Japanese shipbuilder Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) held a delivery ceremony and a “self-defense ship flag raising ceremony” this week for the Natori (なとり). The event means the ship, the ninth Mogami-class FFM, was officially commissioned with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF). The event comes amid growing international interest in Mogami-derived designs, following Australia’s…
The Royal Navy is navigating one of the most demanding periods in its modern history. The 2025 Strategic Defence Review set a clear direction: a more powerful but, more affordable, hybrid fleet, blending crewed and uncrewed platforms into an integrated, lethal force. At the same time, the threat environment has shifted dramatically. Drone strikes on ...
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Fincantieri announced that three of its U.S. shipyards — Fincantieri ACE Marine (Green Bay, Wisconsin), Fincantieri Marine Repair (Jacksonville, Florida), and Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding (Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin) — have received national safety awards from the Shipbuilders Council of America (SCA) for 2025. Fincantieri press release The awards received reflect a structured and continuous…
Secretary of the Navy, Hung Cao, announced on Tuesday that the MQ-25A “Stingray” unmanned air-to-air tanker would be moving to serial production, passing the point in development designated as “Milestone C” which marks a transition out of research and development towards Low Rate Initial Production and then a full rate manufacturing cycle. The U.S. Navy ...
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The Pentagon’s order of over 10,000 Low-Cost Containerized Missiles (LCCM) has the potential to expand Washington’s arsenal of anti-ship munitions, with designs from the five awarded defense contractors capable of accommodating or planned to incorporate dedicated maritime-launch and strike variants. Aside from replenishing stocks exhausted during recent conflicts in the Middle East, the large…
Kongsberg has signed a contract worth about NOK 3.5 billion (~$378 Million) for the delivery of Joint Strike Missiles to Germany. Kongsberg press release In June 2025, Germany became the fifth country to select the JSM for its F-35 fighter jets. Now the German federation has signed a contract for further deliveries of the missiles. ...
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ABB has secured a contract with Spanish state-owned shipbuilding and design company Navantia to supply two forthcoming Spanish Navy coastal hydrographic vessels (BHC) with a complete DC-based power distribution and propulsion system. ABB press release Scheduled for delivery by 2028, the new vessels will play a critical role in mapping and studying Spain’s coastal waters, ...
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The Swedish Luleå-class frigate-programme has taken a significant step forward with today’s announcement from the deck of the Visby-class corvette Härnösand that the FDI-frigate will become Sweden’s next surface warfare. In a move described by the Prime Minister Kristersson as “tripling the Swedish [ground- and surface-based] air defences”, the frigate was chosen over Spanish and ...
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French shipbuilder Naval Group on May 16 conducted the “technical launch” of the second FDI frigate for the French Navy, Amiral Louzeau (D661). A Naval News cameraman was on site to document this major milestone for the program. The official launch ceremony, attended by French government and naval officials, is scheduled to take place tomorrow, ...
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In a May 12 press release, the Romanian MoD stated that Damen’s proposal did not meet the programme’s technical requirements, responding to recent media comparisons with the SAFE acquisition of two MMPV 90 from Rheinmetall. Naval News also outlines the procurement timeline for the Romanian Naval Forces, which shifted from the GOWIND design to OPV ...
The post Romania Justifies Warship…
The French Navy (Marine Nationale) is maximising frigate availability through developing its approach to maintenance and operations, the service has told Naval News. The details expand upon remarks by Admiral Nicolas Vaujour, the French Navy’s Chief of Staff, that the navy has built up the availability of its ‘first rank’ destroyer and frigate force to ...
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The two mine countermeasures vessels that Italy is forward-deploying in the Middle East area to participate to the international coalition to make the Strait of Hormuz free for navigation again, have left Augusta in Sicily on 15 May. According to plans made public in the previous weeks, the task group could also include one each ...
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During a conversation with Naval News at the 2026 Defence Services Asia exhibition, HAVELSAN Vice President Şevket Ünal outlined the company’s strategic focus on the Malaysian defense market and its broader Southeast Asian ambitions. Albert Lee story, additional reporting by Tayfun Ozberk During the presentation of HAVELSAN’s exhibit, Ünal emphasized that the company’s primary focus ...
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DSIT Solutions will introduce its new and innovative Underwater Domain Awareness (UDA) concept at CNE 2026 – a solution for building a continuous, long-range underwater picture. DSIT Solutions press release DSIT’s Underwater Domain Awareness (UDA) solution is a combination of advanced and proven sonar systems that enables the detection and classification of underwater threats such as ...
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The Indonesian Navy (TNI AL) has begun preparations for future flight operations aboard the ex-Italian aircraft carrier Giuseppe Garibaldi. In a now-deleted video posted on the official account of TNI AL’s 100th Squadron, it is revealed that the service has created a simulation facility for future flight operations training. The squadron, which specializes in anti-submarine ...
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The U.S. Navy commissioned the 13th and final Freedom-variant littoral combat ship USS Cleveland (LCS 31) in a ceremony held in Cleveland, Ohio, May 16. U.S. Navy press release CLEVELAND (May 16, 2026) – The U.S. Navy commissioned its newest and last Freedom-variant littoral combat ship USS Cleveland (LCS 31) in Cleveland. During the ceremony, Acting Secretary ...
