August 2017 News - Naval Forces, Defense Industry, Navy Technology, Maritime Security
 
 

US Navy Commissions 1st Expeditionary Sea Base USS Lewis B. Puller ESB 3 in Bahrain
 .a
Expeditionary Sea Base USNS Lewis B Puller MSC 1
The U.S. Navy commissioned the Expeditionary Sea Base USS Lewis B. Puller (ESB 3) during a ceremony Thursday, August 17, at Khalifa bin Salman Port in Al Hidd, Bahrain. Puller is the first U.S. ship to be commissioned outside the United States, and the ship's reclassification provides U.S. Central Command and 5th Fleet greater flexibility to better meet regional challenges.
 

Royal Navy Aircraft Carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth Arrived at her Portsmouth Home Port
 .a
HMS Queen Elizabeth Portsmouth 1
Britain's future flagship HMS Queen Elizabeth sailed into her home port of Portsmouth for the first time on August 16th. Greeted by thousands of people lining the Portsmouth seafront, the 65,000-tonne carrier was met with the warmest of welcomes as she arrived in her home port. Sailors lined the flight deck of the largest warship ever built for the Royal Navy as she passed Portsmouth's Round Tower. HMS Queen Elizabeth was also greeted with a flypast from the Fleet Air Arm, including Wildcat and Merlin helicopters and Hawk jets.
 

HII’s Proteus Successfully Completes Unmanned Missions Testing at 2017 ANTX
 .a
HII Proteus ANTX
Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) announced today that Proteus, its dual-mode undersea vehicle, successfully completed autonomous contested battlespace missions during the 2017 Advanced Naval Technology Exercise (ANTX) at the Naval Surface Warfare Center (Panama City Division).
 

Damen Lays Keel of SIGMA 10514 Long Range Patrol Vessel for Mexican Navy
 .a
PT PAL has launched the first of two SIGMA 10514 Perusak Kawal Rudal (PKR) guided-missile frigates designated for the Indonesian Navy (TNI AL). PT PAL built these ships in collaboration with Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding (DSNS). The ceremony was attended by the Guests of Honour, namely the Indonesian Minister of Defense, Ryamizard Rycudu along with Coordinating Minister of Maritime Affairs, Rizal Ramli; ambassadors from neighboring countries; the Governor of East Java, Soekarwo and Chief of the Navy Admiral Ade Supandi.
On Thursday 17th August, the Secretary of the Mexican Navy, Admiral Vidal Francisco Soberón Sanz, took part in a symbolic coin ceremony at Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding (DSNS) at Vlissingen in the Netherlands. He was accompanied by the Secretary of National Defense, General Salvador Cienfuegos. The Coin Ceremony is an event which takes place at the keel laying, in the early stages of a ship's construction. In it, the shipbuilders place one or two coins under the keelblock of the new ship to bless the ship and as a symbol of good fortune. On this occasion, the vessel is a Damen Sigma 10514 Long Range Patrol Vessel.
 

Thales to Provide Royal Canadian Navy with In-Service Support for AOPS and JSS
 .a
Arctic and Offshore Patrol Vessel Harry DeWolf Class Canada
The Government of Canada has awarded Thales In-Service Support (ISS), refit, repair, maintenance and training to both Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ships (AOPS) and Joint Support Ships (JSS). Known as AJISS, the contract includes an initial service period of eight years for up to $800 million CAD (approx. €540 million) with options to extend services up to 35 years, for a total value of $5.2 billion CAD1 (approx. €3.5 billion), making it the largest ISS contract in Canadian history.
 

QinetiQ leads next phase of MAPLE unmanned systems exploitation project
 .a
Qinetiq surface assets formation 2
QinetiQ has signed a £4.5m contract to lead phase four of the Maritime Autonomous Platform Exploitation (MAPLE) project for the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl). The MAPLE project, spearheaded by QinetiQ in partnership with BAE Systems, SeeByte and Thales, seeks to demonstrate and de-risk the integration of multiple unmanned systems into the combat system of a Royal Navy warship.
 

Russian Project 955A and 885M Submarines to get Noiseless Leak-Proof Pumps
 .a
Russian Project 955A and 885M Submarines to get Noiseless Leak-Proof Pumps
The latest Russian nuclear submarines of projects 955A (codename Borei-A) and 885M (codename Yasen-M) will be practically undetectable for hydro-acoustic stations which are the main means to expose a submarine. The advantage will be provided by the latest noiseless domestically produced leak-proof pumps. Previously all Soviet and Russian-made submarines were equipped with pumps produced by the Gidrotekhnika scientific and technical center in Moldavia, the Izvestia daily reported.
 

Japan's ATLA Selected MHI & Mitsui to build 30DX Surface Combatant for JMSDF
 .a
30DX Surface Combatant JMSDF
Japan's Acquisition Technology and Logistics Agency (ATLA) announced on August 9th the launch of a new surface vessel programme called 30DX for the JMSDF. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) was selected as prime contractor while Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding (Mitsui) was selected as subcontractor. ATLA is a branch of Japan's MoD created in 2015 to "ensure technological superiority and respond to operational needs smoothly and quickly".
 

