Royal Navy warship 'monitoring' Russian naval vessel

HMS Dragon, a Royal Navy Type 45 destroyer. Credit: MoD

A Royal Navy warship is monitoring the activity of a Russian destroyer as it transits past United Kingdom territorial waters, the Ministry of Defence has said. HMS Dragon, one of the Royal Navy's newest Type 45 destroyers moved into position last week north of Scotland to be able to respond to the activity of the Russian vessel, Vice Admiral Kulakov, the MoD said on their website.

In what the MoD are calling a "well-established and standard" response, HMS Dragon will track the Russian vessel as she transits south.

Russian Military Manoeuvres No Threat to UK

No one really believes there is any “serious intent” by Russia to threaten the UK militarily a retired senior British officer has told RIA Novosti.

“It’s a game of cat and mouse. I don’t think there is any serious intent, I don’t think anyone thinks there is any serious intent,” Crawford told RIA Novosti. “What the Russians are doing is basically a quick reconnaissance of the UK’s air defences. The same thing happens with the Danes and Norwegians,” he added.

Lieutenant Colonel Stuart Crawford now works as an independent defence analyst and said the interception by RAF fighter jets of two Russian Tupolev Tu-95s strategic bombers flying in international airspace was “normal and commonplace” and should not be interpreted as a direct threat.“We don’t expect to be attacked by the Russians at all,” Lt Colonel Crawford said.

The Russian Defense Ministry has insisted that the flights are carried out "in strict accordance with international regulations" and do not violate the borders of other countries.


http://en.ria.ru/military_news/20140424/189350597/OPINION-Russian-Military-Manoeuvres-No-Threat-to-UK.html

Royal Navy Chief Warns on Scottish Independence

The head of the Royal Navy says that Scottish independence would weaken Britain's sea forces.
Admiral George Zambellas told the BBC Tuesday that Britain's defenses would be damaged if Scotland breaks away after a September referendum.

Zambellas, the First Sea Lord, said Britain makes a substantial maritime contribution to NATO that would be undermined if Scotland became a separate country with a separate navy."The two components would not add up to the sum of the whole," he said.Britain has ships and submarines as well as Royal Marine commando units based in Scotland.

Zambella says negotiations on these facilities would be long, difficult and expensive should Scotland become independent.Scottish leaders have said the future of the military bases could be negotiated but nuclear submarines would have to go.


http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/royal-navy-chief-warns-scottish-independence-23328714

Royal Navy shows off its latest radar system - new 'Artisan' radar system

NATO's Exercise Joint Warrior 2014 Concludes

From Mar. 31 to Apr. 12, Joint Warrior 14-1 saw over 35 warships, 25 types of aircraft and more than 13,000 military personnel focused on a realistic simulation of a live operation.

Royal Navy ships, submarines and aircraft together with NATO partners have completed the first Exercise Joint Warrior for 2014 off the coast of Scotland.

The flagship Joint Warrior training exercise has been the most complicated and largest exercise with 33 ships trained, 3 submarines, 48 fixed wing aircraft, 40 Rotary Wing aircraft and over 1,750 training objectives facilitated.

In total a staggering 13,584 personnel were trained from 9 Nations from including the UK, France, Denmark, Norway and US. Maritime patrol aircraft from as far away as New Zealand and Canada also attended to join in the exercise.Joint Warrior exercises run twice a year – in the spring and autumn – with the spring session having just come to an end.

Joint Warrior is a tri-service exercise and the spring session saw elements of Army and RAF working alongside Royal Navy ships including HMS Bulwark, HMS Illustrious, frigates, destroyers and mine hunters as well as negotiating the unpredictable British weather and rolling seas.
It is coordinated and planned by a joint team of Royal Navy and RAF personnel based at Northwood HQ, London, augmented by up to 222 personnel from the three services, many of whom were are Reservists.



Europe’s largest military exercise marks first deployment of USN patrol squadron’s P-8A Poseidon in UK

P-8A Poseidon  - US Navy

MBDA Anti-Ship missile: UK and France sign contract for Anti-Ship Missile

Contract for FASGW(H)/ANL (Future Anti Surface Guided Weapon (Heavy)/ Anti Navire Léger)  worth  £500 million.

Royal Navy’s AW159 Lynx Wildcat with new missile

This jointly funded Anglo-French contract for developing a Anti-Ship Missile, valued at more than £500 million has been awarded to MBDA by the UK and French and UK MODs and will be managed as part of MBDA’s Team Complex Weapons Portfolio.

