Late on Saturday night during a European Union counter-piracy patrol close to the east coast of Somalia, EU NAVFOR’s Spanish flagship, ESPS Galicia, received a SOS distress call from the master of merchant ship, MT Costina, to say that his vessel was being attacked by a number of armed pirates in a
On April 21st, the session of the Russian Defence Ministry Board has been held in Moscow under the leadership of the head of the military department General of the Army Sergei Shoigu. In his opening speech, the Minister of Defence stated that such multipurpose frigates as the Admiral of Soviet Union
International officers attending the U.S. Naval War College (NWC) Naval Staff College (NSC) visited the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69), April 17. The 62 international officers from 51 countries in the NSC Class of 2017 toured Ike as part of the field studies program (FSP). This p
The U.S. Navy accepted delivery of its eighth Expeditionary Fast Transport (EPF) vessel, USNS Yuma (EPF 8), April 21. EPFs are shallow draft, all aluminum, commercial-based catamarans capable of intra-theater personnel and cargo transport, that provide combatant commanders high-speed sealift mobilit
A U.S. Navy pilot flying from the USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier crashed while attempting to land during routine flight operations in the Celebs Sea. The pilot ejected and was quickly recovered by an embarked helicopter. The navy said the incident, which took place April 21, was under investigatio
French Minister of Defense Jean-Yves Le Drian on Friday authorized shipbuilder DCNS to start the construction of five FTI (Fregate de Taille Intermediaire) medium-size frigates for the French Navy. The 4,000-tonne front-line frigates, equipped for anti-submarine warfare with widened self-defence and
The Indian Navy announced it has carried out a maiden firing of the land attack version of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile. This missile has been in service with the Indian Army since 2007 but this is the first launch of the missile from an Indian Navy ship. The navy said BrahMos was fired fro
The German Navy recently shared a video of its giant 7,000-ton frigate FGS Baden-Württemberg conducting further firing tests. This is the second video of the lead ship of a new class of F 125 frigates firing its weapons in the North Sea’s Helgoland shooting range. The previous one showed the Baden-W
The UK Ministry of Defence has awarded missile manufacturer MBDA a total of £539 million worth of contracts for delivery of new and service of existing missiles in the UK armed forces. More specifically, the contract will see MBDA deliver the Meteor air-to-air missiles for the F-35B jets that will o
Works on the Royal Navy’s fifth follow-on River-class offshore patrol vessel began with a steel cutting ceremony on Friday, April 21. Tony Douglas, head of UK’s defense procurement organisation, pressed the button to cut the first sheet of steel for the HMS Spey at BAE Systems’ Govan shipyard in Sco
The U.S. Coast Guard received its 23rd fast response cutter (FRC), Benjamin Dailey, in a ceremony in Key West, Florida, on April 20. The Bollinger Shipyards-built FRC will be stationed in Pascagoula, Mississippi, and is scheduled for commissioning in July. The cutter will be the first FRC stationed
A South Korean Navy ship already patrolling the Horn of Africa as part of an EU-led task force was sent to participate in an international anti-piracy drill that took place in the Gulf of Aden. The Chungmugong Yi Sun-sin-class destroyer ROKS Choe Yeong joined U.S., Japanese and Royal Navy warships i
The U.S. Navy has awarded General Dynamics Electric Boat a $13 million contract for work on the U.S. and UK Trident II submarine launched ballistic missile programs. Under the contract, which is potentially worth $46 million if all options are exercised, General Dynamics will perform alterations on
U.S. Navy’s Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Leyte Gulf (CG 55) made a stop in Haakonsvern, Norway, en route to the U.S. 6th Fleet area of operations. The cruiser arrived in Norway on April 20 after departing its homeport in Norfolk, Virginia, March 27. “Port visits such as this are unco
