December 9, 2019 – Gearing up for an imminent return to sea are the crew of HMS Richmond, emerging from refit as the nation’s most advanced frigate. Long-based in Portsmouth, the ship has switched homes for Plymouth – where all the dedicated submarine-hunting Type 23s are being concentrated. While in the hands of the engineers at Babcock, Richmond has undergone…
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November 7, 2019 – USS Wyoming (SSBN-742) successfully undocked at Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY) Nov. 6, a key milestone in the boat’s Engineered Refueling Overhaul (ERO). “Wyoming is now one step closer to completing its Engineered Refueling Overhaul and providing superior warfighting capability back to the Fleet,” said Shipyard Commander Captain Kai Torkelson. “This is a critical piece in the…
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November 5, 2019 – Portsmouth Naval Base has undertaken a program of infrastructure upgrades ahead of the arrival of the UK’s second Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier, HMS Prince of Wales. The anticipated arrival of not just one but two of the 65,000 tonne behemoths and their crews meant that the naval base needed more power, space and another specially equipped…
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October 4, 2019 – After a quarter-century of worldwide operations, the guided missile cruiser USS Hue City (CG 66) was inducted into the Cruiser Modernization program, Sept. 30, at Norfolk Naval Base, entering a period of major overhaul and modernization. The program shifts administrative control from Commander, Naval Surface Forces Atlantic to the Commander, Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA), allowing…
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September 19, 2019 – Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY) kicked off an aligned effort with Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) this past August to ensure timely delivery of all of ship and submarine availabilities. This is the Naval Sustainment System – Shipyards (NSS-S) transformation, which centers on empowering project mechanics and ensuring continual work execution on the deckplates. “This effort pulls…
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September 19, 2019 – Ships are safer at sea than in port. Like two ceramic mugs loosely next to each other in the dishwasher, a ship and the pier will damage each other as they bang together during a storm. Ships also have to leave well in advance of a storm in order to avoid destructive weather and rough seas.…
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September 10, 2019 – Contracts to support and maintain hundreds of high-speed rigid inflatable boats (RIBs) and other small boats used to help protect Britain’s shores have been awarded to BAE Systems under the Boats in Service Support (BISS) contract, the UK Ministry of Defence (MOD) announced today. Four individual contracts valued at up to £112 million form part of…
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September 4, 2019 – The Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO) is working with its contractor Volker Stevin to deliver crucial infrastructure worth £30-million to ensure the base’s second operational berth is ready in time for the carrier, which is due to arrive by the end of this year. One of the final pieces of the project was the installation of 2…
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September 4, 2019 (Google Translation) – After setting sail from Portsmouth on August 30, 2019, anti-submarine frigate La Motte-Picquet conducted a series of joint exercises with HMS Queen Elizabeth , the first aircraft carrier of this class and flagship of the Royal Navy , and RFA Tideforce . Various maneuvers were conducted off the coast of England, including coordinated flights…
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August 15, 2019 – One hundred and twenty-nine crew of the Type 23 frigate HMS Lancaster have moved back on board the ship, breathing new life into the 4,500-ton warship following a two year overhaul in Devonport. Known as the ‘Red Rose’, HMS Lancaster – whose sponsor is Her Majesty The Queen in her role as Duke of Lancaster –…
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July 11, 2019 – Escanaba returned to Boston Thursday following a three-month patrol conducting drug and migrant interdiction operations in the Caribbean Sea. Throughout the patrol, Escanaba’s crew focused their efforts on law enforcement, completed a three-week training assessment of mission capabilities in Portsmouth, Virginia, and held a change-of-command ceremony. Escanaba’s crew partnered with Customs and Border Patrol within the…
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June 18, 2019 – Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY) dedicated its new Submarine Maintenance Facility June 14. The dedication marked the next crucial step in the NNSY’s realization of the Shipyard Infrastructure Optimization Plan that will enhance the ability of the four public shipyards to meet the mission of delivering ships back to the fleet on time and within budget. The…
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March 28, 2019 – USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) returned to sea March 28 following a scheduled planned incremental availability (PIA) during which the ship received innovative upgrades. One of the upgrades of note was the installation of the NULKA decoy system. “A disciplined and thoughtful approach to the basics brought us here,” said Capt. Kyle Higgins, Ike’s commanding…
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March 25 2019 – Coast Guard Cutter Tampa returned to Portsmouth Monday following a successful 85-day counter-narcotics patrol in the Eastern Pacific Ocean. During their patrol off the coasts of Central and South America, Tampa’s crew successfully interdicted approximately 18,000 pounds of cocaine worth an estimated wholesale value of $240 million. The Coast Guard increased U.S. and allied presence in…
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February 21, 2019 – USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77) arrived at Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY), Feb. 21, for a 28-month dry-docking planned incremental availability (DPIA). Dry-docking and maintaining a 103,000 ton, 1,092-foot aircraft carrier is complex work. This DPIA marks the first time George H.W. Bush has not been waterborne since 2006. Requiring an estimated 1.3 million man-days, it…
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