Vessels
French FREMM frigate Auvergne visits Western Australia on maiden deployment
French Navy frigate FS Auvergne docked in the Western Australian port of Freemantle on November 15, four months into her maiden operational deployment. Departing her homeport of Toulon with an embarked NH90 helicopter in August, the FREMM frigate spent most of the time in the Indian Ocean, as part o
French Navy’s fifth FREMM frigate wraps up first sea trials
French Navy’s future FREMM frigate FS Bretagne completed her first set of sea trials in Lorient, North Western France. According to the international organization for cooperation on arms (OCCAR), the organization which coordinates the Italian-French FREMM frigate program, Bretagne wrapped up the fir
Turkish maritime drill Dogu Akdeniz-17 coming to a close
Over twenty ships and a number of aircraft are winding up their participation in the Turkish-hosted multinational maritime exercise Dogu Akdeniz-17. The exercise is hosted by Turkey in the Mediterranean every two years and the 2017 iteration is the 20th time it is taking place since it first started
Turkey emerges as potential buyer of UK helicopter carrier HMS Ocean
The Turkish government is interested in buying the soon-to-be-decommissioned UK helicopter carrier HMS Ocean if it is not sold to Brazil. In a reply to a parliamentary question, the UK defense ministry confirmed that Turkey sent an expression of interest to UK about the potential sale of HMS Ocean.
HII lays keel for US Navy destroyer USS Lenah H. Sutcliffe Higbee
Shipbuilder Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) laid the keel for the US Navy’s future Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Lenah H. Sutcliffe Higbee (DDG 123) in a ceremony in Pascagoula, Mississippi, on November 14. The ship’s keel was authenticated by the ship’s sponsors, Louisa Dixon, Virginia Munf
Australia starts upgrade of naval base HMAS Stirling
An AUD $367 million project to upgrade the Royal Australian Navy base HMAS Stirling got underway on November 10 as Australia’s defense minister Marise Payne and Western Australia senator Slade Brockman joined the sod-turning ceremony to mark the ceremonial start of the upgrade. Located on Garden Isl
US Coast Guard offloads 10 tons of cocaine in Florida
US Coast Guard cutter Spencer has offloaded some 10 tons of cocaine and 23 kilograms of heroin in Port Everglades, Florida, on Tuesday. The offloaded drugs were seized in international waters off the Eastern Pacific Ocean and are worth an estimated $300 million wholesale, according to the US Coast G
Australian minehunter HMAS Huon wraps up South West Pacific deployment
Royal Australian Navy minehunter HMAS Huon wrapped up a South West Pacific deployment earlier this month with the final of six port visits to Hobart, Tasmania, and her namesake city of Huonville. Having already toured the remote Australian territories of Lord Howe and Norfolk Islands, as well as Lug
Danish Terma teams with Tata for Indian Navy radar deliveries
Danish aerospace, defense, and security company Terma announced it has partnered with Tata Advanced Systems Ltd (TASL) for an Indian Navy surface surveillance radar project. The two companies will work on the delivery of overall 31 radars. The SSR program is the first procurement by The Indian defen
Dutch minehunter discovers wreck of German Imperial Navy submarine
A Royal Netherlands Navy minehunter has discovered the wreck of the German Imperial Navy mine-laying submarine UC-69, 8.5 miles off the coast of Barfleur, northern France. Tripartite-class minehunter HNLMS Makkum made the discovery in late October but the wreck was identified in November. The wreck
Kership launches French Navy’s second offshore support and assistance multipurpose vessel ‘Rhone’
The French Navy’s second Loire-class offshore support and assistance multipurpose vessel – BSAH Rhone – was launched by the Kership joint venture in Concarneau, north-western France. The launching ceremony took place November 13 with the vessel’s crew in attendance. Rhone is the second of four Bâtim
Panama to welcome first Ship to Shore Connector craft in December
Virginia-based sailors from Assault Craft Unit Four (ACU 4) arrived at the Naval Surface Warfare Center Panama City Division (NSWC PCD) to prepare for the arrival of first Ship to Shore Connector craft to Panama. The US Navy’s next-generation landing craft air cushion is set to arrive in December 20
Australia allocates AUD$500,000 to help find Navy’s first submarine HMAS AE1
The Australian government is giving out AUD $500,000 to support an expedition aiming to find HMAS AE1, the first submarine to enter service with the Royal Australian Navy. Defense minister Marise Payne announced the government would match a private investment which would allow Find AE1 Limited to pr
Aquabotix teams with Darley for US Navy ROV deliveries
Underwater systems producer Aquabotix announced it has partnered with W.S. Darley & Co. for the distribution of Aquabotix underwater vehicles and camera systems to the US Navy. Through this partnership, Aquabotix will will be working with Darley Defense, a specialty division of Darley that markets n