (COS) General Werner Freers met w
An assessment and planning assistance team of 11 ADF personnel has arrived in the Solomon Islands capital of Honiara to support assessment of the damage caused by widespread flooding. The 11 person assessment and planning assistance team is supporting specialist advisers from the Department of For
Australian Defence Vessel (ADV) Ocean Shield deployed its towed pinger locator (TPL) for the first time on the morning of 4 April, as part of its ongoing search for missing Flight MH 370. Almost 600 nautical miles west of Exmouth, the TPL was towed around 3,500 metres below the surface along the p
The Boxer Amphibious Ready Group (BOXARG), with embarked 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), began participation in Exercise Ssang Yong 2014 March 27 off the coast of the Republic of Korea (ROK) with the ROK navy and Marine Corps. Ssang Yong, which means “twin dragons,” is an annual combined exe
The U.S. and Republic of Korea (ROK) navies enhanced their combined and joint maritime capabilities after completing a series of drills and exercises ashore and at sea from March 8-31 in support of exercise Foal Eagle 2014. Exercise Foal Eagle in an umbrella of regularly scheduled, annual exercise