The U.S. Navy awarded Raytheon Company a $136.2 million contract for federal FY13 to remanufacture, overhaul and upgrade 19 Phalanx Close-in Weapon Systems and produce four SeaRAM Anti-ship Missile Defense Systems. This contract includes a $94.8 million option for FY14 covering an additional 12 Phal
HMAS Ballarat successfully completed a port visit to Langkawi, Malaysia at the start of September as part of her South East Asian Deployment. Langkawi is considered to be the Jewel of Kedah, an archipelago of 104 islands off the north-west coast of Malaysia. Ballarat took part in Exercise MASTEX in
HMS Dragon played with a dazzling array of air power in the Gulf – including a B1 bomber – as she tested her ability to direct a wealth of aircraft on to targets. The Type 45 destroyer linked up with US naval and air forces, including Hornet strike bombers, Apache gunships and drones to see [&hellip
Royal Navy warship HMS Ledbury has a new commanding officer, but links with a West Sussex village live on. Outgoing captain, Lieutenant Commander Justin Hains, has welcomed a childhood friend to take over the helm of the Portsmouth-based minehunter. After two years in charge Lt Cdr Hains has handed
The San Diego-based frigate USS Rentz (FFG 46) conducted live-fire training Sept 10, the second day of the UNITAS 2013 multinational maritime exercise, while assigned to U.S. 4th Fleet. The crew of Rentz fired its 76mm MK 75 main cannon battery and .50-caliber machine guns against a remote-controlle
On Saturday 7 September, two members of the EU Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) warship FGS Niedersachsen were evacuated due to medical reasons to a hospital in Salalah, Oman. The ship had been conducting counter piracy operations in the Gulf of Aden off the coast of Somalia. The ship broke from counter-pira
The Missile Defense Agency (MDA), Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS) Operational Test Agency, Joint Functional Component Command for Integrated Missile Defense, and U.S. Pacific Command, in conjunction with U.S. Army soldiers from the Alpha Battery, 2nd Air Defense Artillery Regiment, U.S. Navy
On Monday, 9 September 2013, the ships of Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Group One (SNMCMG1) joined more than 40 ships, 10 helicopters, and 2500 participants from 15 nations in Exercise NORTHERN COASTS 2013. The annual exercise, which runs through September 19, follows a fictitious scenario in w
The Final Coordination Conference for the upcoming military exercises “Steadfast Jazz 2013” and “Baltic Host 2013” is currently underway in Riga, Latvia. The conference, which is taking place from the 9th – 11th September, includes over 250 participants from NATO military staff as well as participat
On Friday, 6 September 2013, three NATO ships assigned to Standing NATO Mine Counter-Measures Group TWO (SNMCMG2) arrived in Batumi for a scheduled visit to the Black Sea port. Under the command of Commander Matthias Seipel, German Navy, the Group includes the flagship FGS MOSEL and FGS ROTTWEIL of
As part of a broader advancement in cooperation between the United States and China, the guided-missile cruiser USS Lake Erie (CG 70) and the People’s Liberation Army-Navy [PLA(N)] participated in training scenarios off the coast of Oahu, Hawaii, Sept. 9. The three participating PLA(N) ships, a Fuqi
The forward-deployed amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6) and embarked 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) departed Darwin, Australia Sept. 10. Bonhomme Richard is concluding Exercise Koolendong 2013 (KD13), a bilateral exercise that took place at the Bradshaw Field Training Area (B
Adm. Wu Shengli, commander in chief of the People’s Liberation Army – Navy [PLA(N)], visited the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) accompanied by U.S. Navy Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Adm. Jonathan W. Greenert on Sept. 9, 2013. In his first visit to the United States since 2007, Shengli,
On Thursday 5 September, Spanish warship ESPS Meteoro, which is part of the European Union’s counter piracy Naval Force operating off the Horn of Africa, gave assistance to a Yemeni dhow, which had suffered steerage difficulties, with a faulty rudder. In the early morning, the ship’s SH60B helicopte
