Austal christened the future USS Jackson (LCS 6) March 22 at its state-of-the-art shipyard in Mobile, Ala. Jackson is the first of 10 Independence-variant Littoral Combat Ships (LCS) that the U.S. Navy has awarded to Austal as prime contractor. The 127-meter aluminum trimaran is capable of being o
The Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Wayne E. Meyer (DDG 108) departed Naval Base San Diego March 20 on an independent deployment to the Western Pacific Ocean. Wayne E. Meyer has a crew of nearly 300 officers and enlisted Sailors and is a multi-mission ship designed to operate inde
A Birkenhead company is undertaking a refit worth over £47m for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary’s (RFA) biggest ship. More than 200 highly skilled engineers from Cammell Laird will refurbish RFA Fort Victoria at their Birkenhead yard. Work will include a complete overhaul of the engine, main propulsion
On March 15, a U.S. Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment aboard her Majesty’s Canadian Ship (HMCS) Glace Bay, assigned to Joint Interagency Task Force South, patrolling the Caribbean Sea, identified the King Gold, a Panamanian-flagged fishing vessel suspected of smuggling drugs. The LEDET boarded
At the DIMDEX exhibition in Doha, Qatar (25-27 March 2014), MBDA is presenting for the first time ever a new coastal defence system based on the Marte missile family. The Marte Coastal Defence System (MCDS) guarantees maritime coastal traffic surveillance and interdiction to hostile ships in terri
Guided-missile frigate USS Simpson (FFG 56) returned home to Naval Station Mayport, Fla., March 20, after a six-month deployment to the 6th Fleet Area of Responsibility. While deployed, the crew conducted more than 700 flight hours in support of regional and maritime security. The crew conducted m
The Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star is scheduled to return to their homeport of Coast Guard Base Seattle at 10:00 a.m., Friday, March 21, 2014, following a 108-day deployment of Operation Deep Freeze 2014. Polar Star departed Seattle Dec. 3rd, 2013, and made port calls in Honolulu, Sydney, Australia
After completing an Operation RESOLUTE deployment in Darwin, HMAS Ballarat commenced a fast transit down the West Coast towards Fleet Base West. Ballarat was in company with HMAS Success as they passed through one of the most important areas on Australia’s long coastline. The North West shelf reso
The U.S. 6th Fleet flagship USS Mount Whitney (LCC 20) arrived in her homeport of Gaeta, Italy, March 20, after a three-day underway, in which a number of drills and training scenarios were completed. Evolutions accomplished included basic and advanced damage control, steering casualties, helicopt
The U.S. will soon have another system to defend against ballistic missiles. Raytheon Company delivered its ninth AN/TPY-2 ballistic missile defense radar to the Missile Defense Agency, six months ahead of schedule. AN/TPY-2 is an integral element of the Ballistic Missile Defense System. It is a m
HMS Defender has flexed her considerable muscle in the final phase of her pre-deployment training package to see off attacks from fighter jets, pirates and small boat attack. The Royal Navy’s most powerful destroyer has proven her worth across the full spectrum of the ships war fighting capability
A U.S. Navy P-8A Poseidon patrol aircraft completed its transition from Kuala Lumpur to Perth March 18 to continue the search for Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 in the southern Indian Ocean. “The search has expanded to the southern portions of the Indian Ocean and the P-8A has the range required t
Twenty-five U.S. Navy personnel remain aboard the oil tanker Morning Glory after a team of Navy SEALs boarded and took control of the ship on March 17, Army Col. Steve Warren, a Pentagon spokesman, said yesterday. U.S. forces took control of the tanker in international waters at the request of the g
Guided-missile destroyer USS Truxtun (DDG 103) partnered with regional NATO allies Romania and Bulgaria for a passing exercise (PASSEX) in the Black Sea, March 19, to enhance maritime capabilities between these countries. The exercise allowed Truxtun and the Romanian navy the opportunity to conduc