Northrop Grumman Helps U.S. Navy Fire Scout Squadron Make History
 .a
Northrop Grumman Helps Fire Scout Squadron Make History
Northrop Grumman Fire Scout instructors helped an elite detachment of Fire Scout Air Vehicle Operators (AVO) from the U.S. Navy’s Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 23 train and rehearse for a historic two-part demonstration. The AVOs trained for a real-time mission-set that handed off two autonomous, radar-equipped MQ-8B Fire Scout helicopters between multiple ground stations, a program first. The exercise also provided critical, real-time targeting information to a manned MH-60S Seahawk helicopter during a weeklong exercise off the coast of southern California.
 

Video: DARPA Testing TALONS Sensor Aboard U.S. Navy Patrol Vessel USS Zephyr
 .a
DARPA TALONS Sensor
DARPA’s Towed Airborne Lift of Naval Systems (TALONS) research effort recently demonstrated its prototype of a low-cost, elevated sensor mast aboard a commissioned U.S. Navy vessel for the first time. The crew of USS Zephyr, a 174-foot (53-meter) Cyclone-class patrol coastal ship, evaluated the technology demonstration system over three days near Naval Station Mayport, Florida.
 

U.S. Navy, Raytheon deliver 4,000th Tomahawk Block IV cruise missile
 .a
U.S. Navy, Raytheon deliver 4,000th Tomahawk Block IV cruise missile
Raytheon Co. and the U.S. Navy have delivered the 4,000th Tomahawk™ Block IV cruise missile to the fleet. The highly advanced missile can circle for hours, shift course instantly on command and strike with pinpoint accuracy. Launched from ships or submarines, the Tomahawk missile can fly into heavily defended airspace 1,000 miles away to conduct precise strikes on high-value targets with minimal collateral damage.
 

French Signals Intelligence Vessel Dupuy de Lôme Spotted in Japan
 .a
French SINGIT vessel Dupuy de lome yokosuka
The French Navy Signals Intelligence (SIGINT) vessel Dupuy de Lôme (A 759) was spotted last week in Yokosuka naval base, HQ of the JMSDF Self Defense Fleet and of the US Navy's 7th fleet. Based on pictures from a different spotter, the vessel was still in Yokosuka on August 12th.
 

USS John C. Stennis Underway for Sea Trials Ahead of Schedule Following PIA Overhaul
 .a
USS John C Stennis CSG South China Sea PLAN 1
Sailors aboard USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) got underway for Sea Trials as the ship's planned incremental availability (PIA) nears its end, August 11. John C. Stennis entered PIA in February with the largest work package ever planned for a six-month availability for a Nimitz-class carrier, requiring more than 2,800,000 man-hours of work between ship's Sailors, Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility, and contractors. Through teamwork, dedication and expert management, the ship was able to get underway ahead of their originally planned departure date.
 

Project 677 lead Lada-class submarine St. Petersburg passed all Russian Navy tests
 
The Project 677 Lada-class lead diesel-electric submarine (SSK) B-585 Saint Petersburg has passed all the main types of tests and substantiated its design characteristics. Thus, favorable conditions have been created for the domestic industry to receive additional orders from Russia’s Ministry of Defense for ships of this type and conclude contracts for the export version, Amur 1650, under military-technical cooperation, the Zvezda TV channel reported.
 

E-2D Advanced Hawkeye Made its First Flight Ten Years Ago
 .a
E 2D Advanced Hawjeye NGC
August 3, 2017 marked the 10-year anniversary of the E-2D Advanced Hawkeye’s first flight. The aircraft known as Delta One, took off from the St. Augustine, Florida, airfield piloted by Northrop Grumman Flight Test Pilot Tom Boutin and then-U.S. Navy Flight Test Pilot Lt. Drew Ballinger along with Northrop Grumman Flight Test Lead Weapon Systems Operator Zyad Hajo. Wheels-up was shortly before 11 a.m., and the flight lasted an hour and twenty minutes.
 

New Contract for Workboat Fleet will support Royal Navy Aircraft Carriers and UK jobs
 .a
Workboat Fleet will support Royal Navy 1
With the Royal Navy growing and Britain’s flagship carrier now set to enter her new home, Defence Minister Harriett Baldwin has announced a £48 million contract for next-generation workboats which will support both British ships and British jobs. The fleet of up to 38 workboats will assist Royal Navy ships from UK bases and on operations all over the world.
 

RGM-84L Harpoon Block II Anti-Ship Missiles for Royal Thai Navy DW3000 Class Frigate Tha Chine
 .a
RGM-84L Harpoon Block II Anti-Ship Missiles for Royal Thai Navy DW3000 Class Frigate Tha Chine
According to a Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) release, the U.S. State Department has made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale to the Government of Thailand for RGM-84L Harpoon Block II Surface Launched Missiles.
 

Construction of China's 2nd Aircraft Carrier for PLAN Progressing Faster than Expected
 .
China 2nd Aircraft Carrier PLAN 1
The construction of the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) second aircraft carrier (the first built indigenously in China) is progressing at a good pace and is now ahead of schedule according to the program director. The information was revealed in an interview conducted by Chinese national television CCTV.
 

Page 3 of 4