This Contract will also benefit the capability and export potential of those European helicopter platforms which will integrate the FASGW(H)/ANL system over the coming years.

FASGW(H)/ANL will equip the Royal Navy’s AW159 Lynx Wildcat helicopters and the French Navy’s maritime helicopters. Weighing around 100kg, this modern primarily anti-ship missile will destroy from safe stand-off ranges vessels ranging from FIAC (Fast Inshore Attack Craft), through medium sized FAC (Fast Attack Craft) up to large vessels such as Corvettes. This missile also has a surface attack capability against coastal and land targets.

Royal Navy hunter killer nuclear submarine - HMS Torbay (S90) ready for sea after refit

The Royal Navy nuclear-powered hunter killer submarine HMS Torbay has emerged from refit at Plymouth at the cutting edge of war-fighting and surveillance capability.

The Trafalgar Class submarine has been in a revalidated assisted maintenance period (RAMP) which has seen it upgraded and the nuclear power plant given a new lease of life.

http://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/News-and-Events/Latest-News/2014/March/26/140326-Torbay-ready-after-refit

GROUP PHOTO OF HMS TORBAY CREW

UK to expand Bahrain military presence

The UK will expand its military presence in Bahrain with a $9.7m expansion of its maritime command in the capital, Manama, Gulf Daily News has reported.
The expansion includes a new, larger headquarters and facilities to provide engineering and logistics support for the four Royal Navy mine countermeasure vessels based in the kingdom.
The Middle East has the UK’s second largest Royal Navy presence, with 10 of its 32 warships and support vessels in the region.

The Bahraini headquarters leads Britain’s counter piracy and maritime anti-terrorism efforts in the region and has the capacity to oversee the operations of up to a third of all Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessels.

Britain's largest warship nears completion

CG photos


About 40 F35B joint strike fighters will operate from this ship.


Computer generated images show the HMS Queen Elizabeth docked in Portsmouth Harbour. Britain will build two of the Queen Elizabeth class carriers to enter service in 2020 (Photos BAE Systems)

Imaginary F35s parked on the deck

Cool : Liked the digital display boards.

Read more

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/industry/defence/10723164/Britains-largest-warship-nears-completion.html

British Navy unveils mini submarine carried on board HMS Astute which can launch from under water

Mini sub attached to the HMS Astute, currently docked in Gibraltar.

Read more:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2587116/Britains-super-sub-Navy-unveils-James-Bond-style-mini-submarine-carried-board-HMS-Astute-launch-water.html

Multi-Million Refit for RFA’s Biggest Ship - RFA Fort Victoria

A Birkenhead company is undertaking a refit worth over £47m for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary’s (RFA) biggest ship.More than 200 highly skilled engineers from Cammell Laird will refurbish RFA Fort Victoria at their Birkenhead yard.Work will include a complete overhaul of the engine, main propulsion and steering systems and replacement of six diesel generators. Accommodation on the ship will also be improved and the weapons systems overhauled.

At over 200m long and weighing 36,580 tonnes, the vessel is the largest in the Royal Fleet Auxiliary’s fleet and has just returned from a three year deployment during which she targeted pirates off the coast of Somalia. After its refit, the ship is due to return to service early next year.

Why did United Arab Emirates refuse to let British nuclear submarine dock (to fury of crew’s families who had to go to India to see them)?

One of the Royal Navy's nuclear submarines was forced into a 2,000-mile detour when it was mysteriously refused entry into the United Arab Emirates.
HMS Tireless spent a week in international waters while it sought permission to dock before deciding to divert to Goa in India.Ministry of Defence officials have not revealed the reason for the snub but insist there was never any safety issue.


The diversion meant heartbreak for a handful of families who had travelled to the Arabian Gulf hoping to see crew members for the first time in months.A planned change of crew also had to be postponed as the Trafalgar-class sub made its way to India.Some families are understood to be seeking compensation for the cost of flights and a week of accommodation while in the UAE.

'A small number of families did travel to the region at their own expense in anticipation of the visit.
'They were kept informed of the situation by local Royal Navy personnel ashore.'The Foreign and Commonwealth Office denied there were any diplomatic issues between the UK and the UAE.
A spokesman said: 'The UK has a long history of co-operation and friendship with the UAE.
'We maintain regular contact at the most senior levels and work together on shared interests and security challenges across the region.'

