Tag: navy

Closing off the Gulf to oil tankers will be Closing off the Gulf to oil tankers will be "easier than drinking a glass of water" for Iran if the Islamic state deems it necessary, state television reported on Wednesday, ratcheting up fears over the world's most important oil chokepoint."Closing the Strait of Hormuz for Iran's armed forces is really easy ... or as Iranians say it will be easier than drinking a glass of water," Iran's navy chief Habibollah Sayyari told Iran's English language Press TV."But right now, we don't need to shut it as we have the Sea of Oman under control and we can control the transit," said Sayyari, who is leading 10 days of exercises in the Strait.Tension has increased between Iran and the West after EU foreign ministers decided three weeks ago to tighten sanctions on the world's No. 5 crude exporter over what the U.N. nuclear watchdog says is an attempt to design an atomic bomb, but left open the idea of an embargo on Iranian oil.Iran, which says it is developing nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, warned on Tuesday it would stop the flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz in the Gulf ...

MARAD Advisory 2011-07 MARAD releases the following advisory concerning vessel inspections being conducted by the Iranian Navy:Reports from maritime forces and commercial maritime interests indicate concern with the potential for localized disruption to shipping in conjunction with future Iranian Naval exercises. During previous exercises Iranian maritime forces conducted boarding and inspections of merchant ships, including those flagged to European nations. The possibility exists that Iran will attempt to conduct boarding and inspection during exercises between December 2011 and March 2012. The most likely location for this activity would be in the vicinity of the Strait of Hormuz, particularly in areas closer to Iranian territorial waters.If a US-flag vessel is hailed for boarding by the Iranian Navy in international waters the ship's master should "protest but comply," if circumstances warrant.US-flag vessels are advised to report incidents to the Comusnavcent Battlewatch Captain (Maritime Operations Center) at 011-973-1785-3879, and Marlo Bahrain at 011-973-3940-1395.Source: MARAD

Iranian Navy has been conducting anti-piracy patrols in the Gulf of Aden An attempted hijack of a Saudi oil tanker by unknown pirate boats was foiled after an Iranian fleet of warships present in the region rushed to the scene."After the regional center of Chabahar coast guard watch announced last night that a Saudi oil tanker had asked for help due to the suspicious approach of several unknown boats, Jamaran destroyer was dispatched to the area swiftly," Lieutenant Commander of the Iranian Navy Rear Admiral Seyed Mahmoud Moussavi told reporters on Monday."After the presence of the destroyer (on the scene), the unknown boats fled the area and the entire region came under the control (of the Iranian Navy forces)," he added.Moussavi did not mention the specific coordinates or region of the international waters that the Saudi oil tanker was saved by the Iranian destroyer, but the development has most likely taken place in the Sea of Oman where Iran is presently staging massive wargames.Iran's naval forces have deployed in the international waters of the Sea of Oman and the Indian Ocean after they started massive wargames in the international waters on Saturday.The naval maneuvers dubbed Velayat 90 are due to ...

Concern with the potential for localised disruption to shipping Reports from maritime forces and commercial maritime interests indicate concern with the potential for localised disruption to shipping in connection with future Iranian naval exercises.During previous exercises Iranian maritime forces conducted boardings and inspections of merchant ships, including those flagged to European nations.The possibility exists that Iran will attempt toconduct boardings and inspections during exercises between December 2011 and March 2012.The most like location for this activity would be in the vicinity of the Strait of Hormuz, particularly in areas closer to Iranian territorial waters.Source: U.S. ONI

Pirates attacked on tanker Nordic Apollo A U.S. destroyer broke up an attack by Somali pirates on Monday in the lawless waters of the Gulf of Aden, but the American Sailors let the would-be hijackers go, the Navy announced.The incident highlights the difficulty for the U.S. and international navies that patrol the pirate-infested waters off the Horn of Africa, where warships can help disrupt attacks when they happen or sometimes rescue ships after the fact -- but only treat the symptoms of the piracy problem, not its root causes.According to the Navy, the Marshall Islands-flagged tanker Nordic Apollo radioed for help at about 8:40 a.m. local time on Monday -- its crew reported being fired upon by pirates in a small skiff. At 11:00 a.m., another vessel reported "suspicious activity by a skiff," and the destroyer USS Pinckney responded to investigate.The San Diego-based Pinckney radioed a warning to all the ships in the area and launched its helicopter, an MH-60R Seahawk, to try to track the pirates. Meanwhile, the destroyer hurried to where the skiff had been spotted.According to the Navy's announcement, the Pinckney's Seahawk crew sighted the skiff and confirmed it was carrying the telltale equipment of modern pirates:"The ...

