Mine Counter Measures News

Turkey, Romania and Bulgaria signed an agreement on Thursday on a joint plan to clear mines floating in the Black Sea as a result of the war in Ukraine, following months of talks between the NATO allies.Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler, his Romanian counterpart Angel Tilvar and Bulgaria's Deputy Defence Minister Atanas Zapryanov signed a memorandum of understanding in Istanbul to form a trilateral initiative to clear the explosives."With the start of the war, a threat of floating mines in the Black Sea has arisen. To combat it ...

A specialist ship purchased by the U.K. Royal Navy to support mine-hunting operations has arrived in Plymouth.When deployed, the vessel will be based at Naval Base Clyde and used as a mother ship tp support the safeguarding of U.K. waters from the threat of mines at sea, operating a range of uncrewed systems that will help keep personnel at a safe distance under Project Wilton.Purchased from Norway's Island Offshore, the the 96.8-meter-long vessel – currently named Island Crown…

The Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies (MITAGS) announced that Mark Heward has joined its team as Director. Heward came aboard with MITAGS in October 2022, after retiring from a 22-year active service career in the Royal Navy.“We are thrilled to welcome Mark Heward aboard as the Director of MITAGS. Mark’s underway time, leadership, management and training experience together with being fully STCW qualified and his continuing education experience are a rare combination,” said Eric Friend, MITAGS Executive Director.

The Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies (MITAGS) said Friday that Mark Heward had joined as Director of MITAGS.Heward came aboard with MITAGS in October 2022, after retiring from a 22-year active service career in the Royal Navy.Eric Friend, MITAGS Executive Director, said: "We are thrilled to welcome Heward Heward aboard as the Director of MITAGS. Mark’s underway time, leadership, management, and training experience, together with being fully STCW qualified…

Shipbuilder General Dynamics NASSCO, a subsidiary of aerospace and defense company General Dynamics (GD), announced on Friday that it received $1.4 billion in U.S. Navy contract modifications for construction of a sixth Expeditionary Sea Base ship (ESB 8) and two additional John Lewis-class fleet oilers (T-AO 211 and 212). This award comes in addition to $600 million already received to procure long-lead time materials for the same ships. The contract modification also provides an option for the Navy to procure an additional oiler…

San Diego shipbuilder General Dynamics NASSCO said it has been awarded $600 million in U.S. Navy contract modifications for long-lead-time material to support construction of the seventh and eighth ships in the John Lewis-class fleet oiler (T-AO) program, as well as the sixth ship in the Expeditionary Sea Base (ESB) program.The contract modifications for long-lead-time material provide $500 million for T-AO 211 (Thurgood Marshall) and T-AO 212 (Ruth Bader Ginsburg), and $100 million…

General Dynamics NASSCO christened the USNS John L. Canley (ESB 6), the fourth ship for the U.S. Navy’s reclassified Expeditionary Sea Base (ESB) program, on Saturday. Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Michael E. Langley served as the principal speaker at the ceremony, in addition to remarks from NASSCO, U.S. Navy, and U.S. Marine Corps representatives. Following remarks, Patricia A. Sargent, the ship’s sponsor and daughter of the ship’s namesake, christened the ship with the traditional champagne bottle break alongside the hull.“Today, we celebrate and honor a true hero, Sgt. Maj. Canley.

The U.K. Royal Navy said it is testing a new crewless minehunter as part of its drive toward autonomous systems.Developed through a joint Anglo-French Maritime Mine Counter Measures program, the system is designed to detect the latest mine threats while reducing the risk to the lives of those searching for them. It comprises an uncrewed surface vessel, towed sonar and a portable operation center, and is now undergoing rigorous capability development trials.Demonstrators have been delivered to both the Royal and French Navies, the U.K.

San Diego shipyard General Dynamics NASSCO on Wednesday started construction on the future USS Robert E. Simanek (ESB 7), the fifth ship of the Navy’s reclassified Expeditionary Sea Base (ESB) program.Long-time NASSCO employee Dennis DuBard served as the Start of Construction honoree, initiating the first cut of steel that will be used to construct the vessel.“Today, we start construction of the ship that honors the life and service of the ship’s namesake, Marine Corps Private First Class Robert E. Simanek,” said Dave Carver, president of General Dynamics NASSCO.

