Navy News

Saab has signed a contract with the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration for the modernization of Sweden’s coastal anti-ship missile capability.The contract includes Saab’s RBS15 Mk3 anti-ship missile integrated on a launcher module installed on a truck.Sweden currently uses the predecessor RBS15 Mk2. The coastal anti-ship missile capability was reintroduced in the Swedish Armed Forces in 2016 and will now be complemented with RBS15 Mk3 on new launcher platforms.The total order value is $72.4 million (SEK 800 million)…

In September 2024, the U.S. Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Lisa Franchetti, issued her Chief of Naval Operations Navigation Plan for America’s Warfighting Navy. Admiral Franchetti describes this Navigation Plan as the strategic guidance to the U.S. Navy.This Navigation Plan embodies “Project 33” in recognition of the fact that Admiral Franchetti is the 33rd Chief of Naval Operations. Project 33 articulates two overarching objectives: An imperative to be ready for the possibility of war with the People’s Republic of China by 2027…

Damen Naval signed a contract with Nevesbu for the platform engineering scope of the Plataforma Estratégica de Superficie (PES) frigate for Colombia. This scope includes both basic engineering and detailed engineering. The collaboration highlights the strength of the Damen Shipyards Group, with Damen Naval and Nevesbu joining forces as sister companies within the organization.Based on Damen Naval’s SIGMA 10514 series, the PES frigate is designed to combine versatility and combat capability while being tailored to meet Colombia’s specific requirements.

Russia is disrupting mobile communications and ship-tracking data across the Baltic Sea, endangering vessels and energy supplies to test how Western powers will respond, a Polish admiral overseeing the area said.Vice Admiral Krzysztof Jaworski said Moscow was systematically using such tactics to hide the movements of its own vessels and disrupt the operations of others in the sea which is bordered by eight NATO countries and Russia."Hybrid war in the Baltic is the biggest challenge we are facing…

Norway said on Monday it would provide 2.7 billion crowns ($242 million) to strengthen the Ukrainian navy and help it deter Russian naval forces in the Black Sea.Much of the funding will go towards innovation and autonomy under the Maritime Capability Coalition, which Norway and Britain launched last year to make Ukraine's navy more compatible with Western allies, the government said."It is essential to protect the Ukrainian population and Ukrainian infrastructure from attacks by Russia's Black Sea Fleet," Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere said in a statement."It is also important to protect ex

The keel of the first of five Fleet Support Ships (FSS), being built at Hindustan Shipyard, was recently laid at a ceremony held at the shipyard.The HSL VC11200 project project, when delivered, will considerably enhance the Indian Navy’s operational capabilities also marks a major milestone in the shipyard’s ability to undertake complex projects.The Indian Register of Shipping (IRS) is providing classification services for all five vessels. These ships are being constructed in compliance with IRS Naval Combatant Rules…

Damen Naval has signed contract with classification society Lloyd’s Register for the delivery of Plataforma Estratégica de Superficie (PES) frigate for Colombia, which will be built by Colombian shipbuilder COTECMAR.Following a successful design study contract with COTECMAR, Damen Naval signed a contract for the delivery of engineering, technical support and the shipbuilding materials and equipment for the first frigate in August 2024.Lloyd’s Register has been involved with the project since the end of 2022…

Taiwan raised its alert level on Monday saying China has set up seven zones of reserved airspace and deployed naval fleets and coast guard boats in what a security source described as the first military drills across a broad swathe of the region's waters.A senior Taiwan security official told Reuters that China currently has nearly 90 navy and coast guard ships in waters near Taiwan, the southern Japanese islands and the East and South China Seas, of which around two-thirds were navy vessels.Beijing's defence ministry did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.China…

The Philippines held maritime drills with the United States and Japan inside its exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea, its military said on Friday, two days after a maritime confrontation with Beijing around a disputed shoal.The drills, which brought together a U.S. Navy P-8A Poseidon aircraft, Philippine Navy ship BRP Andres Bonifacio and a C-90 small plane, and Japan's Murasame-class destroyer JS Samidare, are the Philippines' latest round of exercises with allies…

Each year, as we prepare for the largest U.S. based maritime industry conference in New Orleans, we tend to look back on the state of the industry and initiatives that were announced from the conference that took place the year before. 2023 provided us with plenty to talk about. In September of 2023, while the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and the global shipbuilding industry were fixated on “emissions” and alternative fuels, U.S. Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro held the opening meeting of the Government Shipbuilders Council.

Konecranes has received its fifth portal jib order from the US Navy, part of an agreement initially announced in December 2019. This latest process crane order, worth $46.8 million, was booked in November 2024 and the jib will be delivered to the Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Virginia. The US Navy has the option for 2 additional portal jib cranes over the next 2 years, putting the potential total value of the agreement at around the previously estimated $330 million.The 175-ton heavy-lift portal crane will be built in Wisconsin and installed at Norfolk, the Navy's largest shipyard on the country’s east coast. The newest crane is similar to previous orders: customized design with unique features that allow the crane to operate on straight or curved tracks.