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Türkiye’s HÜRJET is already known as a new supersonic jet trainer and light attack aircraft. While the idea of a naval version has been discussed before, recent updates show it is now becoming a concrete project. The goal is to modify the land-based design so it can handle the unique conditions of the sea and ...
The post Türkiye Starts Work on HÜRJET Naval Variant for Aircraft Carrier appeared…
Shield AI and Thunder Tiger Corp. announced a memorandum of understanding to integrate Shield AI’s Hivemind autonomy software across Thunder Tiger’s unmanned systems portfolio, beginning with unmanned surface vessels (USV). As a first milestone, Hivemind will serve as the AI pilot on a Thunder Tiger USV, with a live demonstration planned for this summer. This ...
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Indian defence major Larsen & Toubro (L&T) has entered in a strategic collaboration with France-based Exail to deliver an advanced unmanned mine warfare suite for the Indian Navy’s Mine Counter Measure Vessels (MCMVs) program. In a press release, L&T stated: L&T and Exail will together provide the Indian Navy with a state-of-the-art Unmanned MCM Suit, ...
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BlackSea Technologies recently participated in Arctic Sentry 2026, a NATO enhanced vigilance activity in the High North, demonstrating its Global Autonomous Reconnaissance Craft (GARC) in Ramsund, Norway, alongside partners from U.S. 6th Fleet, U.S. Unmanned Surface Vessel Squadron 3 (USVRON-3) and the Royal Norwegian Navy. BlackSea Technologies press release The exercise gave BlackSea’s GARC…
HII, in partnership with MetalCraft Marine, has delivered and sea tested two ROMULUS-25 unmanned surface vessels (USV) awarded in a Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) contract for smaller form factor autonomous boat prototypes for the U.S. Marine Corps. HII press release The two ROMULUS-25 autonomous USVs were delivered in December 2025 and supported successful testing and ...
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Under the U.S. Navy’s released shipbuilding plan as apart of the Future Year Defense Program (FYDP), the U.S. Navy’s surface force will receive a major reshuffle in it’s structure, targeted towards fielding continually advanced surface ship based capabilities and increasing industrial output. Under the U.S. Navy’s prerogative, the surface force will be receiving a total ...
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U.S. forces surged missiles across the Philippines over the course of Balikatan 2026 at key locations for simulated and live-fire exercises in some of the most intensive demonstrations of American long-range strike capabilities in the Western Pacific to date. From April 20 to May 8, U.S. Army and Marine Corps formations specially created to combat ...
The post U.S. Missile Surge, Reach Showcased…
The Australian Government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Norwegian government, to further support the acquisition and domestic manufacturing of missiles in Australia. The multilateral arrangement will enhance information sharing and collaboration between Australia, Norway and 10 other countries that use the Naval Strike Missile and Joint Strike Missile, which are…
The U.S. Navy’s Future Years Defense Program (FYDP) regarding shipbuilding for fiscal years 2027-2031 contains massive investments into the U.S. Navy’s submarine force, with new details provided around what the U.S. subsurface fleet could look like in the future. Earmarked funding for submarines totals out to $124.9 billion dollars for FY 27-31, presenting a massive ...
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UK engineering SME Force Development Services (FDS) has successfully tested its containerised medical mission module at sea for the first time, marking a significant milestone for the UK Royal Navy’s (RN’s) NavyPODS – Navy Persistent Operational Deployment System – programme. The two-week medical trial, which was carried out by the Royal Naval Medical Service (RNMS) ...
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Saab has today entered into a Strategic Collaboration Agreement in the naval domain with the PGZ Group, Poland’s largest defence corporation. Saab press release In the agreement, both companies express their interest in collaborating on the service and lifecycle support of surface vessels and submarines, integrating PGZ Group’s naval domain entities into Saab’s supply chain, ...
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Japan is offering Indonesia Mogami-class frigates and submarines, as Tokyo seeks to deepen security cooperation with Jakarta following the loosening of its arms export rules and amid the geopolitical situation in the region. On April 11, Indonesian Navy (TNI AL) Chief of Staff, Admiral Muhammad Ali, confirmed that Japan is offering Mogami frigates and submarines ...
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PteroDynamics Inc., an innovator in autonomous vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) aircraft systems, has been awarded a contract by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) to supply Transwing VTOL unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) to support RAN’s autonomous maritime distributed logistics capabilities. PteroDynamics press release PteroDynamics will deliver P4 Transwing UAS aircraft, plus training and…
On May 7, 2026, the Ecuadorian Navy commissioned BAE Jambelí (MP-56), formerly Korean Coast Guard vessel KCG-3001 and lead ship of the Tae Pyung Yang-class. It is now the Ecuador’s largest and most capable offshore patrol vessel. On May 7, 2026, the Ecuadorian Navy (Armada del Ecuador) formally commissioned BAE Jambelí (MP-56) during a ceremony ...
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