U.S. Navy guided-missile cruiser USS San Jacinto (CG 56) wrapped up its four-day port visit to Jebel Ali, United Arab Emirates, Sept. 26. San Jacinto, part of the Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group (Ike CSG), is deployed in support of Operation Inherent Resolve which is aimed at eliminating the Islamic
U.S. marines and sailors from the Wasp Amphibious Ready Group (ARG) and 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) with U.S. Embassy-Muscat and Royal Omani Police conducted the first non-combatant evacuation operation (NEO) exercise in Muscat, September 20-21. The exercise consisted of amphibious transpor
Royal Navy flagship HMS Ocean has sailed from Plymouth on a 6.5-month deployment during which it will serve as command ship for the international Combined Task Force 50 commander who will lead counter-terrorist activities. The amphibious assault ship will first form part of a UK Joint Expeditionary
In late August, the US Navy staged an anti-submarine warfare drill in the Arabian Sea which was joined by British, French and Australian Navy assets. Royal Australian Navy frigate HMAS Perth joined USS Nitze and USS Mason which also had MH-60R flights embarked. Also involved were the Los Angeles cla
Australian shipbuilder Austal has delivered the second high speed support vessel (HSSV) RNOV Al Naasir (S12) to the Royal Navy of Oman. RNOV Al Naasir was delivered less than 4 months after the delivery of the RNOV Al Mubshir (S11), in May 2016 under a US$124.9 million design, construct and integrat
Iranian Revolutionary Coast Guard patrol boats have forced a U.S. Navy ship to undertake evasive maneuvers on Sunday in the latest instance of altercation between the two sides. According to reports, seven Iranian patrol boats emerged from behind fishing dhows to conduct fast approaches toward the U
HMAS Perth has notched up more-than 10,000 nautical miles since leaving Australia on 7 June, and Commanding Officer, Captain Ivan Ingham, said his crew has now settled in to their Middle East deployment. “The first phase was getting to the Middle East region and on the way we travelled via Indonesia
Just a day after four Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps boats charged a U.S. Navy destroyer near the Strait of Hormuz, a U.S. Navy coastal patrol boat was forced to fire warning shots to fend off fast approaching Iranian vessels in the North Persian Gulf. USS Squall and USS Tempest, both Cyclone-cla
Four Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps boats came within 300 yards of the U.S. Navy destroyer USS Nitze on August 23 in the latest run-in between U.S. and Iran in the Persian Gulf. The Iranian boats carried out a high-speed intercept of the U.S. destroyer which was described as “unsafe and unprofess
The German Navy will, once again, send the Bremen-class frigate Augsburg to support the French aircraft carrier FS Charles de Gaulle in the fight against Daesh in Syria. FGS Augsburg will be part of the carrier’s strike group which is in charge of ensuring the carrier operations are not interrupted
The U.S. State Department has approved a possible foreign military sale of Mk-V fast patrol boats and related equipment, training, and support to Qatar. According to the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, the estimated cost of the sale is $124.02 million. The government of Qatar has also requested
The U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyer USS Hopper (DDG 70) is scheduled to depart Hawaii on August 25 together with the Ticonderoga-class cruiser USS Port Royal (CG 73) for a surface action group deployment to the Arabian Gulf and Western Pacific Ocean. While deployed, Hopper and its crew of more th
Royal Navy’s Bahrain-based minehunter HMS Chiddingfold has welcomed its new operators, Crew 3 from the Hunt-class Mine Countermeasures Squadron who flew out from their native Portsmouth to take charge of the ship into early 2017. In the latest switchover of sailors running the Royal Navy’s four-stro
After 3 years, U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) (Ike) returned to the Kingdom of Bahrain for a port visit, August 13-17. With more than 50 consecutive days at sea, the crew appreciated the time to rest and explore the small island country and take in the local culture. Ik
