The United States Coast Guard Cutter Maui recently returned to her homeport in Bahrain after a prolonged period supporting the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) counter-terrorism and maritime security task force, Combined Task Force 150 (CTF-150), patrolling the Gulf of Oman and the North Arabian Sea f
Two United States Navy patrol boats based in Bahrain have completed their first deployment with Combined Task Force 150 (CTF-150), the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) counter-terrorism and maritime security task force. For most of January and February, USS Firebolt and USS Thunderbolt operated in dir
HMS Kent, the Type 23 Frigate, has assumed a vital role protecting the French carrier strike group’s mission in the Middle East. Ushering in a new era of British and French military cooperation, HMS Kent has taken up the role of anti submarine warfare commander for the French aircraft carrier Charle
The Royal Australian Navy’s oiler and replenishment ship HMAS Success has been very busy lately, not only delivering vital fuel and other goods to warships operating in the Middle East, but also delivering key operational effects under the Canadian-led Combined Task Force 150 (CTF-150). Captain Nick
Yaroslav Mudry (727), the Russian Navy’s Neustrashimy class frigate, departed the port of Tartus, Syria, and is now on its way to a designated area in the Mediterranean Sea. During the port call in Tartus, the Russian Navy’s sailors took the opportunity to replenish the ship’s needed supplies. The v
The crew of HMS Penzance have tested navies safeguarding the Persian Gulf in an all-action exercise to attack one of Iraq’s crucial oil platforms. The minehunter joined American and Iraqi warships, and an Apache gunship, trying to wreak havoc at the northern tip of the Gulf by launching a mock attac
USS Tortuga’s CO, XO Relieved of Duties USS Tortuga’s (LSD 46) Commanding Officer, Cmdr. Thomas Goudreau and Executive Officer, Cmdr. John Fleming, were relieved of their duties Dec. 16, due to loss of confidence in their ability to safely operate and navigate the ship and their credibility to lead
U.S. Marines and Sailors with the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), along with members of the Royal Saudi Naval Forces, officially concluded exercise Red Reef 15 with a joint demonstration in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Dec. 16. Over the nine-day span, 11th MEU personnel worked, trained and liv
U.S. Marines and Sailors with the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), along with members of the Royal Saudi Naval Forces, began exercise Red Reef 15 Dec. 7 in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility. Red Reef is a biennial, bilateral exercise between the United States and the Kingdom of Saudi Ar
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 five years of land-based operations in Afghanistan, the Royal Navy’s Sea King Force has fully returned to sea, flying their helicopters from Royal Navy ships in the Gulf. Whilst operating from Camp Bastion since May 2009, the ‘Sea King Airborne Surveillance and Control (SKASaC) Force’, nicknam
The Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), in collaboration with the Israeli Ministry of Defense (IMOD), conducted a successful test of the Barak-8 Air & Missile Defense System yesterday, November 10. Barak-8 is an advanced groundbreaking air and missile defense system that provides ultimate protection
Nearly 1,500 Royal Navy sailors, Royal Marines, specialist divers are engaged in the world’s largest naval exercise dealing with the threat of mines. The core of the Royal Navy’s presence in the Middle East has joined more than 5,000 military personnel from more than 40 nations spread across six con
Northrop Grumman Corporation, in support of U.S. Naval Forces Central Command in Manama, Bahrain, announced the successful demonstration of an unmanned mine-hunting mission. In the demonstration, the Mine Hunting Unmanned Surface Vehicle (MHU) was used in tandem with Northrop Grumman’s AQS-24A Mine