Australia is considering an Indonesian invitation for joint maritime patrols in the South China Sea, Australia’s Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said Tuesday. According to Bishop, the option was discussed during last week’s meeting between her, Australian Defence Minister Marise Payne and Indonesian o
HMAS Farncomb, Royal Australian Navy’s second Collins-class submarine, pulled into Tasmania for a five day port visit during a recent south-east Australia deployment, allowing family and friends to explore life onboard a submarine. The visit was the first time many of the ship’s company had a chance
EUNAVFOR operation Sophia has started training activities with the Libyan Navy and Coast Guard this week, and will continue doing so over the next three months. The training is taking place on board of two EUNAVFOR MED vessels on the high seas for 78 embarked trainees and their mentors. The initial
Spain has come under pressure from other EU countries and NATO officials after it allowed the Russian carrier strike group centered around carrier-cruiser Admiral Kuznetsov to refuel in Ceuta, Spain. The fleet was expected to enter the Spanish port on the north coast of Africa in the morning of Octo
Spanish frigate ESPS Santa Maria completed her six month deployment with operation Atalanta off the coast of Somalia and handed over her duties to another Spanish warship, ESPS Relampago, on October 24. During her deployment, ESPS Santa Maria conducted patrols at sea in the Gulf of Aden and Indian O
The Five Power Defence Arrangements exercise Bersama Lima 2016 concluded on October 21. Bersama Lima was conducted in Malaysia, Singapore and over the South China Sea, and involved air, maritime and land elements from the five member nations; Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore and the Unite
With an order book of over $3 billion, Austal is the only Australian company to make it into the top 100 defence companies in the world. Operating shipyards in Australia, U.S. and the Philippines, the company constructs ships for both the defence and commercial sector. Defence is at the company’s co
Canadian Navy frigate HMCS Vancouver arrived in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, October 18 to conduct a goodwill visit as part of Westploy 16. Westploy 16 is HMCS Vancouver’s deployment aimed at building strong ties between the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) and the navies of Asia-Pacific countries while also
The first iteration of the international mine countermeasure (MCM) exercise Clear Horizon 2016 started in Busan, Republic of South Korea on October 16. U.S. and Republic of Korea (ROK) Navy mine countermeasures units will train alongside MCM forces from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United
The Australian Department of Defence and Boeing Defence Australia have signed a contract for the next four years of sustainment for the Australian next generation of maritime patrol and response aircraft, the P-8A Poseidon. Australia plans to operate a total of 15 P-8A Poseidon aircraft. 12 P-8A Mar
Royal New Zealand Navy’s multi-role vessel HMNZS Canterbury has returned from Sydney, Australia having completed a nine-week dry-docking period. After harbor acceptance trials were completed, the ship sailed into Devonport on October 10. The ship’s crew will now rest for two weeks alongside Devonpor
European naval ships and personnel spent the last two weeks honing their amphibious assault skills during the Italian-hosted Emerald Move 2016 which concluded today. Emerald Move is organized by the European Amphibious Initiative (EAI) while the Italian Navy was in command of the 2016 edition of the
The CH-47F Chinook aircraft are now cleared for take-off from Australian Navy’s landing helicopter docks as the heavy lift helicopter has completed class trials onboard HMAS Adelaide. One of two LHD ships in the Australian Navy, HMAS Adelaide embarked the helicopter in early August to assess all asp
Royal Fleet Auxiliary ship RFA Mounts Bay has returned to her Mediterranean Sea duties and joined the EU mission Sophia. The Royal Fleet Auxiliary takes over from Type 45 destroyer HMS Diamond, who carried out the role for two months while Mounts Bay underwent planned maintenance, as well as playing
