HMS Defender took families and friends to sea for the first time recently, showing off the ship and giving family members the chance to see what life is like at sea for their serving relations. The day included escorting HMS Edinburgh into harbour for the last time before she was decommissioned, ful
Sandown-class minehunter HMS Ramsey may only be a sixteenth of the size of HMS Dragon, a Type 45 air defence destroyer, but the two vessels are working side by side maintaining maritime security in the region – a task the Royal Navy has been undertaking for over twenty years. Two Sandown and two Hun
Between 17- 21 of June 2013, the EU Naval Force Portuguese flagship, NRP Álvares Cabral, visited the port of Pemba in Mozambique. Given the strong relations that exist between Mozambique, the European Union and specifically, Portugal, when NRP Alvares Cabral sailed in to the port, her crew were give
The Royal Navy is to get its first unmanned ‘eye in the sky’ in a £30m deal to buy the ScanEagle reconnaissance aircraft. The pilotless plane has been used by the US Navy over the past decade and has been trialled by the Royal Navy. Whitehall is investing in the small, unarmed ScanEagle robot planes
For the first time one of the Royal Navy’s new Type 45 destroyers has used two helicopters on front-line operations. HMS Dragon doubled her effectiveness for two months flying not the usual one, but two Lynx helicopters from her flight deck. The destroyer, on her maiden deployment, left Portsmouth i
The number of reported attacks and suspicious activity is down over the last week. This decrease in reports may be due in part, to an improved understanding of the operating environment as ship’s masters and security teams continue to transit the region. Another factor could be the recent meetings b
The guided-missile cruiser USS Hue City (CG 66) arrived in Palma de Mallorca, Spain, June 18. The visit will provide the crew with well-deserved rest and relaxation before continuing on to the ship’s homeport of Mayport, Fla. The Hue City’s crew recently completed their mission to the U.S. 5th Fleet
The Royal Navy’s Type 23 frigate will visit the British Overseas Territory later this week – the third port on her deployment after first stopping in Bermuda and then Key West, Florida. Lancaster, affectionately nicknamed ‘The Queen’s Frigate’ after her sponsor Her Majesty The Queen, will visit all
During the three-month long deployment of the FREMM frigate Aquitaine, the implementation crew for the NH90 helicopter from 33F Squadron had an opportunity to experience the operational capabilities of the FLASH SONICS system. The FLASH system (Folding Light Acoustic System for Helicopters) is an ac
Rear Admiral Antonio Natale, Italian Navy, handed over command of Standing NATO Maritime Group 2 (SNMG2) on Saturday, 15 June 2013 to Rear Admiral Eugenio Díaz Del Río, Spanish Navy, concluding a very successful six-month NATO deployment. The ceremony, presided over by Vice Admiral Peter Hudson, NAT
HMS Lancaster, ‘The Queen’s Frigate,’ celebrates the official birthday of her lady sponsor, Her Majesty The Queen by ‘dressing ship’ in Key West, Florida. HMS Lancaster, one of the Royal Navy’s Type 23 frigates, visited Key West 15 June 2013 as part of her six-month deployment to the North Atlantic
4,500 miles from home, sailors of HMS Lancaster celebrate Father’s Day 2.5 weeks into her 6 month deployment to the North Atlantic and Caribbean. With many sailors missing their fathers at home, it was the turn for the fathers on board to open their cards. One of the Royal Navy’s Type 23 frigates HM
Romanian helicopter manufacturer IAR Brasov has chosen Thales to supply TMS 2000 sonobuoy processors to equip IAR-330 Pumahelicopters operated by the Romanian Navy. The processors will give the Romanian Navy a decisive anti-submarine warfare (ASW) capability to detect submarines in the Black Sea, in
HMS Dragon Escorts Gigantic LNG Carrier through Strait of Hormuz HMS Dragon helped shepherd a gigantic gas tanker through one of the world’s most important ‘choke points’ during an exercise to hone protecting sea trade. Multinational Amphibious Exercise Dawn Blitz 2013 Kicks Off Marines and sailors
