Spanish Navy’s Aegis-equipped frigate ESPS Blas de Lezo has concluded her deployment to NATO’s Standing NATO Maritime Group Two (SNMG2) and is scheduled to arrive at her home port in Ferrol, Spain, next Saturday. During her deployment, the F100 frigate served as flagship of the Sub-Group TU.02 opera
The Italian Navy hosted its Algerian counterpart in the Italian port of Augusta for the bilateral exercise Medex-17. Medex consisted of a harbor and an at sea phase, taking place between June 12 and 16. Now in its ninth edition, the exercise is part of the 5 + 5 defense initiative aimed at enhancing
The UK Ministry of Defence has awarded Leonardo a £260 million contract for the supply of next generation Identify Friend or Foe (IFF) technology. The system, called Mode-5, uses advanced cryptographic techniques and electronic technology to allow UK land, sea and air units to quickly identify frien
Spanish Navy’s F-105 frigate ESPS Cristóbal Colón is on her way home after she spent the last four months stationed in Australia helping Royal Australian Navy sailors get acquainted with the Aegis combat system. During her time embedded with the Royal Australian Navy fleet she welcomed more than 200
Austrian unmanned aerial system (UAS) manufacturer Schiebel announced its CAMCOPTER® S-100 UAS completed qualification flights for the French Navy from 29 May to 3 June 2017. The flight trials were performed from the deck of the Bâtiment de Projection et de Commandement (BPC) Dixmude, the newest of
Having no standing army and operating just four coast guard vessels has not prevented NATO-member Iceland from hosting one of the organization’s largest anti-submarine warfare exercises. From June 26 to July 8, NATO ships and submarines will gather in Iceland for a series of drills aimed at improvin
The Belgian Navy has selected Batelle’s SeeByte to deliver its software and personnel training for the operation of unmanned maritime systems. The company’s SeeTrack software package will be integrated onto the Belgian AUV fleet which will be deployed for mine counter measures (MCM). The announcemen
The European Maritime Safety Agency has picked a fixed-wing and a rotary-wing unmanned air vehicle to aid its border surveillance and control activities, according to two company announcements. The Tekever and Collecte Localisation Satellites consortium announced it has been contracted by EMSA to us
Starting autonomous flight trials of its VSR700 Optionally Piloted Vehicle (OPV) demonstrator, Airbus Helicopters has come a step closer to the first flight of the actual VSR700 prototype in 2018. A light military rotary-wing tactical unmanned aerial vehicle, the VSR700 is being developed jointly by
Royal Navy’s Hunt-class mine counter measure vessel HMS Brocklesby has started her sea trials after spending 18 months in refit. According to shipbuilder BAE Systems, the trials started four months earlier than usual. Despite undergoing the largest work package for a Royal Navy mine countermeasure v
Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) company UMS Skeldar has joined forces with Sentient Vision Systems to equip its SKELDAR V-200 VTOL UAV with a ViDAR (visual identification detection and ranging) system for its unmanned systems. The ViDAR payload on the SKELDAR V-200 will be deploying five to ten camera
Spanish Navy frigate Victoria departed Rota Naval Base on June 18 setting sail for Italy where she will integrate into operation Sophia to help fight human trafficking in the Mediterranean Sea. The F-80 frigate is scheduled to be part of the European Union Naval Force (EUNAVFOR) from mid-June to mid
The lead ship of Russian Navy’s new Project 20385 corvettes, Gremyashchy, was rolled out of the factory hall and placed on the open slipway ahead of her launch on June 30. The Severnaya Verf shipyard rolled out the corvette on June 19 and is yet to assemble her topmast and underwater parts. Designed
Some 50 ships from 14 nations concluded this year’s edition of BALTOPS 2017, the largest NATO exercise in the Baltic Sea, entering Kiel, Germany on Friday. The U.S.-led drill saw participants hone their skills in air, surface, sub-surface, mine warfare and amphibious operations in the Baltic Sea. “E
