US and European special operators test Icelandic AI-based solution for marine platforms
Hefring Marine IMAS was designed to optimise vessels’ operation.
Pacific Patrol Boat the former HMPNGS Rabaul has completed its final voyage to Port Macquarie in Australia from Lombrum Naval Base on Manus Island, after 31 years of service with the Papua New Guinea Defence Force.
The patrol boat was gifted to Papua New Guinea by Australia in 1987 under the Pacific Patrol Boat programme. The country received a total of four vessels under this programme.
Rabaul will now undergo environmentally responsible disposal. The crew will travel to the Defence International Training Centre and then to Western Australia for training before receiving the first of its four Guardian-class replacement vessels in late November 2018.
The replacement vessels are being delivered under the Pacific Patrol Boat Replacement programme. Under the programme, Australia is giving 19 Guardian-class vessels to 12 Pacific Island nations. The programme also includes a region-wide aerial maritime surveillance capability, enhancements to regional coordination, sustainment and training support.
The new Guardian-class patrol boats, being built by Austal, will offer enhanced capability to strengthen the region’s maritime security, fisheries protection and response to transnational crime.
Hefring Marine IMAS was designed to optimise vessels’ operation.
The small, unmanned surface vehicle will operate this year in multiple operations and military exercises worldwide.
The contract was awarded to HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding (NNS) division and General Dynamics Electric Boat (GDEB). As well as for the building of the boats, contract money will also go towards improving productivity at the shipyards, workforce support and other investment.
The approved purchase is for Tomahawk Block IV and Block V missiles, control systems, telemetry missiles and communication and broadcast systems.
The Philippine Navy is fast-tracking its maritime modernisation with new warships, unmanned platforms, and international shipbuilding partnerships to bolster its regional deterrence posture.
Taiwan is strengthening its deterrence against the PLA through an asymmetric arsenal that includes fast mine-laying vessels and domestically developed UAVs.