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Ministry Of Defense News

28 Mar 2024

Fincantieri Scoops $1.27B Deal to Supply Two Patrol Vessels to Indonesia

(Credit: Fincantieri)

Fincantieri and the Indonesian Ministry of Defense have signed a contract for the supply of two Multipurpose Offshore Patrol Vessel (PPA) units.The $1.27 billion (€1.18 billion) deal is part of the framework of collaborative relations initiated by the Italian Ministry of Defense.A PPA is a highly flexible ship with an outstanding technological standard. It has the capacity to serve multiple functions, ranging from patrol with sea rescue capacity to Civil Protection operations and first line fighting vessel.The vessels to be supplied by Fincantieri will be 143 meters long overall…

26 Feb 2024

UK Chamber of Shipping names Hatcher Chief Executive

Rhett Hatcher (Photo: UK Chamber of Shipping)

The UK Chamber of Shipping announced the appointment of Rhett Hatcher as its next chief executive, replacing Sarah Treseder.Hatcher has recently retired from the Royal Navy. He brings with him a broad wealth of experience. His last role was as the UK National Hydrographer and Deputy Chief Executive at the UK Hydrographic Office. He gained a thorough understanding of Whitehall while in senior appointments at the Ministry of Defense, where he was responsible for global strategy…

21 Feb 2024

UK's Trident Nuclear-deterrent Missile System Misfires During Test

FILE PHOTO: Nuclear submarine HMS Vanguard at HM Naval Base Clyde, Faslane, Scotland. (Photo: Tam McDonald / U.K. Ministry of Defense)

Britain's Trident nuclear-deterrent system misfired during a test last month, sending a missile crashing into the ocean off the Florida coast near the submarine that launched it, The Sun newspaper reported on Wednesday.The Ministry of Defense confirmed that an "anomaly" had occurred during the test but said Britain's "nuclear deterrent remains safe, secure and effective".With Defense Secretary Grant Shapps on board the HMS Vanguard to witness the test, The Sun said, the first…

16 Jan 2024

GE Vernova to Equip UK FSS Ships with Hybrid-electric Propulsion

(Image: Team Resolute)

GE Vernova's Power Conversion business in the UK has been chosen by Team Resolute to supply advanced hybrid propulsion technology for three Fleet Solid Support (FSS) ships for the UK Ministry of Defense (MOD).Team Resolute is a consortium created by Spanish shipbuilder and defense company Navantia, shipbuilder Harland & Wolff and naval architects BMT to deliver the FSS program, for which Navantia UK, the UK subsidiary of Navantia, is prime contractor.The 216-meter-long ships for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) will be designed with an emphasis on minimizing carbon emissions.

26 Dec 2023

UK to Send Navy Ship to Guyana Amid Venezuela Border Dispute

(File photo: LPhot Luke / U.K. Royal Navy)

Britain will deploy a naval ship off Guyana later this month, its ministry of defense said on Sunday, as the South American nation faces a border dispute with neighbor Venezuela over the oil-rich Essequibo region.The deployment follows a visit by a British junior foreign minister to Guyana earlier this month, intended to offer the UK's support for the country, an ally and former British colony.Guyana and Venezuela agreed earlier this month to avoid any use of force and not to escalate tensions in the long-running dispute.Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino said in a social media post

19 Dec 2023

Fincantieri Cuts Steel for Italian Navy's New Oceanographic Ship

(Photo: Fincantieri)

Italian shipbuilding group Fincantieri held a steel cutting ceremony to mark the start of construction on a new Hydro-Oceanographic Ship (N.I.O.M.) for the Italian Navy.Scheduled for delivery from the integrated shipyard in Riva Trigoso-Muggiano in 2026, the new vessel is intended for mapping and scientific monitoring activities, as well as in support of the initiatives of the Hydrographic Institute, took place today at the Riva Trigoso shipyard.The ship will feature technologies to contain emissions…

06 Dec 2023

Construction Begins on First F126 Frigates for the German Navy

(Image: Damen)

Damen Naval and project partner NVL Group held a steel cutting ceremony at the Peene shipyard in Wolgast, Germany for the first new multipurpose frigates for the German Navy.“We are proud to be able to start cutting steel entirely on schedule on December 5. We were able to complete the development phase in record time, something that is partly due to the excellent cooperation with BAAINBW, the Navy and the other German authorities,” said Damen Shipyards Group CEO Arnout Damen.

