Operations
Op Sophia flagship back on track
Having spent less than two months idle in the port during her routine maintenance period, the Italian aircraft carrier ITS Cavour now rejoined the EUNAVFOR Med operation Sophia. The Italian light aircraft carrier ITS Garibaldi assumed Cavour’s role on November 25, 2015. Now that the original mission
UK’s mine warfare specialists meet CTF 152 commander
Commander of Combined Task Force 152 met with the UK Second Mine Warfare Battle Staff (2MWBS) onboard the Royal Fleet Auxiliary Cardigan Bay while the ship was in Manama, Bahrain. 2MWBS is comprised of a team of 17 specialists drawn from multiple warfare and engineering disciplines from regular and
US Navy goes green
The U.S. Secretary of the Navy and Secretary of Agriculture kicked off the Great Green Fleet January 20, with the deployment of the USS John C. Stennis Carrier Strike Group (JCS CSG) during a ceremony at Naval Air Station North Island, USA. The Great Green Fleet is a Department of the Navy initiativ
USS Texas makes port call at Sasebo, Japan
US Navy’s Virginia-class attack submarine USS Texas (SSN 773) visited Fleet Activities Sasebo, Japan as part of its Indo-Asia-Pacific deployment. The visit is aimed at strengthening the alliance between the U.S. and Japan through the crews’ interaction with the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force.
Colombian Navy, aided by US agency seizes one ton of cocaine
In a coordinated operation between the Colombian Navy, the Narcotics Division of the National Police and the Attorney General’s Office a cocaine shipment was found in the Colombian port city Cartagena. This operation was supported by the United States agency Homeland Security Investigations, an inve
HMS Bulwark gets new captain
Royal Navy’s Fleet Amphibious flagship HMS Bulwark has sailed into 2016 with a new captain and several trophy additions. Captain James Parkin succeeded Captain Nick Cooke-Priest who departed the ship for a post in the Ministry of Defence in London. Parkin joined the Royal Navy as a Warfare Officer i
Two German Navy ships leave homeports to join Op Sophia
German Navy’s combat support ship FGS Frankfurt am Main and the corvette FGS Ludwigshafen am Rhein left their homeports January 11. They will take part in Operation Sophia, EUNAVFOR’s mission of stopping human trafficking and saving lives in the central Mediterranean Sea. Looking forward to the upco
US Navy names new Virginia-class submarine
The Secretary of the U.S. Navy announced January 19 that the Navy’s next Virginia-class submarine, the SSN 801, will bear the name USS Utah. The ceremony was held in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. By naming the submarine Utah, the Navy is honoring the city that was home to the Naval Supply Depot Clearfi
US Navy clarifies Iranian detainment of 10 U.S. Navy sailors
The U.S. Navy has released a preliminary timeline of the events surrounding the Iranian detainment of 10 U.S. Navy Sailors from January 12-13. As the Navy said, the info is based upon multiple operational reports received by U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT) in the first 24-48 hours after
ESPS Numancia relieves ESPS Canarias in Operation Sophia
Spanish ESPS Numancia, based at Naval Station Rota, left her homeport in the morning of January 18 to relieve the frigate Canarias which was deployed in the Mediterranean Sea with EUNAVFOR’s Operation Sophia. The frigate sailed off to her area of operations after a ceremony which was presided over b
Update: Search for US Marine aviators enters fourth day
The United States Coast Guard has confirmed that search efforts for 12 Marine aviators who crashed off the North Shore of Oahu were still ongoing on Monday, January 18. Air, surface and shoreline assets are actively searching for the survivors and cataloging debris. Of the four life rafts confirmed
Op Atalanta warships train with Djiboutian Navy sailors
During the recent port visit to Djibouti, Operation Atalanta warships ITS Carabiniere and FGS Erfurt carried out maritime training alongside their colleagues from the Djiboutian Navy. The training was designed to mimic intense firefighting situations and the Djiboutian Navy trainees conducted a seri
ESPS Victoria scans the coast of Somalia
The Spanish Navy frigate ESPS Victoria, currently deployed in operation Atalanta, visited a total of 30 craft off the coast of Somalia during the second week of January. These endeavors were part of the European Union mission, and are intended to ascertain that piracy in the area is fully under cont
German Navy’s new F 125 frigates
In the first Newsletter of the year, the German Navy has revealed technical details and the construction progress of the four F 125-Class frigates which are to replace the eight Bremen-Class frigates currently in service of the German Navy. So far, the first ship, Baden-Württemberg (F 222) has been