Category: Headlines

China: First Type 054B guided missile frigate

Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding in Shanghai launched the first guided missile frigate of the Jiangkai III class (Type 054B) at the end of August. With a length of 147 metres and a displacement of around 6,000 tonnes, the all-electric successor to the Jiangkai II class (Type 054A) is definitely a new design that is expected to reduce energy consumption and increase combat power despite being 50 percent larger. In contrast to the Renhai destroyer (Type 055), a rotating phased array radar system can be seen on the integrated mast superstructure, which will make the frigate comparable to modern Western frigates and destroyers in terms of its air defence capabilities. The new 100-millimetre gun also makes it more effective than its predecessor in terms of air defence capability.

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Firing from all cylinders

Western navies want to defend their supremacy by developing new guns and missiles. New in the race is the railgun. In the first half of the 20th century, the most powerful naval unit was the battleship, a floating fortress of steel armed with guns of more than 300 millimetres calibre that could attack targets at a distance. However, despite its destructive potential, shooting at the time was characterised by more misses than hits. In a battle more than 80 years ago, a battle cruiser armed with 28-centimetre guns had to fire around 200 times to hit targets, despite its then state-of-the-art fire control system.

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Series shipbuilding for the US Navy

At the end of October, United States Navy Ship (USNS) ROBERT F. KENNEDY (T-AO 208) was christened and launched at General Dynamics - National Steel and Shipbuilding Company (GD-NASSCO) in San Diego, California. Honouring USNS "Robert F. Kennedy" is the first naval auxiliary to bear his name in honour of the late US veteran. Robert Francis ("Bobby") Kennedy served in the U.S. Navy Reserve from 1944 to 1946, was Attorney General of the United States from 1961 to 1964, and served as Senator for New York in the House from 1965 until his violent death in 1968. The patronage of the ship was assumed by...

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Achilles heel: personnel

Over the next few years, many modern ships will be arriving at Flotilla 2. But personnel is the strategic challenge for operational readiness. The commander of Operational Flotilla 2 has the task of providing ships that are capable of assertiveness and perseverance for combat on the high seas in order to provide the naval inspector with maritime capabilities and options for action for the defence of the Federal Republic of Germany and its allies - worldwide, multidimensional and capable of leadership. In order to meet this requirement, especially in the context of refocusing on national and alliance defence, not only well-equipped warships are needed, but above all fully trained, capable and trained in the field.

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Balticconnector gas leak: sabotage - or bad luck?

A concerted act of Russian-Chinese sabotage? Or simply a maritime mishap? Finally an official sign from Finland! We took some time in the editorial office to gather information from open sources and waited until the overall picture became clearer. It's about the damage to the Balticconnector gas pipeline and two communication cables on the Baltic seabed at various points between Estonia and Finland, which was discovered on 8 October 2023. What The Balticconnector gas pipeline runs from Paldiski, 30 kilometres west of Tallinn, northwards to the Finnish LNG terminal in Inkoo, 40 kilometres west of Helsinki, and forms a bridge between the gas pipelines from Russia and...

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