Still smart from the front, but like a cockchafer from the side! The first mine defence platform of the Belgian-Dutch joint project rMCM, the Belgian "Oostende", was sighted in open sea for the first time in mid-July. The sea trials off Concarneau in southern Brittany initially focussed on the propulsion and navigation systems. The bilateral rMCM programme as a cooperation between Belgium Naval &...
On 3 September, the first of the four Norwegian Orion P-3C maritime patrol aircraft finally arrived in South America after being refurbished in the USA. Two weeks later, on 19 September, the maritime patrol aircraft with the new registration 6-P-57 was handed over to the Argentine Navy in Buenos Aires. As there is currently no long-distance reconnaissance...
Commentary Regardless of the outcome of the US elections, China is preparing for further conflicts with the US and is contributing to the escalation of a Cold War. Despite its new aggressiveness, China has so far remained defensive. Initiatives such as the New Silk Road and Made in China 2025 are aimed at reducing dependence on Western sales markets and...
Iran is the preferred supplier of missiles for the Venezuelan navy - the Armada Bolivariana de Venezuela. A number of CM-90 maritime target missiles (range 90 kilometres) were recently purchased there, including the support facilities (workshops) and training required to operate and deploy these missiles. These weapons can now also be used to...
Keel laying ceremonies are actually completely overrated as a material new start for ships. However, one must be reported here: The keel laying of the first US frigate of the Constellation class at Fincantieri Marinette Marine on the Menominee River in Green Bay/Lake Michigan in Wisconsin. After the less successful designs of the Zumwalt destroyer and the Littoral...
An inconspicuous photo gave it away: As can be seen from the launch symbol under the pilot's cockpit, US Navy naval aviators destroyed a grounded Mil Mi-24 Hind combat helicopter of the Huthi militias towards the end of February 2024 - and, as was later revealed, by means of an AGM-88E Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile...
During the massive Iranian attack on Israel on the night of 13 to 14 April 2024 with around 170 drones, 120 ballistic missiles and 30 cruise missiles, it was not only the Israeli Iron Dome air defence system that proved its high level of effectiveness. Allies and neighbouring states also played a supporting role in the fight against...
Since April 2019, the state-owned Navantia shipyard has had a contract with the Spanish Navy for the construction of five F-110 multi-purpose frigates - first delivery in 2028, worth around 4.4 billion euros. Special new features of this ship type are the block production in 33 hull sections introduced for the first time at Navantia and a land-based "digital twin", which...
Walo, Niani and Cayor are the three new OPV 58S built by Senegal for the Maritime Defence and State Action at Sea missions along its 300 kilometres of coastline. Piriou Group, a privately owned shipyard group based on the south coast of French Brittany, has completed the outfitting of these three 62-metre multi-purpose vessels...
Ukraine keeps meticulous records of all incidents in the navy of the Russian Federation. In early June, for example, Kiev reported on an engine fire on the Udaloy-class submarine destroyer ADMIRAL LEVCHENKO (project 1155, 164 metres, 8,500 tonnes) of the Northern Fleet in the Barents Sea, even though this ship never sailed in the Black Sea.
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