On 15 March, the German Autonomous Vessel Protection Detachment (AVPD), deployed with the EU Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) Somalia Operation Atalanta, transferred the responsibility for the protection of the World Food Programme (WFP) ship MV Caroline Scan to an AVPD from Finland. The German AVPD returns
The guided-missile destroyer USS Farragut (DDG 99) visited Bar, Montenegro, for a port visit March 11-14. Sailors had the opportunity to experience Montenegro’s culture and spend time engaging with the community, including sporting events with Montenegrin sailors, tours of the towns of Perast, Kotor
Nudging between the rocks in the Kyle Akin, HMS Richmond is safely guided through narrow waters separating the Scottish mainland from the Isle of Skye by specialist navigators. The navigators have been tested to the limit over the past fortnight aboard the Portsmouth-based frigate, which has sailed
Royal Navy warship HMS Westminster, which is affiliated to its namesake borough, has arrived on the Thames alongside HMS Belfast for a six-day regional engagement visit. Sailing through the Thames barrier, beneath Tower bridge and past the O2, the Type-23 frigate gracefully transited through the cap
Three Crew Members of US Navy EA-6B Prowler Jet Die in Aircraft Crash (UPDATE) All three crew members aboard a Navy EA-6B Prowler jet assigned to Electronic Attack Squadron 129 (VAQ-129) at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Wash., were killed when the aircraft crashed Monday morning in an unpopulate
After MV Royal Grace was released by pirates on Friday 8 March, it was EU Naval Force Spanish Offshore Patrol Vessel ESPS Rayo who ensured that the chemical tanker and her crew stayed safe as the vessel sailed north towards Omani waters. ESPS Rayo was conducting counter piracy patrols last Friday 8
HMS Northumberland flew the flag for Britain when she was Britain’s participant in a major naval exercise involving more than two dozen nations in Karachi. Hosted by the Pakistani Navy, Exercise Aman – Urdu for ‘peace’ – demonstrates the united resolve of the nations taking part to combat criminal a
A Royal Naval Lynx returns from its four month embarkation following a unique and successful deployment with a French warship in the Indian Ocean on Counter Piracy Operations. 217 Flight of 815 Naval Air Squadron arrived back at Royal Naval Air Station Yeovilton to a family welcome following their d
Royal Navy warship HMS Argyll has arrived in Dakar, Senegal for the start of a huge multi-national exercise off the coast of West Africa. The Type-23 frigate will represent the UK at Exercise Saharan Express which has been designed to improve cooperation for the participating nations while they oper
The Dutch and Russian navies have taken steps to strengthen their maritime ties. On behalf of Defence Minister Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, the Commander of the Royal Netherlands Navy, Vice Admiral Matthieu Borsboom, signed a Letter of Intent with his Russian counterpart Admiral Victor Chirkov, in St
The Type 23 frigate HMS Westminster, which is affiliated to its namesake borough, will be going alongside HMS Belfast in central London from Wednesday 13 March for the start of a six-day regional engagement visit. The ship’s visit to the capital is an opportunity to strengthen and renew the affiliat
It has been a busy couple of days for EU Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) flagship ESPS Méndez Núnez. The Spanish warship, which is conducting EU counter piracy patrols off the Somali coast, was once again able to provide much needed protection, this time to super tanker MV Smyrni, after the vessel was relea
Spanish Marines serving in the Operational Headquarters (OHQ) of the European Union Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) celebrated the 476th anniversary of the Spanish Marine Corps. Founded in 1537, during the reign of Carlos I, the Spanish Marine Corps is the oldest extant Marine Corps in the World. Unable to
Divers from ice patrol ship HMS Protector have been exploring beneath the waves in the somewhat chilly conditions of the Antarctic, producing rare images of the sights beneath the polar waters. Whether jumping into the crater of a dormant volcano, inspecting the wrecks of ships or photographing iceb
