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
HMAS Toowoomba has strengthened the Royal Australian Navy’s ties to international navies after hosting personnel from the United Kingdom and New Zealand during Exercise Ocean Explorer 2018. A junior officer from each country worked onboard the frigate during navy’s premier fleet warfighting activity
The Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine USS Tucson (SSN 770) returned from a deployment to Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam on March 7. Tucson successfully completed a six-month Western Pacific deployment while conducting operations in support of national security. This deployment was the first fo
On 5 March 2018, the French Marine Nationale destroyer Jean de Vienne seized over four tons of hashish during an operation in the international waters of the Arabian Sea, Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) said. Jean de Vienne’s seizure is the third for CTF150 in recent days. Together with Her Majesty’s
A “sudden turn” by the US Navy destroyer USS John S McCain, which put it in the path of the merchant ship Alnic MC, caused the collision between the two vessels in the Singapore Strait on August 21, 2017. The USS John S McCain’s sudden turn was due to a series of missteps that took […]
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
US Navy aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) entered a dry dock at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility in Bremerton on March 1, officially starting a 15-month overhaul. The carrier shifted from its homeport pier at Naval Base Kitsap to start the docking planned incre
US Navy ships from the USS Essex (LHD 2) amphibious ready group (ARG) got underway from Naval Base San Diego on March 5 to start the first Surface Warfare Advanced Tactical Training (SWATT) exercise conducted by an ARG. The exercise is focused on advanced tactical training at sea to improve warfight
The wreck of one of the first US Navy aircraft carriers has been located on the floor of the Coral Sea, 500 miles off the eastern coast of Australia. The USS Lexington was discovered 3,000 meters (about two miles) below the surface by the expedition crew of research vessel (R/V) Petrel on March 4 –
US Navy and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) sailors and personnel are all set for seven days of bilateral exercises as part of exercise MultiSail 2018 which starts March 8. MultiSail is an annual bilateral training exercise that improves interoperability between US and Japanese forces. In
Royal Australian Navy frigate HMAS Warramunga made another drug interception in the Arabian Sea intercepting eight tonnes of hashish aboard two vessels. The drugs, worth an estimated AU$400 million, were seized during an operation on March 3. Warramunga has now seized 19.5 tonnes of hashish and 1.5
US Navy aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77) has wrapped up the navy’s Board of Inspection and Survey (INSURV) material inspection (MI). INSURV inspectors evaluate ships against navy standards to determine their overall combat readiness. INSURV is congressionally mandated for all navy ship
Three of Britain’s five ships permanently based in the Gulf joined the Americans and French as guests of the sultanate for the 23rd iteration of Khunjar Hadd (‘Sharp Dagger’). Minehunters draw their daggers in Omani exercise which tests the ability of the Omani Navy to work with warships from other
