Pirates will continue to prey on the lucrative West African oil trade, with more piracy and hijacking incidents expected in the Gulf of Guinea, as long as the political complexities surrounding naval presence in territorial waters continue, says an analyst with research and consulting firm GlobalDat
On 14 August, whilst in Djibouti the FGS Augsburg handed over the German commitment to the European Union Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) Somalia Operation Atalanta to FGS Niedersachsen. The handover was presided over by Captain Stefan Pauly, Branch Head of Maritime Operations from the Joint Forces Operatio
In the last week there have been no significant events, as a result the NATO Shipping Centre (NSC) has removed all Areas of Concern which were published last week (01-07 Aug 2013), NSC said in a weekly update. Nevertheless, the threat of piracy remains and vigilance is required when transiting thoug
On Monday, 12 August 2013, the Dutch frigate HNLMS VAN SPEIJK concluded more than two months deployment in support of NATO’s counter-piracy Operation OCEAN SHIELD and began her voyage back to the Netherlands. VAN SPEIJK joined OCEAN SHIELD just days before Commodore Henning Amundsen took command of
Earlier this week, the Maltese Special Duties Enhanced Boarding Team (MSDEBT) on board the EU Naval Force (EUNAVFOR) ship Johan de Witt conducted a fast-rope exercise. They fast-roped from one of the two Cougar helicopters embarked on the Dutch warship. The Johan de Witt is currently the flagship of
A Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) warship has rescued a group of sailors left adrift for five days in the Gulf of Aden. The South Korean destroyer ROKS Wang Geon picked up the mariners near a busy shipping lane after their vessel caught fire and sank. Wang Geon was on patrol as part of Combined Task
After 148 days in charge, the Finnish Autonomous Vessel Protection Detachment (AVPD) handed over the responsibility for the protection of the World Food Program (WFP) Ship MV Caroline Scan to a Lithuanian AVPD on 10 August. On behalf of Rear Admiral Bob Tarrant, Operation Commander European Union Na
The Dutch Landing Platform Dock HNLMS Johan de Witt joined the EU Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) Somalia – Operation Atalanta on 6 August 2013. For the next 4 months, Johan de Witt will be the EU Naval Force flagship, hosting the Force Commander, Commodore Peter Lenselink, and his multinational staff on bo
USS George Washington Drops Anchor in Brisbane, Australia The U.S. Navy’s forward-deployed aircraft carrier and its embarked air wing, Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 5, arrived to Brisbane, Australia, July 29, for its first port visit of its 2013 patrol. USS George Washington Hosts Reception in Brisbane, Au
Guided-missile cruiser USS Monterey (CG 61) conducted an air operations for maritime surface warfare exercise in the Persian Gulf, July 17. The exercise was a joint operation between Monterey and aircraft from U.S. Air Force, Central Command. “This was an excellent opportunity for Monterey to improv
On Saturday 27 July, a helicopter from an EU Naval Force warship overflew the pirate controlled fishing vessel Naham 3 and was able to confirm that the fishing vessel had become detached from the sunken MV Albedo and was steaming north along the Somali coast under her own power. Latest photographs t
Whilst patrolling the seas off the coast of Somalia and in the Gulf of Aden, EU Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) Somalia Operation Atalanta warships often visit regional cargo and fishing dhows operating in these waters. These ‘friendly approaches’, as they are known, are a chance for the EU Naval Force to r
Gulf of Guinea nations held a planning conference July 23-25 to set in motion objectives and initial concepts for what will be the fourth iteration of Obangame Express, a multinational maritime exercise which is set to take place in spring 2014. Obangame Express, one of four major U.S. Naval Forces
The waters off Libya have provided rich pickings in one of the most fruitful periods of survey work ever carried out by the Royal Navy in recent years. In ten days’ work the Devonport-based survey ship found a string of sunken obstacles and wrecks – including what is believed to be a sunken amphibio