18 Oct 2023

Converted OSV Enters Service in the UK as an Underwater Surveillance Ship

RFA Proteus (Photo: UK Royal Navy)

A converted offshore support vessel has taken on a new life as a dedicated underwater surveillance ship for the U.K.'s Royal Navy.Christened during a ceremony in London on October 10, RFA Proteus will be operated by the Royal Fleet Auxiliary as a launchpad for remotely operated underwater vehicles (ROV) and a home to a suite of specialist capabilities similar to those found in the offshore oil and gas industry.The ship, built in 2017 as a subsea construction vessel named Topaz Tangaroa, was acquired by the U.K.

11 Oct 2023

Israel's Ports Feel Strain as Shipping Traffic Slows After Attacks

© Dmitry Pistrov / Adobe Stock

Activity at Israel's ports is slowing after Saturday's attacks by Islamist group Hamas on towns close to Gaza, with the cost of insurance premiums for Israeli shipments soaring amid tightening supplies of food stocks, according to sources and data.Israel's southern coastal city of Ashkelon, which has a small port well in range of Hamas rockets, is not allowing ships to enter, shipping sources said.While the main Israeli ports of Ashdod further up the coast and Haifa in the north…

05 Oct 2023

"Know Your Ship 24 Hours Before You Board" – Damen Delivers Virtual Copy of CSS Den Helder to Dutch Navy

Credit: Damen

Dutch shipbuilder Damen has delivered a virtual copy of the under-construction Combat Support Ship (CSS) Den Helder, to a branch of the Dutch Ministry of Defense, so the crews can get to know the ship even before it's been delivered to the Royal Netherlands Navy."The new Combat Support Ship (CSS) Den Helder has not yet been delivered, but the crew can already get to know the ship thanks to an extensive Virtual Reality package. [... ] Damen Naval has delivered a virtual copy of the ship to the Materieel & IT Command (COMMIT).

02 Oct 2023

BAE Systems Secures $4,81B Funding for Next-Gen Nuclear Submarine Program

The UK Ministry of Defense has awarded £3.95 billion (currently ~$4,81 billion) of funding to BAE Systems for the next phase of the UK's next-generation nuclear-powered attack submarine program, known as SSN-AUKUS.According to BAE Systems, SSN-AUKUS will be the largest, most powerful, and most advanced attack submarine the Royal Navy has ever operated and will eventually replace the Astute class, which BAE Systems builds at its site in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria.The funding follows the AUKUS announcement in March by the leaders of Australia, the UK and the United States.

21 Sep 2023

U.S. Revives Cold War Submarine Spy Program to Counter China

Credit: noraismail/AdobeStock

On a windswept island 50 miles north of Seattle sits a U.S. Navy monitoring station. For years, it was kept busy tracking whale movements and measuring rising sea temperatures. Last October, the Navy gave the unit a new name that better reflects its current mission: Theater Undersea Surveillance Command.The renaming of the spy station at the Whidbey Island naval base is a nod to a much larger U.S. military project, according to three people with direct knowledge of the plans:…

06 Jun 2023

Brunvoll to Equip Brazilian Research Support Vessel

Brunvoll's Integrated Costa Propulsion (ICP). (Image: Brunvoll AS)

Norway-based Brunvoll said it has secured an "extensive" contract with shipbuilder Estaleiro Jurong Aracruz LTDA in Brazil for the delivery of a propulsion and maneuvering package for the Brazilian Ministry of Defense’s new Antarctic Research Support vessel.The delivery from Brunvoll comprises a variety of its own products and from its partners. Low noise and vibration levels arecrucial for conducting scientific research onboard an oceangoing vessel. Utilizing a fixed pitch propeller…

10 Apr 2023

BAE Systems Begins Building UK's New Frigate in Scotland

(Photo: BAE Systems)

Construction on the U.K. Royal Navy's future HMS Birmingham has officially commenced at BAE Systems’ Govan shipyard in Glasgow.Work on the first three Type 26 ships is well under way with HMS Glasgow now at BAE Systems’ Scotstoun shipyard to have her complex systems installed, HMS Cardiff currently being assembled and HMS Belfast in its early construction phase. HMS Birmingham is the first ship to be constructed under a £4.2 billion contract for the remaining five ships secured in November…

24 Mar 2023

OPV P71 Delivered, New Flagship of Armed Forces of Malta

Image courtesy Cantiere Navale Vittoria

The flag of the Republic of Malta waves on the Offshore Patrol Vessel P71 to celebrate the entry into service of the new flagship of the Armed Forces of Malta built by Cantiere Navale Vittoria.At the AFM naval base in Floriana, Valletta, the official delivery ceremony was held for the largest patrol vessel ever built by Cantiere Navale Vittoria. The 75-m unit, built in Italy, will be used in coastal surveillance operations, extended patrolling on the high seas and Search and Rescue operations.OPV P71 is the result of an order with a total value of more than 50 million euros…

