US Navy’s Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) completed fleet carrier qualifications (CQ) for the F-35C Lightning II program over a five-day period in the Atlantic Ocean. The US Navy said the milestone was achieved while the carrier was underway between March 17-21. Pilots ass
Obangame Express, an exercise sponsored by US Africa Command (AFRICOM) and designed to improve regional cooperation, kicked off on March 21 with an opening ceremony in Libreville, Gabon. The annual exercise aims to enhance maritime domain awareness (MDA), information-sharing practices, and tactical
UK-based engineering consultancy BMT and Turkey’s ARES Shipyard have received a new order from the Qatari Coast Guard which includes an additional nine vessels. The order was officially signed during Doha International Maritime Defence Exhibition and Conference (DIMDEX) last week. The new order cove
Royal Canadian Navy’s Victoria-class submarine HMCS Chicoutimi returned to her homeport in Esquimalt March 21 after a 197-day deployment in the Asia-Pacific region. Her deployment was a historic one in that it marked the first time in nearly 50 years that a Canadian submarine operated in the region.
The UK defense ministry has awarded a £160 million (approx. $226.5m) contract to a BAE Systems-led team to resolve the power and propulsion system issues experienced by Royal Navy’s Type 45 destroyers. The Power Improvement Project (PIP) will improve the resilience of the Type 45 class by installing
US Military Sealift Command hospital ship USNS Mercy (T-AH 19) made its first mission stop as part of Pacific Partnership 2018 on March 20 to offload medical supplies in the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). This is the first official engagement of Pacific Partnership 2018 (PP18), where the Merc
After concluding exercises and at sea maneuvers with Lithuanian Navy units, ships from NATO’s Standing Maritime Group One (SNMG1) started a series of naval exercises with the Polish Navy in the Baltic Sea. The exercise got underway on Monday and included a number of basic and advanced maritime opera
The US Navy has issued a two-ship buy Request for Proposal (RFP) to Huntington Ingalls Industries – Newport News Shipbuilding (HII-NNS) for Ford-class carriers CVN 80 and CVN 81 looking to get more details on potential cost savings which could be achieved with a two-ship buy. The RFP was issued by U
Australia’s P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft achieved Initial Operating Capability, Australia’s defense minister Marise Payne has announced. Minister Payne congratulated the Air Force and the defense department’s Capability Acquisition and Sustainment Group (CASG) on achievi
US Navy’s World War II Atlanta-class light cruiser USS Juneau (CL-52) was located off the coast of the Solomon Islands in South Pacific by the crew research vessel (R/V) Petrel. R/V Petrel, which was acquired by Microsoft co-founder and investor Paul Allen and fitted with subsea equipment capable of
The NATO-led mine countermeasure exercise Dynamic Move kicked off on March 19 at Ecole de Guerre des Mines (Naval Mine Warfare School) in Oostende, Belgium. The exercise will see the participation of mine warfare specialists from 16 allied nations and four NATO partners. Exercise Dynamic Move is an
US Navy sailors and personnel embarked aboard expeditionary fast transport ship USNS Brunswick (T-EPF 6) for exercise Pacific Partnership 2018 (PP18) departed Guam on March 19 en route to Yap, Federated States of Micronesia, which will be the first mission stop for USNS Brunswick. Pacific Partnershi
The littoral combat ship (LCS) mission modules (MM) program completed developmental testing (DT) of the coastal mine reconnaissance (CMR) mission module aboard USS Coronado (LCS 4) off the coast of Southern California February 22, the US Navy said. Consisting of the MQ-8B Fire Scout unmanned aerial
Qatar’s defense ministry has signed a contract with Airbus Helicopters for the purchase of 28 NH90 military helicopters during the DIMDEX exhibition which is hosted by Qatar every two years. The agreement, which includes 16 NH90s in tactical transport (TTH) configuration and 12 NH90s in naval (NFH)