Wisconsin-based power solutions manufacturer Fairbanks Morse said it has delivered four FM 6L48/60CR engines to shipbuilder General Dynamics NASSCO in San Diego for the newbuild USS John L. Canley (ESB 6). The ship is the sixth in the U.S. Navy’s Military Sealift Command Expeditionary Transfer Dock (ESD)/Expeditionary Sea Base (ESB) program and is designed to serve as a mobile sea base that provides access to critical infrastructure for the deployment of forces and supplies.The four FM 6L48/60CR engines are rated at 6,480 kW and will deliver a total of 25,920 kW of installed power.

However readers might define “normal”, 2020 was anything but. But the business of rigid inflatable boats (RIB) has been going at full throttle.Matthew Velluto, Director of Business Development and Marketing at RIBCRAFT USA, based in Marblehead, Mass., described a business moving steadily ahead, though it’s had to weave and bob at times during 2020. “We’ve been able to stay open throughout 2020, with no disruptions on our side,” though he acknowledged hiccups further down in the company’s supply chain. He explains that the business was deemed to be “essential”.

Driven by the need to organically protect maritime Task Groups from the threat of sea mines, the Royal Australian Navy is introducing a deployable Mine Counter-Measures (MCM) capability under the first phase of Project SEA 1778.The Royal Australian Navy’s (RAN) SEA 1778 deployable Mine Counter-Measures (MCM) capability is both a small step forward in the spiral development process and a “technological leap” into autonomy.”The RAN is looking to replace its four legacy Huon-class minehunter coastal ships (MHCs) with a new deployable MCM capability.

U.S. West Coast shipbuilder and repair provider Vigor Marine has been awarded a $30,269,098 firm-fixed-price contract for a 120-calendar day post shakedown shipyard availability of the expeditionary sea base ship Miguel Keith (T-ESB 5), owned and operated by the U.S. Navy's Military Sealift Command.Work will be performed in Portland, Ore. and is expected to be complete by December 2020.Work will include the furnishing of general services, shipboard access, clean and gas free tank voids and cofferdams…

San Diego shipbuilder General Dynamics National Steel and Shipbuilding Co. (NASSCO) has been awarded a $136.8 million undefinitized contract for the procurement of long lead time material, preproduction and engineering support for the Expeditionary Sea Base 6.This action allows the procurement of ship sets of the purchase specifications supporting integrated propulsion, main diesel generator engines, propeller and shafting, integrated bridge electronics, centrifugal pumps, fuel and lube oil purifiers and steering gear components.NASSCO delivered the fourth expeditionary sea base vessel…

The fourth expeditionary sea base vessel, USNS Hershel “Woody” Williams, was delivered to the U.S. Navy’s Military Sealift Command (MSC) on February 22. Shipbuilder General Dynamics NASSCO began constructing the 784-foot-long ship in October 2015, applying lessons learned from ESB 3, USS Lewis B. Puller, throughout the ESB 4 build. The vessel, named after World War II Medal of Honor recipient Hershel “Woody” Williams, is designed to carry out various missions including air mine counter measures…

Thales is announcing a major commitment to develop future autonomous and unmanned technology across air and sea by investing in two new UK-based trials and training centers. Following Thales’s successful trials during the Royal Navy’s Unmanned Warrior exercise in 2016, Thales is now investing in two trials and training centres based in West Wales and in South-West England to test and develop autonomous systems for both military and civil activities. "Investing in these facilities enables the safe test…

Fifty navy divers and mine warfare specialists from Australia, New Zealand, the United States, and Britain converged on Bland Bay, New Zealand for Exercise FULCRUM recently. The contingent had to locate and dispose of 16 dummy mines of varying shape, size and weight, set throughout the bay. Australian and British autonomous underwater vehicle teams used remote environmental monitoring units to scan the bay floor and identify mine-like objects. The US and New Zealand then sent out divers to confirm whether or not they were mines, said Lieutenant Teina Hullena of the Royal New Zealand Navy Clearance Diving Group. "They would then either 'blow them up' or raise them to the surface for intelligence gathering," Lieutenant Hullena said.

