HMS Montrose, the latest Royal Navy frigate to complete her modernization in Devonport, set sail on July 7 for the first time in almost three years. The Type 23 frigate began her refit in 2014 and the opportunity was seized to fit her with the newly developed Sea Ceptor missile system. Sea Ceptor an
Defense forces from 17 countries are attending the multinational Black Sea exercise Sea Breeze which is taking place from July 10 to 22, in Ukraine. The exercise is co-hosted by the U.S. and Ukraine and will involve air, land, sea, and amphibious forces. The annual recurring multinational exercise i
Missile manufacturer MBDA announced it has completed the first test firing of the Anglo-French anti-ship missile Sea Venom/ANL at the Île du Levant test range in France. The missile is being developed to deliver an enhanced capability and replace existing and legacy systems such as the UK-developed
The Swedish Defence Materiel Administration (FMV) has contracted Saab for work on the modification and upgrades of the Swedish Navy’s two Gävle-class corvettes. The BSEK 1.249 (approx. US$148 million) contract will see Saab perform life extension services on HMS Gävle and HMS Sundsvall. Swedish ship
More than 128,000 tonnes of water has been pumped out from one of Portsmouth Naval Base’s dry docks to make way for Type 23 frigate HMS St Albans. The ship is undergoing essential repair works following her nine-month deployment – the process of which is made easier by removing all the water surroun
The first of the Royal Navy’s next-generation frigates will be laid down before the month is out after a £3.7 billion order was placed for three Type 26s. Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon yesterday announced the contract with BAE Systems to deliver the first batch of global combat ships. They wi
U.S. Navy’s forward-deployed destroyer USS Porter (DDG 78) on June 16 became the U.S. Navy ship to complete a 60-day Surface Incremental Availability (SIA) at the Rota naval base in Spain. Porter serves as one of the navy’s four forward deployed guided-missile destroyers home-ported in Rota, Spain t
Estimators say over £3M and four years of work will be needed to repair the Royal Navy’s last airworthy Sea Vixen after it caught fire in an emergency landing last year. The veteran fighter suffered undercarriage failure and pilot Commander Simon Hargreaves was forced to bring Foxy Lady down at Yeov
Britannia Royal Naval College (BRNC) boats used for Royal Navy Officer Cadets seamanship training have been upgraded with new engines. The 12 boats, known as motor whalers, have been fitted with a Yanmar 3 cylinder engine to prolong their lives and to standardise the Fleet. Warrant Officer 1 Alan Ri
German defense contractor and sensor manufacturer Hensoldt is to acquire UK radar specialist Kelvin Hughes after owner ECI Partners agreed to sell its investment in the company. The announcement follows Hensoldt’s acquisition of EuroAvionics in May this year. Hensoldt is a new company, spun off from
The United States, the United Kingdom, and Norway have signed a statement of intent to outline principles of cooperation on the P-8A Poseidon maritime reconnaissance aircraft. The statement was signed on the outlines of the NATO defense ministers meeting in Brussels on Thursday. Norway and the UK ar
BAE Systems and Leonardo are teaming up for the development of new precision-guided munitions for advanced, large caliber weapon systems. The companies are expecting to offer new adaptations of Leonardo’s Vulcano — a family of gun-launched munitions that exceed the performance of currently available
A team of Royal Navy sailors aboard the minehunter HMS Bangor helped save the U.S. Navy more than $1 million by finding and recovering a previously lost sonar. The large sonar was lost during the latest Anglo-French-US exercise in the Gulf, Artemis Trident. Although the chief aim of the workout was
Royal Navy’s new aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth was joined by two frigates as she embarked on her maiden sea trials. The frigates’ role is to secure the seas around the aircraft carrier as she conducts vital system tests off the coast of Scotland today. HMS Queen Elizabeth left Rosyth, where s
