Navy News

The Pakistan navy said on Wednesday it seized narcotics worth about $972 million in the North Arabian Sea in an operation with a Saudi-led task force.The navy's YARMOOK ship, operating under the Saudi-led Combined Task Force of the Combined Maritime Forces, carried out the operation, the navy said in a statement.(Reuters - Reporting by Asif Shahzad)

ST Engineering has launched the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN)'s first Victory-class Multi-Role Combat Vessel (MRCV), Victory, at its Benoi Yard.MRCV Victory is the first of six MRCVs to be built by ST Engineering under a detailed design and construction contract awarded by the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) in 2023.Measuring 150 metres in length, the MRCV is designed to serve as a “mothership” for unmanned systems, enabling seamless operability across air, surface, and subsurface domains.

BY Captain Bobbie Scolley, U.S. Navy (ret.) and Rear Admiral Tim Gallaudet, U.S. Navy (ret.)For more than six decades, spanning from 1905 to the late 1970s, the U.S. Navy’s diving apparatus for deep ocean operations and salvage remained fundamentally unchanged. During this period, the demographic of navy divers also saw little alteration. However, beginning in the mid-1970s and continuing to the present day, a series of developments initiated a gradual transformation in both areas with significant implications for contemporary Navy diving.Donna Tobias…

Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri has signed a strategic agreement to accelerate the development of autonomous surface units developed by Italian start-up Defcomm, which specializes in unmanned solutions for the maritime sector.The agreement focuses on a co-investment partnership to accelerate the development and industrialization of surface drones designed by Defcomm, which have already passed long run and endurance tests.These drones are designed for surveillance, intelligence…

NATO chief Mark Rutte mocked Russia on Monday over the "limping" condition of one of its submarines as Russian authorities denied it had been forced to surface because of technical problems.Russia's Black Sea Fleet said the diesel-powered submarine Novorossiysk had surfaced off France to comply with navigation rules in the English Channel, and rejected reports it had suffered a serious malfunction.But Dutch authorities said at the weekend that the submarine was under tow in the North Sea.

Russian warships have repeatedly sailed on collision courses, aimed weapons at Danish naval vessels and disrupted navigation systems in Denmark's straits that connect the Baltic Sea to the North Sea, its defence intelligence service said on Friday.Such incidents risk unintended escalation, it said.The Baltic region remains on high alert after incidents involving undersea cables, gas pipeline outages, airspace violations and drone sightings since Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine…

Italy’s Fincantieri has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Aeronautical Service, a small and medium-sized enterprise specializing in aerospace solutions, to advance the use of carbon-based composite materials in naval shipbuilding.The agreement aims to introduce composite technologies across civil and military platforms, reducing reliance on steel and extending Fincantieri’s technological perimeter into high-performance and stealth applications.The companies plan to collaborate on developing a new high-speed Fast Patrol Boat (FPB) vessel…

Israeli forces boarded boats with foreign activists carrying aid to Gaza and took them to an Israeli port, disrupting a protest that had become one of most high-profile symbols of opposition to Israel's blockade of the enclave.A video from the Israeli foreign ministry verified by Reuters showed the most prominent of the flotilla's passengers, Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg, sitting on a deck surrounded by soldiers."Several vessels of the Hamas-Sumud flotilla have been safely stopped and their passengers are being transferred to an Israeli port…

On the opening day of the Seafuture trade fair in La Spezia, the National Armaments Directors of Italy and Greece signed a preliminary agreement for the sale to the Hellenic Navy, through Fincantieri, of two naval vessels currently in service with the Italian Navy. The signing took place in the presence, among others, of the Italian Minister of Defense, Guido Crosetto, his Greek counterpart, Nikos Dendias, and the Chief of Staff of the Italian Navy, Admiral Enrico Credendino.The agreement represents a significant step in cooperation between Italy and Greece…

Italy and Spain have deployed naval ships to assist an international aid flotilla that has come under drone attack while trying to deliver aid to Gaza, potentially ratcheting up tensions with Israel, which strongly opposes the initiative.The Global Sumud Flotilla is using about 50 civilian boats to try to break Israel's naval blockade of Gaza. Many lawyers, parliamentarians and activists, including Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg, are on board.The Italian defence ministry said a frigate that was dispatched on Wednesday…

An international aid flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza said on Wednesday it was attacked overnight by drones in international waters off Greece, prompting Italy to send a navy ship to come to its assistance.The Global Sumud Flotilla is using about 50 civilian boats to try and break Israel's naval blockade of Gaza, with many lawyers and activists onboard, including Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg.The vessels were attacked by 12 drones in international waters 30 nautical miles (56 km) off the Greek island of Gavdos…

U.S. technology and shipbuilding startup Blue Water Autonomy has entered a production agreement with Louisiana-based Conrad Shipyard to build its first class of autonomous surface vessels, marking a shift from research and development to real-world deployment.The announcement comes weeks after the Boston company, which designs highly producible unmanned ships for the U.S. Navy, raised its Series A, bringing total funding to $61 million, and underscores its push to deliver scalable unmanned ships that align with near-term U.S.