23 Mar 2023

Uncrewed Boats Are Changing the Way Wars Are Fought at Sea

An L3 Harris Arabian Fox MAST-13 unmanned surface vessel sails behind Royal Bahrain Naval Force missile corvette RBNS Al Muharraq (P 51) during a vessel boarding drill in the Arabian Gulf during exercise Neon Defender, Jan. 22. (Photo: Anita Chebahtah / U.S. Navy)

When Ukraine successfully deployed self-driving “drone” boats for a major attack on the Russian navy at Sevastopol in Crimea in September 2022 it was a defining moment that changed the future of naval warfare. Uncrewed surface vessels (USVs) have been used before, but this was the first instance of multiple, armed USVs, used simultaneously in combination with aerial drones for a successful, offensive naval operation on a military target.Several Russian ships were damaged in the attack…

31 Jan 2023

Glamox to Light the New Fleet of Finnish Navy Corvettes

Photo credit: © 2022 The Finnish Defence Forces

Glamox (GLX) entered into an agreement with Rauma Marine Constructions and the Finnish Ministry of Defense to deliver fully integrated LED lighting technology for the Finnish Navy’s new Squadron 2020 Corvette vessels. This includes the navigation light system, internal and external lighting, and the helicopter visual landing aid system.The Squadron 2020 project aims to decommission and replace seven of the existing Finnish naval fleet with modern corvette vessels.

15 Nov 2022

BAE Systems Wins $5 Billion Naval Shipbuilding Contract

(Image: BAE Systems)

Multinational defense contractor and shipbuilder BAE Systems announced it has been awarded a £4.2 billion (approx. $5 billion) contract from the U.K. Ministry of Defense to build the next five City Class Type 26 frigates for the U.K. Royal Navy in Glasgow.Ships of the class will be advanced warships designed for anti-submarine warfare and high-intensity air defense, but can adapt its role quickly to transport high volumes of humanitarian aid and house medical facilities, according…

31 Oct 2022

What is Known About the Drone Attack on Crimea?

Illustration only - ©Andrii Salivon/AdobeStock

Russia suspended participation in the U.N.-brokered Black Sea grain deal after what it said was a Ukrainian drone attack on vessels in the Bay of Sevastopol in the early hours of Saturday. What do we know so far? WHAT HAPPENED? Russia said 16 air and maritime drones attacked civilian and Black Sea Fleet vessels in the Bay of Sevastopol in Crimea at 0420 Kyiv time on Saturday. Russia said all nine of the air drones were destroyed. Four of the seven maritime drones were destroyed on the outer perimeter of the bay, but three more made it inside before they were destroyed, Russia said.

07 Nov 2022

UK Suspends 'National Flagship' Yacht Project

(Image: U.K. Government)

Britain won't proceed with building a new national flagship to promote business and trade interests around the world, defense minister Ben Wallace said on Monday, ending one of former Prime Minister Boris Johnson's pet projects.The ship was announced in May 2021 to host trade shows and negotiations, but tendering of contracts had not been completed.Wallace said that the project had been scrapped as he was prioritizing building ships to detect threats to cables on the seabed in…

13 Oct 2022

MST Launches First in a Series of 18 New Patrol Boats

(Photo: BMT)

Marine Specialised Technology Group has launched the first in a series of new Police Patrol Craft being built for the UK Ministry of Defense Police (MDP) and the Gibraltar Ministry of Defense Police (GDP)Awarded in March 2021, The Police Patrol Craft (PPC) contract is a six-year program that will see delivery of 18 patrol craft to various Police units around the UK and Gibraltar. The Patrol Craft will be used to ensure protection of major Royal Naval Assets, including capital ships and submarines…

30 Aug 2022

SeeByte Selected to Develop Future Crewed-uncrewed Teaming Concept

(Image: SeeByte)

SeeByte, developer of smart software solutions for uncrewed maritime systems, reports it been selected by the U.K. Ministry of Defense’s Defense and Security Accelerator (DASA) to design and develop a proof-of-concept solution to improve communication and understanding between operators and uncrewed maritime systems.The new concept will include tailoring the volume and content of messages received and predicting vehicles’ actions between communication updates, SeeByte said. The…

17 Aug 2022

UKHO Appoints Marion Leslie as Non-Executive Chair

Marion Leslie (Photo: UKHO)

The UK Hydrographic Office (UKHO) confirmed the appointment of Marion Leslie as Non-Executive Chair. Leslie will chair the UKHO Board in this independent position after a year as interim Non-Executive Chair and six years as a Non-Executive Director at the UKHO.The Board supports, challenges and validates the UKHO business strategy and oversees the organization's performance. Leslie leads the Board as Chair, acting in the interests of the Ministry of Defense and key stakeholders…