On Wednesday, 28th of August, Australian Minister for Defence Stephen Smith departed Australia for Brunei Darussalam to attend the second ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus). The ADMM-Plus brings together Defence Ministers from the 10 member states of the Association of South East Asia
SeeByte, the global leader in creating smart software for unmanned maritime systems, announced that the Royal New Zealand Navy has chosen to purchase three upgraded seats of SeeTrack Military. The Royal New Zealand Navy, one of SeeByte’s longest-standing customers, first purchased three seats of See
Over 100 Defence members from around Australia attended the annual Defence Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Network (DATSIN) conference at HMAS Harman on 19-21 August. The conference was an opportunity for indigenous ADF members, APS staff, and Indigenous Liaison and Recruiting staff to meet an
Submariner, Commander Tony “Gecko” Ellis, has found new friends in far away places, during a visit to the Indian Defence Services Staff College at Wellington in Tamil Nadu, India. Commander Ellis is a student at the Australian Command and Staff College (ACSC) in Canberra. He, and a small delegation
Principal Warfare Officer’s (PWO) Course number 50 will be the first in HMAS Watson’s 28 year history to graduate students with one of three new specialisations on offer, including Communications and Information Warfare, Amphibious Warfare or Mine Warfare. The School of Maritime Warfare (SMW) based
Sailors assigned to the Bonhomme Richard Amphibious Ready Group (ARG) in partnership with Marines of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), conducted a visit, board, search and seizure (VBSS) training evolution aboard USNS Wally Schirra (T-AKE 8) Aug. 13. “VBSS operations are another way in which
Pacific Partnership 2013 concluded its final mission port, the Solomon Islands, Aug. 13. U.S. Navy forces were joined by several non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and regional partners that included Australia, Canada, Colombia, France, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, and New Zealand wit
Demonstrating the rapid progress of the Cape Class Patrol Boat Program, Austal hosted the keel-laying ceremony on August 14th for the third vessel, Cape Nelson, one of eight 56-metre patrol boats that Austal is designing, building and supporting for the Australian Customs and Border Protection Servi
The construction of facilities for the new Landing Helicopter Dock ships and Air Warfare Destroyers has commenced in Sydney. Parliamentary Secretary for Defence Senator David Feeney attended a sod turning ceremony at HMAS Watson on August 8th and welcomed the commencement of building works. “This is
The U.S. Navy’s forward-deployed aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73) served host to 78 future officers from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., and Navy Reserve Officer Training Corp (ROTC) units from colleges and universities across America, through three at-sea training phases, J
Members of Pacific Partnership 2013 (PP13) from the U.S. and Royal New Zealand Navy traded places for seven days, switching ships and returning to their respective vessels prior to the end of the PP13 mission’s completion, Aug 5. The Sailors from the amphibious dock landing ship USS Pearl Harbor (LS
Two Australian Defence Force (ADF) reserve officers represented Australia in a country first at NATO’s annual Young Reserve Officer Workshop 2013 (YROW 13) in Brno, Czech Republic 27 July – 2 August 2013. Working alongside 47 representatives from over 30 NATO member or partner nations, Royal Austral
The Royal Australian Navy ship HMAS Choules has arrived at Manus Island, Papua New Guinea, to support Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) activities as part of Operation LANDSCAPE. Approximately 60 ADF personnel assigned to Joint Task Force 638 have been deployed or have already directl
On Monday, 29 July 2013, the Dutch frigate HNLMS VAN SPEIJK, part of NATO’s counter-piracy Operation OCEAN SHIELD, conducted a maritime exercise together with the Seychelles Coast Guard, focusing on search and rescue operations and enhancing coordination and cooperation between the Coast Guard and N
