The UK MOD has awarded a £270 million contract to upgrade the Royal Navy’s Spearfish heavyweight torpedoes. The Spearfish programme supports 60 jobs in Portsmouth where the torpedo is designed and manufactured with an additional 40 new skilled engineering vacancies being recruited for work on the pr
During the seventh edition of Dialogue 2014, an initiative aiming at promoting international discussion on urgent issues, such as protection and safeguard of people at sea, an informal discussion forum focused on “Protection at Sea” was held yesterday in Geneva. UN High Commissioner for Refugees Ant
The tactical air navigation (TACAN) system used by all military aircraft recently received extensive upgrades, bringing the system state-of-the-art functionality. The new TACAN system, with its modern, digital, solid-state technology, replaces legacy, vacuum tube technology, which was developed in t
Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel has directed the Navy “to move forward with a multi-mission small surface combatant based on modified Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) hull designs.” Consistent with the Fleet’s views on the most valued capabilities delivered by a small surface combatant, the modified LCS
The US Navy’s forward-deployed amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6) is getting ready to take to the seas. One of the first steps of that process is completed by a group of Sailors with a knowledge of the seas and all the accompanying obstacles that they present. The Sailors of the Na
General Dynamics UK has been awarded a contract by AgustaWestland to provide mission system equipment for UK AW101 Merlin Mk4/4a helicopters. This contract is part of the Merlin Life Sustainment Programme (MLSP), which was awarded to AgustaWestland by the UK Ministry of Defence in January 2014 to co
Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus met with senior research personnel and faculty members at the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) Dec. 5 to discuss the role of the U.S. Navy in the arctic. Mabus said: We in the Navy have a particular interest (in the arctic) because our responsibilities increase as
Over an intensive two week sea assessment period in October, seven Marine Technician sailors achieved their Marine Systems Controller qualifications in HMAS Parramatta as part of the Project METEOR pilot event. In addition the time at sea also enabled two sailors to achieve Marine System Manager qua
Defence and security company Saab has received an order from the Swedish Defence Material Administration (FMV) to provide new sensor systems for two A26-type submarines and two Gotland-class submarines. The contract is valued at SEK 420 million (USD 55,5 million). This order is one of the terms incl
The Royal Navy frigate HMS Northumberland returned to Devonport Naval Base in Plymouth on Friday, 5 December, after a successful patrol policing international shipping lanes in the Middle East. The vessel’s return marks the end of a successful seven-month patrol in the Arabian Gulf and Indian Ocean.
After a period of three years in extended readiness, HMS Albion is finally turning into the nation’s future flagship. The assault ship has been in extended readiness since 2011 in her home base of Devonport, while her sister HMS Bulwark – currently leading the Royal Navy’s annual amphibious Cougar d
Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division personnel developed a software that enables a radar to accurately alert the warfighter to adversary submarine periscopes on the cluttered and choppy surface of the ocean. The development team, within the command’s Target Recognition Branch of the Avionics De
Irish Naval Service has contracted OSI Maritime Systems (OSI) for the delivery of warship navigation systems, including OSI’s flagship ECPINS-W (Warship) software. Under the terms of this contract, OSI will provide engineering services, ship systems, operator training systems, and installation servi
This week the crew of a Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPA) P-3 Orion from the Royal New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) completed their support to NATO’s counter-piracy Operation OCEAN SHIELD (OOS) Task Force 508 (CTF-508). Between 13 and 30 November, the NATO partner nation’s detachment of more than 50 cr
