With the decommissioning of Royal Navy Lynx helicopters set for March 31, 2017, the last Lynx to deploy – Flight 208 – returned home together with HMS Portland on March 10. Commander (Cdr) Phil Richardson the Commanding Officer of 815 Naval Air Station welcomed 208 Flight back into the fold amongst
South African defense contractor Denel has teamed up with German ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems for joint work on South African Navy frigates and submarines. The two companies signed a Memorandum of Understanding on board the SAS Amatola, in Rostock, Germany, during the frigate’s deployment to European
French shipbuilder DCNS opened a new office in Bogota, Colombia, hoping to bolster its chances in securing work on the Colombian Navy’s Plataforma Estratégica de Superficie (PES) frigate acquisition programme. Under the programme, Colombia plans to acquire four frigates to replace the existing Almir
The Russian Navy’s Project 949A Oscar-class submarines will be rearmed with the 3M-54 Kalibr cruise missile, Russia’s Deputy Defense Minister Yuri Borisov said on March 6. “The Zvezda shipyard is carrying out profound modernization of Project 949A nuclear submarines, including the replacement of arm
The UK Royal Navy today formally named HMS Forth, the first of its five new Batch 2 River-class offshore patrol vessels. The 90-metre warship, which will be tasked with vital counter-terrorism, anti-smuggling and maritime defence duties, was named HMS Forth in honour of the Scottish river in a cerem
Royal Navy frigate HMS St Albans arrived in London on March 7 for a four-day visit to the capital. The visit of the Portsmouth-based warship coincided with International Women’s Day, the 100th anniversary of women in the Royal Naval Service, and National Apprenticeship Week. Those on board took part
Members of the Slovak military police have traveled to Germany to prepare for their deployment to the EUNAVFOR-led Mediterranean Sea operation Sophia. A team of 10 have been training with German Navy Marines (Seebatallion) since January 30 and will spend the rest of this month preparing for the depl
Dynamic Manta 2017, NATO’s annual anti-submarine warfare exercise, is set to start on Monday next week, off the coast of Sicily, Italy. The two-week drill will gather ships and sailors from ten allied countries for ASW training in the central Mediterranean. Submarines from France, Greece, Italy, Spa
Norway-based vessel designer and builder Vard will be working on the maintenance of five Norwegian Coast Guard vessels, the company announced on Monday. The company said the total value of the contract signed with the Norwegian Defence Logistics Organisation was approximately NOK 48 million (approx.
Warships from NATO’s standing mine countermeasure group 2 (SNMCMG2) joined the underway portion of the Romanian-hosted exercise Poseidon that is taking place between March 5 and 13. The exercise as a whole is hosted by Romania this year and will include more than 1,500 sailors and 17 warships from s
Royal Fleet Auxiliary tanker Gold Rover was officially decommissioned in a March 6 ceremony at HM Naval Base Portsmouth, after over 40 years of service. Commander Naval Operations Rear Admiral Bob Tarrant and the Head of the RFA Cdre Duncan Lamb joined former COs of the tanker for a service of thank
The Lithuanian Ministry of Defense has deployed a 12-man strong vessel boarding team to the European Union-led operation Sophia aimed at curbing human and arms smuggling activity in the Mediterranean Sea. The team embarked the German Navy tender FGS Rhein on March 6 during a ceremony at Lithuanian N
Royal Navy frigate HMS Monmouth departed Plymouth on Monday to start a nine-month deployment in the Persian Gulf. The frigate set sail after spending 18 months undergoing assessment and training, preparing to fight smugglers, terrorists, drug and people traffickers. Preparations for the extended sti
U.S. Navy guided-missile cruiser USS Philippine Sea (CG 58) stopped in Souda Bay, Greece, for the first port visit during its 2017 deployment with the George H.W. Bush Carrier Strike Group (GHWBCSG). USS Philippine Sea was in Greece from March 1 to March 5 conducting a community relations project, w
