On 13 March 2014, EU Naval Force warship, ESPS Tornado departed Operation Atalanta’s patrol areas off the Somali coast after completing 105 days and is now heading for her home port of Las Palmas in Gran Canaria. As the ship set a navigation course for Spain, the Rear Admiral Bléjean, who is the F
The forward-deployed Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Donald Cook (DDG 75) departed Naval Station Rota, Spain in support of maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 6th Fleet area of operations, March 14. Donald Cook is the first of four des
Russia Deploys 60 Ships near Ukraine Russia has deployed 60 ships on the East border of Ukraine and in Crimea, Acting Minister of Defense of Ukraine, Ihor Tenykh said on Tuesday, March 11. The Minister also stressed that there is no open aggression, since Russia does not officially recognize the tro
The Bataan Amphibious Ready Group (BATARG) with embarked 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) transited the Suez Canal March 13, entering U.S. 5th Fleet’s area of operations. While deployed to the region, Bataan will conduct maritime security operations and participate in theater security cooperat
The U.S. Navy’s Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, USS Kidd, has been ordered to the Indian Ocean to search for the Malaysian missing plane, according to the Agence France-Presse. The search for the Malaysian lost flight was switched to the Indian Ocean amid reports that the plane kept “pinging” a sat
Shrunken but stable U.S. Defense Department budgets through fiscal 2015 allow the U.S. Navy an acceptable forward presence and have temporarily restored critical training and operations, but the force still faces shortfalls, backlogs and higher risks, the chief of naval operations said on Wednesday.
As of Thursday 13 March, the Spanish Offshore Patrol Vessel, ESPS Relámpago joined the EU Naval Force to carry out counter-piracy patrols off the coast of Somalia. ESPS Relámpago has replaced ESPS Tornado as the Spanish contribution to Operation Atalanta. ESPS Tornado is now on her way back home.
Guided-missile destroyer USS Truxtun (DDG 103) arrived in Bulgaria for a port visit, March 13. Truxtun’s stay in the Black Sea will allow the ship to host an exercise planning conference with NATO allies March 15. The conference will focus on a multilateral naval exercise in the spirit of reassuri
HMS Sutherland is surrounded by a mass of scaffolding and sheeting as she’s part-way through a massive revamp in her home base of Devonport. Her paintwork has been stripped off, bow sonar removed and interior gutted during an 11-month refit in the imposing frigate shed. This gift-wrapped beauty is
Following Singapore Minister of Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen’s offer of additional assistance to his Malaysian counterpart Dato’ Seri Hishammuddin Hussein on March 9, the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) have deployed additional assets to assist in the search-and-locate (SAL) operation for the missing Beijing-
Defence and security company Saab is expanding its activities in the naval arena. Saab is therefore recruiting new employees to strengthen and develop its naval capabilities. Today, Saab is one of the leading companies within the naval arena. It is a provider to the Swedish Navy, the major contrac
The U.K. Ministry of Defence (MOD) has signed a £20 million contract to buy parts for the Royal Navy’s 3 new offshore patrol vessels (OPVs). It was announced in November last year that MOD would purchase the ships which will be built, subject to approval, by BAE Systems. Yesterday, 12 March, durin
The FREMM Normandie returned to port on Saturday 8 March on the DCNS site in Lorient, at the end of its third series of sea trials. This frigate is the second of the series ordered by the French DGA (General Directorate for Armament) for the French Navy. OCCAR is the contracting agency for the [&h
The crew of the Arleigh Burke class guided-missile destroyer USS Mahan (DDG 72) wrapped up a five-day port visit March 10 to New Orleans, the first ship in five years to make a visit there during Mardi Gras. While in port, the crew participated in a number of events, including marching in both the
