After navigating the Suez Canal and Bab-el-Mandeb strait, French frigate FS Courbet has joined EU Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) Somalia – Operation Atalanta. The French frigate replaces the FS Surcouf, who has been operating within the EU counter-piracy operation since last December. On Monday 18 February
A group of 15 Sailors from the amphibious assault ship USS Makin Island (LHD 8) joined students from Oak Park Elementary School and Music Conservatory in San Diego to celebrate Presidents Day at the school, Feb. 19. Although a day after the actual federal holiday, Makin Island’s ceremonial color gua
Rear Adm. David F. Steindl relieved Rear Adm. T. K. Shannon as commander, Carrier Strike Group One (CSG-1) during a change of command ceremony aboard aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70), Feb. 21. Shannon, who assumed command of CSG-1 Nov. 18, 2011, led the strike group through a successful Wes
The U.S. Navy delivered two more 35-meter patrol boats (PB-310 and PB-311) to the Iraqi navy at the Umm Qasr naval facility in Iraq, Feb. 17, after each craft successfully completed reactivation in Bahrain. These are the 10th and 11th vessels in the 12-boat procurement which will assist in reconstit
The Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group (IKECSG), with nearly 4,500 Sailors, deployed from Naval Station Norfolk and Naval Station Mayport, Fla., Feb. 21, to support operations in the U.S. Navy’s 5th and 6th Fleets. The aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69), commanded by Capt. Marcus A. Hit
A fleet membered by two Chinese marine surveillance vessels, Haijian 84 and Haijian 72, set sail for the South China Sea for regular patrol missions aimed at protecting the country’s territorial waters, Xinhua reports citing the Chinese State Oceanic Administration (SOA). Accordingly the task force
As part of the Fisheries Monitoring Plan for 2013, the offshore patrol boat ‘Tarifa’ will participate in the International Joint Deployment Plan in the Bay of Biscay for the deep sea fishing campaign in the northeastern Atlantic. Several ships and aircraft from different nations will deploy in the a
On February 13, U.S. Senator Susan Collins, representing Republicans on the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, met at the Pentagon with the Navy’s top official for shipbuilding, Sean Stackley, the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development and Acquisition, to discuss the impact of d
As part of its ongoing support contract to Navy Command Finland, Malvern based defence and security specialist, 3SDL, provided technical support to the Finnish Navy during the recent week long Sea Acceptance Testing onboard the 1,450 ton Minelayer FNS Uusimaa. The complex series of tests involving L
Rolls-Royce marked the beginning of construction of its Core Manufacturing Facility at Raynesway, Derby on February 20 with a ground-breaking ceremony conducted by Vice Admiral Sir Andrew Mathews, Ministry of Defence (MoD). The new facility, which will be a phased-build programme, will replace exist
Commander Naval Air Forces awarded the 2012 Pacific Fleet Battle Efficiency (“E”) award to the “Golden Hawks” Airborne Early Warning Squadron (VAW) 112 for the VAW Carrier Air Wing (CVW) category, Feb. 12. The aviation Battle “E” is the Navy’s top performance award presented to the squadron in each
The US Coast Guard Cutter Matinicus repatriated 31 Dominicans to La Romana, Dominican Republic Monday, following an at-sea interdiction Saturday by Caribbean Border Interagency Group law enforcement authorities, approximately twelve nautical miles off the coast of Desecheo, Puerto Rico. Assistant Un
Training Support Center (TSC) Great Lakes, Ill., said farewell to one commanding officer and welcomed a new one during a change of command ceremony held Feb. 15 at Naval Station Great Lakes where Capt. Henry (Hank) Roux Jr. relieved Capt. Peter R. Lintner as commanding officer. Capt. Roux previously
After a three-month absence, HMS Bristol is back where she belongs – at the foot of Whale Island – after being moved to a new berth. Tugs moved the veteran destroyer to her new berth, created to allow larger vessels to use the nearby international port. The Falklands veteran, which serves as floatin
