An Indian Navy frigate reached a milestone recently as it became the first Indian warship to escort a vessel of UN’s World Food Program. INS Sunayna completed the escort for the first time since counter-piracy deployments began in 2008, following an escort request by EU NAVFOR. A WFP dhow was transp
US Navy amphibious transport dock ship USS Anchorage (LPD 23) took part in a cooperative deployment with Indian Navy destroyer INS Rajput (D51), December 26. The at sea training followed a port visit to Visakhapatnam, India, Dec. 22-26. During the port visit, the Anchorage and 13th MEU team held pro
China’s Hudong Zhonghua shipyard hosted a steel-cutting ceremony on December 20 to mark the official start of construction of the second Pakistan Navy Type 054A frigate. Hudong Zhonghua is a subsidiary of China State Shipbuilding Corporation with which the Pakistan Navy signed contracts for the deli
South Korean shipbuilder Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) has received a KRW 633.5 billion (USD 562.9 million) order to build two frigates for the country’s navy. On December 12, 2018, the South Korean Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) awarded the contract to HHI. The ships will be the
The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) has received two more Boracay-class fast patrol boats (FPB) newbuilds built in France. The FPB 72 MKII boats arrived at Subic Port on December 6, 2018, the coast guard said. The two units will be commissioned in the PCG service as BRP Malamawi (FPB 2403) and BRP Kala
Russian Federation Navy (RuFN) ships Varyag, Admiral Panteleyev and Boris Butoma arrived in Visakhapatnam to participate in Indra Navy, the Indo-Russian maritime exercise. The 10th edition of the bilateral exercise will be conducted off Visakhapatnam from December 9 to 16, 2018. Indra Navy aims to i
After seizing three tons of hashish in the Middle East earlier this week, Royal Navy destroyer HMS Dragon arrived in India where it will join Indian Navy ships for the bilateral naval exercise Konkan 2018. The Konkan exercise provides a platform for the two navies to periodically exercise at sea and
Indian shipbuilder Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Limited held a keel-laying ceremony for their first Project 17A in a ceremony in Kolkata on November 10. The keel-laying ceremony marked the official start of construction of a new class of frigates which will be a follow-on on the Project 1
The 25th edition of Singapore-India Maritime Bilateral Exercise (SIMBEX) will be held off Andaman Sea and Bay of Bengal from November 10 to 21, 2018. The 2018 edition marks the Silver Jubilee of SIMBEX. To mark the historical occasion, both navies are undertaking drills over extended geographical sc
The US and Bangladesh Navy kicked off the 24th iteration of exercise Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) in Chittagong, Bangladesh, November 4. Sailors and marines across five ships including a guided missile frigate and patrol craft from the Bangladesh Navy, and a maritime patrol airc
The Indian Navy’s Kora-class missile corvette INS Kulish (P63) and naval maritime patrol aircraft Dornier entered Belawan harbor in Indonesia for the opening ceremony of the 32nd edition of India – Indonesia coordinated patrol (IND-INDO CORPAT). The coordinated patrol starts October 11 and is schedu
The US Navy ships recently rescued distressed crews of two fishing boats in the Indian Ocean and South China Sea. On October 7-8, the Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Decatur (DDG 73) provided assistance to seven mariners whose fishing boat had suffered an engine malfunction, renderi
Japanese Maritime Self Defence Force (JMSDF) helicopter carrier JS Kaga and guided-missile destroyer JS Inazuma arrived at Visakhapatnam, India, on October 7 as part of the Indo-Southeast Asia Deployment 2018. The JMSDF task group, commanded by Rear Admiral Tatsuya Fukada, Commander, Escort Flotilla
The US Navy’s guided-missile destroyer USS Michael Murphy (DDG 112) arrived in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, on October 6. As the first US Navy ship to visit Port Moresby since USS Comstock (LSD 45) in 2017, Michael Murphy arrives as the nation prepares to host the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperatio
