Training & Education
Naval Group announces first French FTI frigate suppliers
French shipbuilder Naval Group recently announced the selection of first equipment suppliers for the five future intermediate-size frigates (FTI) to be built for the Marine Nationale. As part of the framework construction contract awarded to Naval Group by the French Defence Procurement Agency in Ap
Obangame Express kicks off in Gabon
Obangame Express, an exercise sponsored by US Africa Command (AFRICOM) and designed to improve regional cooperation, kicked off on March 21 with an opening ceremony in Libreville, Gabon. The annual exercise aims to enhance maritime domain awareness (MDA), information-sharing practices, and tactical
USS Oak Hill exits Black Sea after Romania drill, Georgia port visit
US Navy’s Harpers-Ferry class dock landing ship USS Oak Hill (LSD 51) and the embarked 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) wrapped up their 15-day stay in the Black Sea, transiting the Bosphorus to return to the Mediterranean Sea on March 22. During their time in the Black Sea, US Navy sailors and
Royal Navy survey ship trains with Cypriot rescue services
Search and rescue experts aboard Royal Navy survey ship HMS Echo recently trained with their Cypriot counterparts sharing their experience with the island’s rescue teams for the first time. The Plymouth-based survey ship has been assigned to the Mediterranean since the tail end of 2016; her crew hav
SNMG1 ships train with Polish Navy in Baltic Sea
After concluding exercises and at sea maneuvers with Lithuanian Navy units, ships from NATO’s Standing Maritime Group One (SNMG1) started a series of naval exercises with the Polish Navy in the Baltic Sea. The exercise got underway on Monday and included a number of basic and advanced maritime opera
Tactical level NATO mine countermeasure drill Dynamic Move kicks off in Belgium
The NATO-led mine countermeasure exercise Dynamic Move kicked off on March 19 at Ecole de Guerre des Mines (Naval Mine Warfare School) in Oostende, Belgium. The exercise will see the participation of mine warfare specialists from 16 allied nations and four NATO partners. Exercise Dynamic Move is an
Australian submarine holds burial at sea ceremony for Royal Navy submariners
Sailors aboard the Royal Australian Navy’s Collins-class submarine HMAS Rankin held a burial at sea ceremony recently, scattering the ashes of three former Royal Navy submariners off the coast of Western Australia. The ceremony is known as a Committal of Ashes to the Sea (COATS) in the Royal Austral
Forward-deployed US destroyer USS Donald Cook starts US 6th Fleet patrol
The US Navy’s froward-deployed Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Donald Cook (DDG 75) got underway from Spain, to start a patrol in the US 6th Fleet area of operations. The destroyer’s seventh patrol started on March 12, as the ship and crew departed Naval Station Rota. Donald Cook wi
Gallery: Submarines surface in the Arctic Circle as part of ICEX 2018
The US Navy has shared photos of two of its submarines surfacing in the Arctic Circle on March 10 as part of the multinational maritime Ice Exercise (ICEX) 2018. Los Angeles-class fast attack submarine USS Hartford (SSN 768) and Seawolf-class fast attack submarine, USS Connecticut (SSN 22) broke thr
DIMDEX: Leonardo unveils new OTO Marlin 40 naval turret
Italian-based defense contractor Leonardo has unveiled its new OTO Marlin 40 naval turret at the 2018 edition of Doha International Maritime Defence Exhibition & Conference (DIMDEX) in Qatar. The new OTO Marlin 40 is a system designed for fast, lightweight vessels and suited for anti-missile defense
Dutch naval ships will not take part in Atalanta in 2018
Dutch naval vessels will not participate in the European Union’s counter-piracy operation Atalanta off the coast of Somalia this year. This was stated in a letter sent by Ank Bijleveld-Schouten, the country’s Minister of Defense, to the lower house of the Dutch parliament on March 7. Problems with t
Royal Navy’s HMS Cattistock clears mines around Oslo
The waters around Norway’s capital are considerably safer after a two-week hunt by the crew of Royal Navy’s HMS Cattistock. Experts from the Portsmouth-based minehunter found more than ten WW2 mines and torpedoes during a concerted search for unexploded wartime bombs with a NATO task group, the navy
USS Iwo Jima arrives in Israel for exercise Juniper Cobra 2018
US Navy’s Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima (LHD 7) arrived off the coast of Israel on March 6 to take part in exercise Juniper Cobra 2018. Although Iwo Jima and the embarked 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) will not participate directly in the ballistic missile defense portion of
NATO ASW drill Dynamic Manta kicks off in Italy
NATO’s major Mediterranean Sea anti-submarine warfare exercise Dynamic Manta is getting underway at the Italian port of Catania on Monday, March 5. The two-week drill will take place in the Ionian Sea and will be joined by navies from 10 allied countries. Dynamic Manta is an annual NATO exercise in