In Memoriam: Captain Charles Robert MacVean, USN, (Ret.), PhDMarch 22, 1937 – September 10, 2025The book, Blind Man’s Bluff, describes the secret USN submarine operations known as “The Projects.” It begins with the opening line, “There was something about Commander Charles R. MacVean that had a way of inspiring legend.” Authors Sontag and Drew narrowed that “something” down to “his sense of humor and humanity.”  Even in the toughest of situations, MacVean radiated calm assurance and situational command.

The U.S. Navy’s Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC) Division Newport has honored 42 students who completed its Academic Degree Training Program (ADTP), earning degrees in engineering, cybersecurity and other technical fields.Since the inception of ADTP in 2018, Division Newport has seen a total of 315 graduates in the program which offers financial and other support.ADTP includes a Fellowship Program, Part-time Academic Training Program (PTADTP), and Naval Postgraduate School attendance.The numerous degrees and certificate programs provide professional education and development…

The Saab-led MANGROVE consortium has been selected by NATO to lead the Allied Underwater Battlespace Mission Network project (AUWB-MN), aimed at improving interoperability for maritime uncrewed systems and conventional platforms between allied naval forces.The project, which formally started earlier in September, is designing a Reference Architecture and a Test and Reference Environment for a mission network that leverages both crewed and uncrewed systems, above, on and below the water.The mission network will facilitate rapid and secure information exchange…

Babcock has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with BAE Systems Bofors to offer a comprehensive package of support for the Royal Navy’s Type 31 Inspiration Class frigates multi-purpose Bofors guns.Babcock and BAE Systems Bofors will work collaboratively for the anticipated in-service support (ISS) opportunity for the Bofors 40 Mk4 and 57 Mk3 Naval Gun Systems.The companies are already working together as the Bofors guns are being installed on the fleet of five Type 31…

The Australian Government is investing A$1.7 billion ($1.1 billion) to acquire a new fleet of Australian‑designed and built extra-large autonomous undersea vehicles – known as the Ghost Shark – for the Royal Australian Navy.

MARL International, part of Glamox, a global leader in lighting, announced today that it is partnering with Canadian firm Apex Industries, which will manufacture its marine lighting systems under license in Canada for three destroyers for the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN). Apex Industries was awarded the lighting systems contract by Irving Shipbuilding, which will build the vessels at its shipyard in Halifax, Nova Scotia, while Lockheed Martin Canada will provide the defense equipment. The vessels are part of the River Class Destroyer program.

China's military on Saturday said its forces had followed and warned a Canadian and an Australian warship, which were sailing through the sensitive Taiwan Strait, in a move it criticised as a provocation.The People's Liberation Army's Eastern Theatre Command said the Canadian frigate Ville de Quebec and the Australian guided-missile destroyer Brisbane were engaged in "trouble-making and provocation"."The actions of the Canadians and Australians send the wrong signals and increase security risks…

India could build its third nuclear powered aircraft carrier as part of a 15-year defence modernization plan announced today that also includes the use of Indian-made fighter jets by the navy for the first time.Bordered by rivals China and Pakistan, both of whom India has clashed with in deadly fights in recent years, New Delhi is increasingly leaning on domestic defence companies to bolster capabilities and cut dependence on foreign suppliers such as Russia, France and the United…

Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri and Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa (PGZ), Polish state-owned defense group, have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to co-operate on the modernization of Polish Navy and explore opportunities in wider naval defense market.The MoU establishes a framework for strategic collaboration aimed at supporting the modernization of the Polish Navy, with a particular focus on the ORKA submarine acquisition program.Under the agreement, Fincantieri and PGZ will explore joint opportunities in the design…

Norway said on Sunday it had chosen Britain as its strategic partner for the acquisition of new frigates in its biggest ever military investment, in a deal worth some 10 billion pounds ($13.51 billion) to boost the Nordic country's maritime defence.Germany, France, Britain and the United States had offered rival frigate designs in competition."The frigates are an essential part of our defence because they are key to defend our sovereignty," Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere told a press conference.Norway is NATO's monitor for the vast 2 million square kilometres (772…

Tensions between the United States and Venezuela are rising amid a large U.S. naval buildup in the Southern Caribbean and nearby waters, which U.S. officials say aims to address threats from Latin American drug cartels.U.S. President Donald Trump has made cracking down on drug cartels a central goal of his administration, part of a wider effort to limit migration and secure the U.S. southern border. While U.S. Coast Guard and Navy ships regularly operate in the Southern Caribbean, this buildup is significantly larger than usual deployments in the region.A U.S.