Thales, BAE Systems and their partner SAAB, ECA Group and ASV Global welcome the confirmation by the Organization for Joint Armament Cooperation (OCCAR) that the UK Ministry of Defense (MOD) and French Defense Procurement Agency (DGA) will continue its collaboration for the combined United Kingdom and France MMCM (maritime mine counter measures) program. Initiated in 2010 under a cooperation agreement between France and the United Kingdom, the MMCM program develops a prototype autonomous system for detection and neutralisation of sea mines and underwater improvized explosive devices (UWIEDs). The agreement signed at Euronaval today between Harriet Baldwin…

San Diego based shipbuilder General Dynamics NASSCO delivered three lead ships in 2015: USNS Lewis B. Puller, the Isla Bella and the Lone Star State. Each vessel represents three new and separate ship classes and highlights the builder’s diverse portfolio of commercial and government contracts, the company said. In June, NASSCO delivered the USNS Lewis B. Puller to the U.S. Navy, the first ship in the Expeditionary Base Mobile (ESB) class. Previously classified as a Mobile Landing Platform Afloat Forward Staging Base (MLP AFSB)…

This morning, four NATO ships assigned to Standing NATO Mine Counter-Measures Group TWO (SNMCMG2) arrived in Batumi, Georgia for a scheduled visit in an effort to enhance cooperative activities and strengthen relations with the partner nation. The fifth member of the Group, ITS GAETA (Italy), will arrive later in the visit. Under the command of Captain Ramazan Kesgin, Turkish Navy, the Group includes the flagship TCG CEZAYIRLI GAZI HASAN PASA (Turkey) and the mine counter-measures vessels TCG EDREMIT (Turkey), ESPS TAMBRE (Spain), ITS GAETA and ROS SLT. ALEXANDRU AXENTE (Romania).

Approximately 80,000 tons (fully loaded) and 784 feet in length, with a beam of 164 feet—more than a third wider than most ships—Expeditionary Base Mobile (ESB) 4 is an extremely stable platform for sea base operations. Enabled by GE’s electric power and propulsion system, and built by General Dynamics, National Steel and Shipbuilding Company (NASSCO), ESB 4 will be able to operate at a speed of 15 knots with an endurance of over 9,500 nautical miles. ESB 4 is the second ship of this type to be outfitted as an Expeditionary Base Mobile, formerly called the Afloat Forward Staging Base. It will be able to accommodate up to 250 personnel. The new 784-foot vessel will feature a 52,000-square-foot flight deck, fuel and equipment storage, repair spaces, magazines and mission planning.

Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Group 2 (SNMCMG2) has completed its third deployment into the Black Sea under the command of Captain Ramazan Kesgin, Turkish Navy. SNMCMG2 started its deployment on July 8 in support of NATO’s assurance measures regarding Alliance resolve and commitment to collective defense, and to enhance maritime security in the region. SNMCMG2 included the flagship TCG CEZAYIRLI GAZI HASAN PASA (Turkey) and the mine counter-measures vessels TCG EDINCIK (Turkey), ESPS TURIA (Spain) and the ROS SLT. ALEXANDRU AXENTE (Romania).

South Korea's Kangnam Corporation will jointly build 12 mine countermeasure vessels (MCMV) in India in collaboration with India's state-owned Goa Shipyard Limited (GSL), reports Hindustan Times. The project comes under under the Modi government’s Make in India programme and is likely to cost more than Rs 32,000 crore ($4.8 billion). “We are in the final stage of concluding the contract. It should be done in three to four weeks,” Hindustan Times quoted GSL chairman Rear Admiral Shekhar Mital as saying. The navy needs to fill gaps in its mine warfare capability. Its existing mine counter-measures force consists of six vessels bought from the erstwhile Soviet Union in the late 1970s. It requires 24 minesweepers.