Gulf of Guinea nations held a planning conference July 23-25 to set in motion objectives and initial concepts for what will be the fourth iteration of Obangame Express, a multinational maritime exercise which is set to take place in spring 2014. Obangame Express, one of four major U.S. Naval Forces
The Navy’s first joint high-speed vessel USNS Spearhead (JHSV 1) successfully completed final contract trials, the Navy announced July 25. Final contract trials, or FCT, are a component of a ship’s post-delivery test period and mark the final in-depth examination of a newly constructed ship to ensur
During their recent port visit to Djibouti, the EU Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) flagship, NRP Álvares Cabral held a medal ceremony on board. The ceremony was presided over by the EU NAVFOR Force Commander, Commodore Jorge Novo Palma and the Commanding Officer of NRP Álvares Cabral, Captain Nuno Sobral Do
Stage one of the “Engineering Challenge” kicked off for Aviation Technicians this week at the Royal Australian Navy’s 723 Squadron (CMDR Al Moore). The challenge required two teams of five personnel from 723 Squadron repair a section of simulated aircraft structure following damage that mimicked sma
The commander of Submarine Force U.S. Pacific Fleet (COMSUBPAC), kicked off the opening ceremony of the 13th annual Asia-Pacific Submarine Conference (APSC) July 22 at the Mercure Hotel in Yokosuka, Japan. The U.S. Navy and the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) co-hosted the event July 21-24
Huntington Ingalls Industries’ (HII) Ingalls Shipbuilding division announced yesterday that it has delivered the final aft peripheral vertical launch system (PVLS) assemblies to the U.S. Navy for the Zumwalt-class destroyer Michael Monsoor (DDG 1001). The two units for the PVLS were delivered a week
Rear Admiral Srinivas Kanugo assumed office as the first Flag Officer in the newly created post of Assistant Chief of Naval Staff (Air Materiel) [ACNS(AM)] at the Integrated Headquarters of the Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD), Department of Navy, on 17 July 2013. The post has been created as the si
Los Angeles-class attack submarine USS Springfield (SSN 761) returned to its homeport in Groton, Conn., July 22, after completing a scheduled six-month deployment. Under the command of Cmdr. Chris Williams, Springfield transited more than 34,000 miles and conducted maritime operations in Europe and
The Royal New Zealand Navy diving support vessel HMNZS Manawanui (A09) concluded its mission with Pacific Partnership 2013, July 21. During its involvement, Manawanui and embarked personnel cleared more than 2,100 rounds of unexploded ordnance in the Solomon Islands and the Republic of Kiribati that
General Dynamics Bath Iron Works, seated in Bath, Maine, has gained a $7.5Million modification of a previously awarded contract to deliver engineering and management services for advance planning and design in support of the post-shakedown availability for the USS Independence (LCS 2). USS Independe
HMAS Newcastle’s Ship’s Dive Team has earned a ‘Bravo Zulu’ from the Commander Joint Task Force 633 (CJTF633) while in the Middle East Area of Operations (MEAO), for conducting a complex underwater evolution to remove an obstruction from the Ship’s main propeller shaft. At sunset on 8 July, Newcastl
On 19 July 2013, Read Admiral Eric Dupont (French Navy) handed over the role of Deputy Operation Commander (DCOM) of the European Union Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) Somalia – Operation Atalanta to Rear Admiral Jean Martens (German Navy). The handover took place at the Operation Headquarters (OHQ) in Nort
Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Adm. Jonathan Greenert discussed the status of the fleet, readiness impact due to sequestration, and modifications to Navy policies at a press conference July 19 at the Pentagon. “Presence remains our mandate,” Greenert said. “This is what we are mostly about, and it’
Exercise Sea Breeze 2013, the 16th iteration of the largest annual multinational maritime exercise in the Black Sea, ended July 20, as representatives from the 14 participating partner nations gathered together for the exercise closing ceremony. Naval, air, and land forces from participating countri