Kongsberg Maritime signed a contract with Hindustan Shipbuilding Limited to supply its electric replenishment-at-sea equipment for its Fleet Support Ships program, a new class of five large replenishment vessels designed to enhance the operational capabilities of the Indian Navy.“To have secured the contract to supply our electric Replenishment-at-Sea systems to the Indian Navy’s Fleet Support Ships program is significant for Kongsberg Maritime," said Lisa Edvardsen Haugan, President, Kongsberg Maritime.

HMNZS Manawanui grounded and sunk off the coast of Samoa as a result of human error, an interim Court of Inquiry report shows.The Royal New Zealand Navy ship grounded on a reef on the southern side of Samoa, on October 5, 2024, while conducting survey operations.Chief of Navy Rear Admiral Garin Golding stood up a Court of Inquiry following the incident. “The direct cause of the grounding has been determined as a series of human errors which meant the ship’s autopilot was not disengaged when it should have been…

Chinese ambassador to New Zealand Wang Xiaolong said that if New Zealand were to join security grouping AUKUS it would "inevitably" have negative consequences for the country's relationship with China.In a wide-ranging interview with state-owned Radio New Zealand released on Wednesday, Wang said that when deciding whether to join the grouping, China hoped that New Zealand would "take into account its own long-term best interests, the potential implications for regional security…

The U.S. military is supporting Philippine operations in the South China Sea via a special task force, a U.S. embassy official said on Thursday, an initiative Manila said involves intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance.Task Force-Ayungin, named after the Philippine designation for the contested Second Thomas Shoal, was first mentioned this week by U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin during a visit to the Philippines."Task Force-Ayungin enhances U.S.-Philippine alliance coordination and interoperability by enabling U.S.

Swedish and U.S. Marines gathered in Sweden’s rocky coastal archipelago to improve their littoral warfighting skills and enhance interoperability during Exercise Archipelago Endeavor 2024 (AE 24).“This is an annual exercise between Sweden and U.S., and it is the seventh time we conducted  it, but it's the first time that we conducting the exercise as an ally. Before that, we have conducted the exercise as a partner,” said Lt. Col. Patrik Berge of the Stockholm Marine Regiment…

A Russian Navy frigate equipped with new generation hypersonic cruise missiles has conducted drills in the English Channel and is carrying out tasks in the Atlantic Ocean, Russian news agencies reported on Tuesday.The crew of the frigate, equipped with Zircon (Tsirkon) hypersonic anti-ship missiles, conducted counter-terrorism drills, repelling air and sea drone attacks of a mock enemy, Russian state agencies reported."The Northern Fleet frigate Admiral Golovko has completed its…

Russian and Indonesian ships practiced freeing a vessel captured by terrorists and fought unmanned boats during the first joint naval exercises between the two countries in the Java Sea, Russia's RIA state news agency reported on Monday.The joint exercise, which started last week, came as newly inaugurated Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto pledged closer ties with Russia on defence, in a bid to forge links with any country as part of Jakarta's long-held non-aligned foreign policy.The crews of the joint detachment of ships practiced manoeuvring and communication…

As the Military Sealift Command (MSC) celebrates its 75th anniversary, it is looking to the future through the eyes of a forward-thinking “innovation cell” named for a ship from its storied past. USNS Taluga (T-AO-62) was the first Navy replenishment ship that was operated by civil service mariners.The Taluga Group is a three-person team of Director John Bruening, Dean Vesely and Jerit VanAuker who are focused on capability development and adoption of innovative practices.The Tulaga Group team have diverse backgrounds to help them look at problems in different ways.

Fire broke out on a Japanese warship sailing near the western part of the country, causing one crew member to be hospitalized due to smoke inhalation, while another was missing, Japan's navy said on Sunday.The Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force (JMSDF) said the minesweeper Ukushima was sailing off the coast north of Fukuoka in the island of Kyushu when the fire occurred at around 9:40 a.m. local time (0040 GMT).Admiral Akira Saito later said firefighting efforts were ongoing as of 8:30 p.m.

On November 10, Vice Admiral Angus Topshee, the 38th Commander of the Royal Canadian Navy, visited Hanwha Ocean’s Geoje shipyard and discussed Canada’s upcoming submarine acquisition project.This visit marks a significant step in the bidding process for the Canadian Patrol Submarine Project (CPSP), in which Hanwha Ocean is actively participating.During the visit, Hanwha Ocean introduced the KSS-III Batch-II submarine, a model that the proposed KSS-III CPS for CPSP is based upon.

The Egyptian Navy has chosen Safran to outfit is new patrol vesssels, being built in Egypt at Alexandria Shipyard, with advanced optronic and navigation systems.

Eureka Naval Craft is introducing its suite of high-speed AIRCAT (air cushion catamarans) surface effect ships (SES), already in use with the offshore energy industry, to the defense market.According to Bo Jardine, CEO of Eureka Naval Craft, a newly formed U.S.-based naval defense company, the versatile suite of AIRCAT naval vessels can serve as a patrol craft, rescue craft, medical evacuation vessels, heavily armed small combatants and landing craft.The AIRCAT SES has both an air cushion…