Funding
Mauritius welcomes its first EU NAVFOR warship
Spanish Navy warship ESPS Rayo, currently part of the EU mission in Africa, recently became the first EU NAVFOR ship to visit the Republic of Mauritius as she pulled into Port Louis on November 4. During her time in the Mauritius capital, the offshore patrol vessel hosted Ambassador Marjaana Sall, h
EU naval forces off Somalia change command
Warships and other assets deployed to the EU NAVFOR operation Atalanta received a new commander during a ceremony held in Brussels, November 7. Major General Rob Magowan CBE handed over command to Major General Charlie Stickland OBE after 17 months in charge. Over the last 17 months Major General Ma
Royal Navy equipment cannibalization increased 49% in last five years, report says
Amid reduced funding for spares across all the UK armed forces, the Royal Navy has increased equipment cannibalization by 49% in the last five years, a report published by the UK National Audit Office says. While equipment cannibalization can be necessary – and authorized by the defense ministry – i
Australian companies bag UK Type 26 contracts
Two Australian companies have received contracts for work on the UK Royal Navy’s new Type 26 frigates, Australian defense industry minister announced November 2. Christopher Pyne said Type 26 main contractor BAE Systems chose Tasmanian-based Liferaft Systems Australia to provide the ship’s Marine Ev
UK reportedly mulls selling frigates and amphibious ships to Brazil and Chile
Several UK and international reports said the UK defense ministry is considering selling a number of its frigates and two amphibious ships to the navies of Brazil and Chile. Previous reports indicated that the two Albion-class landing platform docks were likely to be sold due to the UK defense minis
Portuguese Navy OPV Viana do Castelo joins EU agency Frontex
The lead ship of the Portuguese Navy Viana do Castelo-class offshore patrol vessels joined the European frontier and coast guard agency Frontex arriving at the Italian port of Catania on Monday. NRP Viana do Castelo will be contributing to the control and surveillance of maritime borders in addition
BAE Systems cuts over 300 maritime positions in company-wide restructuring
British defense contractor and shipbuilder BAE Systems is cutting around 375 jobs across its Maritime Services division, the company announced on Tuesday. The cuts in Portsmouth and Solent are part of a wider, company-wide restructuring which will see BAE Systems reduce over 1900 positions. The move
Dutch sailors train with Seychelles military personnel aboard HNLMS Rotterdam
Sailors from the Royal Netherlands Navy’s landing platform dock HNLMS Rotterdam carried out a local maritime capacity building (LMCB) exercise with Seychelles military personnel. The activity took place on September 25 and 26 and was part of the ship’s regular EU NAVFOR activities. The LMCB focused
Libyan Coastguard, Navy start new training in Italy
Members of the Libyan Navy and Coast Guard arrived in Italy on September 17 to attend new training modules at the Italian Navy Petty Officer Academy in Taranto. Libyan authorities have sent a total of 87 candidates (Officers and Petty Officers) to EUNAVFOR Med for the training. The trainees will att
EU operation Atalanta welcomes Dutch amphibious ship HNLMS Rotterdam
Royal Dutch Navy’s landing platform dock HNLMS Rotterdam joined the EU-led counter piracy operation Atalanta off the coast of Somalia on September 13. HNLMS Rotterdam set sail from her homeport Den Helder on August 27. In addition to the Dutch crew, a Swedish boarding team and two Swedish fast attac
ITS Virginio Fasan welcomes representatives of RNO onboard
On 28th August, Italian warship, ITS Virginio Fasan, welcomed representatives of the Royal Navy of Oman (RNO) during a port visit to Muscat in the Sultanate of Oman. Senior Officers from the Royal Navy of Oman (RNO) were received on board by Captain Michel Orini, Commanding Officer, of EU NAVFOR fla
ESPS Rayo conducts LMCB training during port visit to Djibouti
On Wednesday 30th August, during her port visit to Djibouti, EU Naval Force warship ESPS Rayo conducted Local Maritime Capacity Building (LMCB) training in support of the Djiboutian Coast Guard. The training began with a briefing on board ESPS Rayo for the Djiboutian Coast Guard personnel. This was
UK MoD soliciting buyers for two former RFA ships
UK’s defense ministry is inviting interested buyers to provide expressions of interest for the purchase of former Royal Fleet Auxiliary ships RFA Gold Rover and RFA Black Rover. The buyer of the final two ships of the Rover-class will not be able to use the ships for any purposes other than scrappin
Dutch amphibious ship heads for African counter-piracy mission with Swedish CB-90s on board
A Dutch Navy landing platform dock ship has embarked Swedish CB-90 fast assault craft for a deployment to the African counter-piracy operation Atalanta. HNLMS Rotterdam set sail from her homeport on Sunday heading for Somalia with two CB-90 boats and a Swedish boarding team. The boats were earlier t