The Navy will commission its newest littoral combat ship, the future USS Coronado (LCS 4), April 5, during a ceremony at Naval Air Station, North Island in Coronado, Calif. Vice Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mark Ferguson will deliver the ceremony’s principal address. Susan Ring Keith, a long-tim
Sailors and Marines from several East Coast-based expeditionary commands conducted an in port maritime staff exercise onboard USS Iwo Jima (LHD 7) March 27-31 to refine their collective ability to respond to crises. The exercise scenario tested the group’s evaluation of, and response to, a large s
A memorial rededication service held at HMAS Albatross today marked the ninth anniversary of the loss of the Sea King helicopter ‘Shark 02’, which crashed in 2005 while supporting a humanitarian support mission on the Indonesian island of Nias. Nine Australian Defence Force personnel were killed in
Naval Base Kitsap Bangor was put on high security alert on March 31 while responding to an incident near the base perimeter. Kitsap County Sherriff and NCIS coordinated with base security conducting security sweeps in response to what was reported to be loud noises sounding like gun shots, Naval Bas
Guided-missile destroyer USS Mason (DDG 87) arrived in Palermo, Italy for a scheduled port visit, on March 31. The port visit is designed to continue Naval Forces Europe-Africa’s efforts to strengthen maritime partnerships with European nations in order to improve maritime safety and security in t
The frigate ‘Cristóbal Colón’ and the OPV ‘Relámpago’ visited Doha (Qatar) during the Doha International Maritime Defense Exhibition and Conference (DIMDEX 2014) Both warships made the most of their scheduled port calls in support of the national defense industry in what is considered the most imp
The Boxer Amphibious Ready Group (BOXARG), with embarked 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), began participation in Exercise Ssang Yong 2014 March 27 off the coast of the Republic of Korea (ROK) with the ROK navy and Marine Corps. Ssang Yong, which means “twin dragons,” is an annual combined exe
The Spanish frigate ‘Álvaro de Bazán’ (F-101) has arrived in Ferrol after 179 days out of her home port, integrated into the Standing NATO Maritime Group 2 (SNMG-2). During this deployment the F-101 participated in operation ‘Active Endeavour’ fighting terrorism in the Mediterranean Sea and the coun
On March 31, Major General (MAJGEN) Tim Gall became the Commander Joint Forces New Zealand. At a Change of Command parade held at Trentham MAJGEN Gall was promoted to his new rank and took command of Headquarters Joint Forces New Zealand (HQ JFNZ). MAJGEN Gall was raised in Invercargill and Nelson
Service members and civilians involved in the scheduled deployment of the joint high speed vessel USNS Spearhead (JHSV 1) this summer to the U.S. Southern Command and U.S. 4th Fleet area of operations met March 25 and March 26 at Naval Station Mayport to finalize plans for the mission. The Spearhe
On 16th March the Force Commander of EU Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) Somalia Operation Atalanta, Rear Admiral Hervé Bléjean visited the Spanish Offshore Patrol Vessel, ESPS Relampago for the first time since the ship arrived in the piracy high risk area. ESPS Relampago joined Operation Atalanta, the EU
Nearly 30 years after she was commissioned in 1984, U.S. Navy Cmdr. Pete Ehlers, commanding officer of USS Robert G. Bradley (FFG 49), decommissioned the ship on March 28, at a Naval Station Mayport ceremony. Lt. Gen. Joseph L. Votel, commander, Joint Special Operations Command, was the guest spea
After two and a half years protecting the World Food Programme (WFP) ship, MV Caroline Scan, from pirate attack off the coast of Somalia, the EU Naval Force has bid the vessel and her hard-working crew a fond farewell. In April 2014, MV Caroline Scan will be entering a period of maintenance, so th
The amphibious assault ship USS Boxer received the 2013 Battle Effectiveness (Battle E) Award for Commander, Amphibious Squadron One. The announcement was made via naval message from Commander, Naval Surface Force Pacific, March 20. In addition to the 2013 award, Boxer also was the recipient in 20