HMS Tireless was due to be decommissioned last year but it was reportedly spotted surfacing off the coast of Gibraltar last August amid tensions between Spain and Britain over fishing rights.
The 30-year-old vessel also suffered a leak in its reactor in February of last year and had to return to its Devonport, Plymouth, HQ for repairs.MoD officials say the sub remains on active service but is due to be replaced by a new Astute class submarine.The hunter-killer craft has a crew of 130 plus 18 officers and a top speed is 32 knots or 36.8 mph.

'A small number of families did travel to the region at their own expense in anticipation of the visit.
'They were kept informed of the situation by local Royal Navy personnel ashore.'The Foreign and Commonwealth Office denied there were any diplomatic issues between the UK and the UAE.
A spokesman said: 'The UK has a long history of co-operation and friendship with the UAE.
'We maintain regular contact at the most senior levels and work together on shared interests and security challenges across the region.'

HMS Tireless was due to be decommissioned last year but it was reportedly spotted surfacing off the coast of Gibraltar last August amid tensions between Spain and Britain over fishing rights.
The 30-year-old vessel also suffered a leak in its reactor in February of last year and had to return to its Devonport, Plymouth, HQ for repairs.MoD officials say the sub remains on active service but is due to be replaced by a new Astute class submarine.The hunter-killer craft has a crew of 130 plus 18 officers and a top speed is 32 knots or 36.8 mph.

UK Warship -HMS Argyll Fires Dummy Torpedo Into Nuclear Naval Base

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Argyll_(F231)

HMS Argyll

A British warship accidentally launched an inert torpedo during a training exercise on Wednesday, sending a dummy weapon crashing into a wharf at a naval base in southern England used by nuclear submarines.The Ministry of Defense (MoD) said an investigation was under way into the incident, which occurred at Devonport naval base in the city of Plymouth on Britain's south coast, the largest such facility in Western Europe.

"We can confirm an incident occurred onboard HMS Argyll, while alongside at Devonport Naval Base," an MoD spokesman said. "During a training exercise, an inert Test Variant Torpedo unexpectedly jettisoned onto the wharf. There was no explosion and no casualties."

Devonport, a sprawling 2.6 million sq meter site, is used by Britain's nuclear submarine fleet as well as hosting training facilities and the country's assault fleet. The MoD did not comment when asked whether any nuclear submarines were present at the time of the incident.

British Royal Navy’s Type 26 Global Combat Ship

Images have been released of the Royal Navy's next-generation frigate - the Type 26 GCS (Global Combat Ship).
Set to replace the Royal Navy's Type 23 Frigates from 2020 onwards, the Type 26s will be tasked with a number of roles, primarily combat and anti-piracy work but also disaster relief and humanitarian operations.
The Type 23 Frigates were pressed into Royal Navy service between 1989 and 2002, with 16 built in all. Following the sale of three examples to the Chilean Navy, 13 Type 23s now remain with the Royal Navy.

Type 26 Global Combat Ship

The Type 26 Global Combat Ship programme represents a partnership between the Ministry of Defence and BAE Systems and these new images give some indication of this highly advanced frigate's specifications.
Approximately 148 metres long, it will displace something like 5,400 metric tons of water and feature an array of armament. It will cruise at around 28 knots and have a 7,000 mile range and an endurance of 60 days, with 36 troops on board.
Vertically-positioned missile silos will be used to house a range of weapons including Sea Ceptor air-defence missiles, while there'll also be a medium-calibre gun and space on board to accommodate one AW159 Wildcat or Merlin HM2 helicopter and numerous unmanned vehicles including UUVs.

Royal Navy Type 26

"The Type 26 Global Combat Ship will be the backbone of the Royal Navy for decades to come", the Minister for Defence Equipment, Support and Technology, Peter Luff, explained in an MoD press release on the Royal Navy Type 26 GCS's launch. "It is designed to be adaptable and easily upgraded, reacting to threats as they change."
"The Type 26 Global Combat Ship will be a multi-mission warship designed for joint and multinational operations across the full spectrum of warfare, including complex combat operations, maritime security operations such as counter piracy, as well as humanitarian and disaster relief work around the world", added the Royal Navy's First Sea Lord, Admiral Sir Mark Stanhope.
"It will be capable of operating independently for significant periods or as part of a task group and will play a major role in the defence of this country for many years."