The Netherlands-based shipbuilding group Damen Shipyards is ready to build Germany’s new MKS180 frigates at the Blohm+Voss shipyard in Hamburg, the company has told German parliament members. This is according to a letter seen by German news agency Welt in which Damen, together with its bidding part
Sailors aboard the Royal Australian Navy’s Collins-class submarine HMAS Rankin held a burial at sea ceremony recently, scattering the ashes of three former Royal Navy submariners off the coast of Western Australia. The ceremony is known as a Committal of Ashes to the Sea (COATS) in the Royal Austral
French defense procurement agency Directorate General of Armament (DGA) has authorized companies iXblue H2X and Cegelec Defense and Naval Southeast to build five follow-on hybrid-propulsion multi-mission barges for the French Navy. The March 6 announcement follows a successful operational trial for
Italian-based defense contractor Leonardo has unveiled its new OTO Marlin 40 naval turret at the 2018 edition of Doha International Maritime Defence Exhibition & Conference (DIMDEX) in Qatar. The new OTO Marlin 40 is a system designed for fast, lightweight vessels and suited for anti-missile defense
Dutch naval vessels will not participate in the European Union’s counter-piracy operation Atalanta off the coast of Somalia this year. This was stated in a letter sent by Ank Bijleveld-Schouten, the country’s Minister of Defense, to the lower house of the Dutch parliament on March 7. Problems with t
US Navy’s Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima (LHD 7) arrived off the coast of Israel on March 6 to take part in exercise Juniper Cobra 2018. Although Iwo Jima and the embarked 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) will not participate directly in the ballistic missile defense portion of
UK’s defense procurement minister Guto Bebb on March 6 informed MPs that the UK defense ministry received the treasury approval to award a construction contract for the Royal Navy’s seventh Astute-class submarine. Negotiations are still ongoing, it was noted, and the new contingent liabilities assoc
German Navy’s Brandenburg-class frigate FGS Bayern is scheduled to get underway from her homeport of Wilhelmsaven on March 7 to start a six-month deployment to the Aegean Sea. During their time in the Aegean Sea, the frigate and her crew will operate as part of the Standing NATO Maritime Group 2 (SN
The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Carney (DDG 64) departed the Black Sea on March 3, after conducting maritime security operations. The US Navy vessel entered the Black Sea in February 2018, joining sister ship USS Ross. Carney’s crew visited Varna for a scheduled port visit to st
The commanders of NATO’s operation Sea Guardian and EU-led operation Sophia met at sea on February 24 to discuss closer tactical level coordination and information sharing in the central Mediterranean Sea. The task group commander for NATO’s maritime security operation Sea Guardian (OSG) visited the
The Italian Navy’s FREMM frigate ITS Carlo Margottini, in service since February 2014, recently achieved another first en route to her Indian Ocean and Arabian Sea deployment. Having sailed from her homeport in La Spezia on February 20, ITS Carlo Margottini transited the Suez Canal for the the first
US sailors and marines have concluded two months of cooperation with their French counterparts aboard the French Navy amphibious assault ship BPC Tonnerre. Approximately 150 US personnel spent the last two months working together with the French task group composed of BPC Tonnerre and Horizon-class
Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth entered Portsmouth on February 27, wrapping up her first of class rotary wing trials in the Atlantic. A team of 56 aircrew, analysts and engineers from the Air Test and Evaluation Centre (ATEC) at MOD Boscombe Down have been onboard the aircraft carrie
Royal Naval Air Station (RNAS) Yeovilton recently opened a new facility which will provide survival training in the event of a helicopter incident or accident over the water. The Royal Navy School of Maritime SERE (survive, evade, resist, escape) and underwater escape training unit (UETU) was opened
