Isaf News

If there was ever a good reason to heed naval forces’ warnings about the continuing threat from Somali piracy, then an attack on a super tanker is surely one of them. A fully laden super tanker was attacked by eight armed pirates recently, 230 miles off the Somali coast, with the attack only being thwarted by the armed security team on board. Because of their vulnerability, it is highly recommended that all sailing yachts, under their own passage, should remain out of the High Risk Area (Southern Red Sea, Gulf of Aden and Western Indian Ocean).

Nor-Shipping announced the nominees for the 2013 Nor-Shipping Awards which recognize achievements in three different areas – energy efficiency, innovative ship design and young entrepreneurship. HRH Crown Prince Haakon of Norway will present the awards when they are announced at the Opening Conference on June 4. The Energy Efficiency Award (previously Clean Ship Award) pays tribute to the ship with the greatest contribution towards energy efficiency in relation to its function or operation.

GAC Pindar skipper Ian Williams has clinched his fourth International Sailing Federation (ISAF) World Match Racing title. Racing Tour. The team arrived in Malaysia only two and a half points behind the Tour leader Bjorn Hansen with all to play for. and come back with a vengeance. Williams made history in 2007 as the first British sailor to win the ISAF world title and won another two times in 2008 and 2011. His record four titles now equal that of the match racing legend, Australian skipper Peter Gilmour who announced his retirement only days ago.

The 2012 Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) military and civilian Engineers of the Year award was announced Feb. 2 by NAVFAC Commander Rear Admiral Christopher J. Mossey. Senior Civil Engineer Bruce Seamans at NAVFAC Atlantic in Norfolk, Va. was selected as the civilian Engineer of the Year, and Lt. Christopher Casne, Facilities Engineering Acquisition Division (FEAD) team leader at NAVFAC Hawaii in Pearl Harbor, was selected as the military Engineer of the Year. “These two civil engineers represent the best of the Navy,” said NAVFAC Chief Engineer and Director of Capital Improvements Joseph Gott. Seamans served as the chief engineer for the Kandahar Provincial Reconstruction Team and Regional Command South from August 2010 to July 2011.

On 14 June 2010, Rear Admiral Hudson Peter Hudson CBE handed over the responsibility of Operation Commander of the European Union Naval Force Somalia, Op ATALANTA to Major General Buster Howes OBE. The handover was conducted in the Operational Headquarters in Northwood near London. Rear Admiral Hudson, who joined the operation in June 2009, has been instrumental in the ongoing success of EU NAVFOR and the execution of the Op ATALANTA mission. Rear Admiral Hudson leaves EU NAVFOR to continue his appointment as Commander United Kingdom Maritime Force (COMUKMARFOR) in Portsmouth.

The phasing-in period of Rickmers-Linie's new fleet of nine Superflex Heavy MPC vessels and a series of naming ceremonies have concluded with the christening ceremony of Rickmers Genoa, which took place in her namesake port of Genoa, Italy on Wednesday evening, May 12, 2004. around the world. Port of Genoa. Palazzo del Principe. years. very special location for this event. Rickmers-Linie's Round-The-World Pearl String fleet. voyage, she was phased into the Pearl String Service in Antwerp on 24 April. a maximum lifting capacity of up to 640 tons. advanced vessels of her type on the market.

USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) and embarked Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 9 returned to the North Arabian Sea June 14 following its third port visit in the Middle East. Starting June 15, CVW-9 will conduct missions in support of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) and will provide close air-power support and reconnaissance to International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) troops on the ground in Afghanistan. ISAF is comprised of more than 35,000 troops, with contributions from 37 nations. “We have met every operational commitment assigned to perfection and have maintained a level of operational readiness second to none,” said Stennis’ Commanding Officer, Capt. Brad Johanson.

The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) conducts operations in the Arabian Sea. The John C. Stennis Carrier Strike Group is on regularly scheduled deployments in support of Maritime Security Operations (MSO). MSO help set the conditions for security and stability, as well as aid counter-terrorism and security efforts to regional nations. U.S. Senior leaders from the French Navy Ship (FNS) Charles de Gaulle (R 91) arrived aboard USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) March 16 to establish a foundation for further professional interaction and combined operations between the two navies. Commander Task Force 473 French Rear Adm. Xavier Magne and 15 other French officers from Charles de Gaulle met with their John C.