For many, filling up the tank at their local petrol station would have no connection to the Royal Australian Navy. Most Australians would not realise that some of the goods they purchase at the supermarket and the fuel they consume has been provided safe passage to our shores by Australian sailors d
The European Union’s anti-piracy naval force, Operation Atalanta, is reflecting deeply on extending the range of their activities to the beaches of Somalia, where the piracy developments are deemed to be the most intensive. The EU committee has requested the force’s commander to develop plans for re
HMAS Parramatta has provided essential life saving assistance to an Iranian flagged vessel in distress on Christmas Eve. Parramatta is on patrol in the Gulf of Aden conducting the Australian Operation Slipper rotation 27 under tasking to Combined Task Force 150 (CTF 150). On 23 December, HMAS Parram
Anticipating that the pirates will not take a break over the holiday period, neither will the EU NAVFOR units patrolling around the Horn of Africa and in the Somali Basin. Whilst back at home in Europe the families of the deployed EU NAVFOR personnel celebrate this very special season of the year, t
The Spanish auxiliary oiler and replenishment ship, the SPS PATINO, Flagship of the European Union Naval Force Somalia, with the Force Commander, Captain Jorge Manso Revilla embarked, has recently completed a “first” for the mission by escorting a three ship convoy of ships chartered by the World Fo
Deputy Commander Operation ATALANTA Rear Admiral Christian Canova and newly appointed EUNAVFOR Force Commander Captain Jorge Manso paid a visit to NATO Operation Ocean Shield Force Commander, RADM Sinan Azmi Tosun, onboard his Flagship TCG Giresun. With representatives of NATO and coalition Counter-
A team of 24 troops from Uganda, part of the African Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) received vessel protection training from French and Estonian troops in Mombasa onboard FS FLOREAL, which is operating as part of the EU NAVFOR. The training was planned as part of ongoing improvements in capability and
In Djibouti on 7 December, RAdm Christian Canova FRAN, Deputy Commander EU NAVFOR, transferred six powerful outboard motors which had been confiscated from Somali pirates to Colonel Abdourahman Aden Cher, Chief of the Djiboutian Navy. The engines were taken from small skiffs which had been stopped b
The current year has brought a record-breaking income to Somali pirates hijacking ships and crews for ransom, said deputy director of EU NAVFOR – Operation Atalanta in the interview to online Bruxelles2. According to the admiral, pirates have obtained over $135 mln ransoms in 2011, while in the past
In Djibouti on 6 December the Change of Command ceremony of Commander Task Force 465 was held on board the EU NAVFOR German frigate FGS BAYERN. Rear Admiral Thomas Jugel handed over the responsibility to Captain Jorge Manso, Spanish Navy, in a ceremony attended by military and civilian guests, inclu
On 03 December, EU NAVFOR welcomed the German frigate FGS LUEBCK to EU NAVFOR Somalia Operation ATALANTA. Commanded by Commander Martin Ruchay, the ship and her 219 crew members will operate in the area of operations of the Indian Ocean, Gulf of Aden and Arabian Sea for the next two months. Her task
FGS KÖLN conducted her last day of operations as a part of EU NAVFOR, after 74 days in the Gulf of Aden and the Somali Basin. During this deployment, FGS KÖLN was tasked in all aspects of Operation ATALANTA, ranging from the escort of World Food Programme ships carrying food-aid into Somalia to coun
Spanish warship SPS INFANTA CRISTINA completed operating under EUNAVFOR, after 81 days working for Operation ATALANTA. During her time in the Operation, SPS INFANTA CRISTINA escorted one vessel chartered by the World Food Program (WFP), assisting the delivery of 15,789 metric tons of food aid to Som
On 11 November, the Yemeni dhow AL JABAL was handed-over by the Commanding Officer of the FGS KOELN to the Yemen Coast Guard for return to its owner after it had been stolen to be used as a pirate mother-ship. The dhow had been taken by a group of Somali pirates and was detected in […]
