December 2nd 2010 It looks like Al-Qieda have found a new way to get bombs on planes. The freight industry must be more vigilant in checking freight. As for marine security, the checking of containers is a nightmare. We shall see more security on the marine side, with extra Coastguard, and Police put in place. The countries of Central/South are looking to increase their purchase off Patrol Vessels, to combat the Drugs trade. It has been...

November 25th 2010 President Obama was looking for cuts in the US Armed Forces, but it looks a lot more difficult now he has lost the House of Representatives. Austal have won a contract for marine assets, from the USN. These are cutting edge technology Assault Craft.

November 15th 2010 The UK government has drastically reduced the ARMED FORCES budgets in the latest rounds of cuts. The Royal Navy has come of worse with a reduction in manpower of 5000 personnel. It looks like the two carriers will go ahead with one being mothballed.

November 11th 2010 Turkish Shipyards have just had an order confirmed for 8 X 50m OPV’s to operate in the Black Sea. Further orders for marine assets are expected in the not too distant future. Iraq is also expected to make further purchases for vessels that will operate in the gulf. Meanwhile Iran has put there Revolutionary Guards operating in the Gulf on high alert, as the spat with Israel continues.

November 5th 2010 The Somali Pirates are getting more sophisticated. While fewer vessels are being attacked, the success rate has gone up. They are also using heavier weapons, like RPG’s, and heavier automatic assault rifles. It is also rumored that some pirates are operating from remote coastal areas of Kenya, Tanzania, and Mozambique. It is not known if they are locals or from Somalia.

October 31st 2010 Britain has made an official complaint to Spain about ignored warnings on the Gibraltar’s waters. Britain’s vessels were having anti-terrorist exercises when Spanish ships came close to the heavily armed warships, having ignored the warnings. The situation took place on the evening of 1st June. The 52ft Spanish Rio Tormes headed towards the British vessels. Despite requests from the British side, the Spanish refused to...

October 11th 2010 A £500 million contract has been signed with US company General Dynamics for the demonstration phase of prototype armoured vehicles. The contract was signed by Peter Luff, minister for Defense Equipment, Support and Technology. Seven prototypes of the Scout will be tested. They will feature a better protection against a wide range of threats. The combat vehicles will be able to take part in the most difficult terrain...

October 5th 2010 Despite the financial cut backs, it does look increasingly likely that the Royal Navy will get one of the two new Aircraft Carriers. The Coalition Government has made no decision on a new version of Trident, this will be decided at the spending review in October. It seems that at long last the Ministry of Defence will get a real shake-up. Not before time for many people. The supposed inefficiency, and some of there sourcing...

September 28th 2010 Further nations are looking to cut their Naval personnel, and the amount of ships available for service. All due to the financial difficulties being felt throughout the Globe. While Russia is increasing their number of vessels and submarines, this is really a catch-up exercise. During the aftermath of the Russian Federation breakup in the early 1990’s, little or no investment was made by the Russian politicians.

September 26th 2010 The South and Central American countries are looking to have better security in their home waters, and immediate international borders. With drug and people-smugglers getting more sophisticated (some are using submarines) there is a greater awareness that investment in naval assets to combat the increased threats must be made. Brazil, Columbia, Ecuador and Panama are all countries that have increased budgets for a wide...

September 23rd 2010 Things have been quiet in the Gulf of Aden over the last couple of months, due to the more aggressive attitude taken by the defending nations. The USA, UK, China, and France are all there in force, and with more Helicopters which are playing an offensive role. Of course the Pirates have not given up, the business is too lucrative, but their success rate has dropped remarkably. There are still worries that the Pirates...

25th August 2010 The new Mercedes G-Wagon armored vehicle has been revealed at the EUROSATORY 2010 event. The Mercedes-Benz G-Wagon Light Armored Patrol Vehicle 6.X CONCEPT is an improved version of the LAPV 5.4. It’s got better agility, protection and playload capacity. The 6.X is also lighter than it’s previous version, without losing any of the armor protection and durability. The new Mercedes has got a diesel engine, features a top...

18th August 2010 A new 42-metre landing craft has been delivered to the Royal Bahrain Naval Force in July this year. The new ship, Dinar, will be able to carry troops and vehicles, will be used for cargo transportation and beach landing in coastal waters. Brigadier General Al Mansoori commented, “This is the type of landing craft that will add strategic depth to our efforts.” As Bahrain consists of 33 islands, the new ship is going to...

11th August 2010 A Special Purpose Vehicle referred to as Lenco Bearcat, worth $242,909 and weighing 18,000 pounds was given to Santa Barbara Police Department recently. The vehicle was funded by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and aims at crime fighting as well as quickly responding to dangerous incidents and supporting the crisis and SWAT teams. The truck, set on a Ford F-550 super heavy-duty truck chassis, is not only...

August 5th 2010 The co-operation between NATO and Ukraine continues with two weeks of military excercised focused on combating recent piracy – commercial vessels have often been seized in recent years off Somalia and Nigeria. Even though the Ukraine’s president Viktor Yanukovych has abandoned his predecessors plans to join NATO itself, he is happy to continue the current alliance. Both Ukraine and 12 countries of the alliance have sent...