It is likely to pressure n the South China Sea dispute The U.S. Navy said it would station several new coastal combat ships in Singapore and perhaps in the Philippines in coming years, moves likely to fuel China's fears of being encircled and pressured in the South China Sea dispute.Regional defense analysts said the ships were small, but agreed the symbolism of the moves, which come after Washington announced it was increasing its engagement in Asia, would upset Beijing.Last month the United States and Australia announced plans to deepen the U.S. military presence in the Asia-Pacific region, with 2,500 U.S. Marines operating out of a de facto base in Darwin in northern Australia.In coming years, the U.S. Navy will increasingly focus on the strategic "maritime crossroads" of the Asia-Pacific region, Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Jonathan Greenert wrote in the December issue of Proceedings, published by the U.S. Naval Institute.He said the navy planned to "station several of our newest littoral combat ships at Singapore's naval facility," in addition to the plans announced by President Barack Obama for marines to be based in Darwin from next year."This will help the navy sustain its global forward posture with what may be ...

Coordination can be successfully deployed to disrupt piracy On 28 November the Royal Navy once again struck a blow to Somali piracy operating in the Indian Ocean. On 28 November, RFA Fort Victoria was patrolling in an area approximately 420 nautical miles from the Seychelles and 350 nautical miles from the Somali coast as part of NATO's Combined Task Force 508.Early that morning, she received information that a Spanish fishing vessel operating to the north of their position had come under attack from a group of pirate vessels. The ship's Lynx helicopter was quickly despatched to investigate.Once at the scene, the helicopter identified two suspect vessels, a whaler and a skiff, in the vicinity of the fishing vessel. The faster of the two, a skiff, sped away at over 25 knots as the helicopter gave chase. When the skiff ignored orders to stop, a specially trained sniper onboard the Lynx helicopter fired warning shots ahead of the fleeing vessel which stopped and the suspected pirates onboard were then taken to Fort Victoria via boat.Fort Victoria's Royal Marines boarding team then boarded the whaler and another skiff in the vicinity. As a result of the day's action, a total of seven ...

Order of 425,000 gallons of renewable fuels f "More proof that gallons are on the way", that's the word from the Advanced Biofuels Association (ABFA) as the U.S. Navy announced today it has placed the world's largest advanced biofuel order of 425,000 gallons of renewable fuels from Dynamic Fuels, LLC, a joint venture between Tyson Foods, Inc. (NYSE: TSN) and Syntroleum Corporation (NASDAQ: SYNM); and Solazyme, Inc. (NASDAQ: SZYM), a renewable oil and bioproducts company who will help Dynamic Fuels fuel the order."Get ready America, because the gallons are on the way as we're about to make history by leading the world in delivering renewable replacement fuels," commented ABFA President Michael McAdams. "Today's announcement should effectively silence our fossil fuel detractors as we have yet more proof that advanced biofuels are real and real enough to help better prepare and strengthen America's armed forces."The contract announced today involves supplying the Navy with 100,000 gallons of jet fuel (Hydro-treated Renewable JP- 5 or HRJ-5) and 350,000 gallons of marine distillate fuel (Hydro-Treated Renewable F-76 or HRD-76). The fuel will be used as part of the Navy's efforts to develop a "Green Strike Group" composed of vessels and ships powered by biofuel.McAdams ...

U.S. to build efficient, environmentally-friendly cargo vessels The Department of the Navy signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with the U.S. Maritime Administration (MARAD), on behalf of the Department of Transportation.The purpose of the MOA is to further objectives relating to the American Marine Highway (AMH) Program, particularly the development, design, construction and operation of U.S.-built and U.S.-crewed dual-use vessels (DUVs), which can serve in peacetime for coastwise trade under the Jones Act as well as provide sealift capability in time of national emergency.A desired outcome of a DUV, consistent with the mission of MARAD, is to have the benefits of the AMH - reduced transportation congestion, improved domestic shipbuilding industrial base, reduced green house gas emissions in the nation's transportation systems, creation of new jobs, etc. - and provide military sealift capability efficiently by leveraging the commercial industrial base.The usage of these vessels in the AMH could present a win-win opportunity for government, industry, labor, shipyards, and the traveling public. These vessels would provide state-of-the-art, U.S.-built ships with the increased capability to supplement the carriage of military equipment if called upon for response to a national emergency by leveraging the commercial industry. This has already been demonstrated with U.S.-flagged, ...

They attacked on a vessel that supplies the Seychelles tuna fleet The British navy has detained seven suspected pirates in the Seychelles, using a team of police dogs to detect the presence of firearms or explosives on their ship, officials said."The seven suspected pirates are alleged to have been involved in an attempted act of piracy on a vessel that supplies the Seychelles tuna fleet," the Foreign Office said in a statement.They were detained by Royal Marines accompanied by a police dog team which found traces of explosives or firearms -- evidence which will help prosecutors in the Seychelles, who have agreed to bring a case against the seven."Providing sufficient evidence to convict pirates has been a real problem for the international community as pirates often throw their weapons overboard and claim to be fishermen," the Foreign Office said."However, the dog handling team is able to search the suspected pirate vessel for traces of explosives and firearms."Rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) are a weapon of choice for the pirates, but even if they are disposed of in the sea they leave explosive residue that the dogs can identify."Source: AFP