THIRD ASTUTE SUBMARINE FORMALLY HANDED OVER TO THE ROYAL NAVY

The third of the new Astute Class attack submarines, Artful, has officially been handed over to the Royal Navy. Until now the submarine was owned by Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S), the MOD’s body responsible for procuring and supporting equipment for the armed forces. The boat and her crew will now be added to the… Continue reading THIRD ASTUTE SUBMARINE FORMALLY HANDED OVER TO THE ROYAL NAVY

TWO NEW INCIDENTS OF THE TURKISH-RUSSIAN REGIONAL ANTAGONISM

Two incidents, in the Aegean and the Black Sea, have deteriorated the already bad relationship between Turkey and Russia. According to the Russian Ministry of Defence at 09.07 on the 13th of December a Russian destroyer fired warning shots towards a Turkish fishing vessel, 13.6 nmi from the Greek island of Limnos, in the Aegean… Continue reading TWO NEW INCIDENTS OF THE TURKISH-RUSSIAN REGIONAL ANTAGONISM

IRAN IS PREPARING TO DEPLOY TWO STRIKE JET SQUADRONS IN SYRIA

According to the newspaper, Al-Rai, Iran is preparing to deploy two strike jet squadrons in Syria to conducts strikes against ISIS and FSA targets. The aircraft will be deployed at the T4 Tiyas Syrian Air Force base, which is located to the west of the city of Palmyra. This will be the third Syrian Air… Continue reading IRAN IS PREPARING TO DEPLOY TWO STRIKE JET SQUADRONS IN SYRIA

HMS BULWARK RETURNS TO PLYMOUTH

Royal Navy amphibious assault ship, HMS Bulwark, has returned to Plymouth from operations in the Mediterranean after leading a major Royal Navy deployment. The Plymouth-based ship was leading this year’s exercise Cougar comprising exercises with the French Navy off Corsica and then Exercise Trident Juncture, the largest NATO exercise for a decade involving 30 nations,… Continue reading HMS BULWARK RETURNS TO PLYMOUTH

DCSS CONFERENCE IN PIRAEUS: “SECURITY IN THE EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN REGION”

  The Dartmouth Centre for Seapower and Strategy (DCSS), University of Plymouth and the Hellenic National Defence College (HNDC), are organizing an international conference in Piraeus, Greece on the 11th of December. The subject is: “Managing Complex Regional Security Issues: The Case of Eastern Mediterranean Region” Please click below for the Conference programme CONFERENCE PROGRAMME… Continue reading DCSS CONFERENCE IN PIRAEUS: “SECURITY IN THE EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN REGION”

BRITISH PARLIAMENT APPROVED AIR STRIKES AGAINST ISIS IN SYRIA – FIRST MISSION COMPLETED

A IX(B) Sqn Tornado GR4 training for deployment to Afghanistan. Pictured here on 12 October 2012 is a Tornado GR4 aircraft as it undertakes a training sortie over the North West of England. The Tornado from IX(B) Squardon is preparing for deployed operations over Afghanistan in the near future. The Tornado GR4 is a variable geometry, two-seat, day or night, all-weather attack aircraft capable of delivering a wide variety of weapons. Powered by two Rolls-Royce RB 199 Mk 103 turbofan engines, the GR4 is capable of low-level supersonic flight and can sustain a high subsonic cruise speed. The GR4 typically carries up to a maximum of 5 Paveway IV smart weapons or 2 Stormshadow cruise missiles but can be configured with various weapons, targeting pods and reconnaissance pods simultaneously including the Dual Mode Seeker (DMS) Brimstone, ALARM Mk2 missile, Litening III and the Reconnaissance Airborne Pod TORnado (RAPTOR). The Tornado GR4 is a world leader in the specialised field of all-weather, day and night tactical reconnaissance. The RAPTOR pod is one of the most advanced reconnaissance sensors in the world and greatly increases the effectiveness of the aircraft in the reconnaissance role. Its introduction into service gave the GR4 the ability to transmit real-time, Long Range Oblique Photography (LOROP) to commanders or to view this in cockpit during a mission. The stand-off range of the sensors also allows the aircraft to remain outside heavily defended areas, thus minimising the aircraft’s exposure to enemy air-defence systems. Additional capability in the Non-Traditional Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance (NTISR) role is provided by the Litening III RD and the use of the ROVER data link for providing tactical operators with real time Full Motion Video (FMV) in the battle space. The Tornado GR4 is now equipped with the Storm Shadow missile and 2 variants of the Brimstone missile, including the most advanced DMS variant.

British Parliament voted yesterday in favor of bombing ISIS targets in Syria, marking the extension of UK’s operations in the region. The votes were 397 in favor and 223 against and the UK will join France, Jordan, United States and Australia, in their air campaign against ISIS in Syria. Royal Air Force has been bombing… Continue reading BRITISH PARLIAMENT APPROVED AIR STRIKES AGAINST ISIS IN SYRIA – FIRST MISSION COMPLETED

HMS ST ALBANS DEPLOYS ON SECURITY OPERATIONS IN THE MIDDLE EAST

HMS St Albans will continue the work that her sister ship, HMS Richmond, carried out earlier this year as part of the Royal Navy’s long term presence East of Suez. Her task is to police the seas and promote UK interests in the region by acting as a deterrent to illegal activity, safeguarding allied and… Continue reading HMS ST ALBANS DEPLOYS ON SECURITY OPERATIONS IN THE MIDDLE EAST

TURKEY DEPLOYED KORAL RADAR-ELECTRONIC WARFARE SYSTEM CLOSE TO SYRIA TO COUNTER RUSSIAN S-400 MISSILE SYSTEM

Turkey has deployed a radar-electronic warfare system close to the borders with Syria in order to jam and deceive hostile radar emitters. The Turkish made system called KORAL was deployed at the Hattay province in south Turkey close to the area where the Turkish Air Force F-16’s shot down the Russian Su-24M bomber. The Turkish… Continue reading TURKEY DEPLOYED KORAL RADAR-ELECTRONIC WARFARE SYSTEM CLOSE TO SYRIA TO COUNTER RUSSIAN S-400 MISSILE SYSTEM

HMS RICHMOND’S DRUGS SEIZURE IN THE MEDITERRANEAN

The crew of a Royal Navy warship have seized around £3m worth of cannabis during a security patrol in the Mediterranean. The Portsmouth based frigate HMS Richmond sent up her Lynx helicopter that spotted what was believed to be a drug smuggling boat and immediately moved in to investigate. With HMS Richmond nearby her Royal… Continue reading HMS RICHMOND’S DRUGS SEIZURE IN THE MEDITERRANEAN

IRAN CLAIMS TO HAVE 14 UNDERGROUND BALLISTIC MISSILE BASES (Video)

According to General Hassan Karimpour, chief adviser to the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), Iran has 14 underground missile bases, located at depths from 30 to 500 meters. The Iranian ISNA news agency quoted General Karimpour as saying that the underground missile bases are equipped with everything necessary to operate effectively. The… Continue reading IRAN CLAIMS TO HAVE 14 UNDERGROUND BALLISTIC MISSILE BASES (Video)