Upgrade for Gibraltar naval station
The Royal Navy’s Gibraltar naval station is set to be upgraded under a £2 million programme to improve its ability to monitor the movement of vessels in the Strait of Gibraltar.
Windmill Hill Signal Station will be partially rebuilt and expanded over the coming 12 months, with extra and improved monitoring equipment installed.
The facility visually and electronically monitors the 60,000 vessels that enter or leave the Mediterranean, or cross between Africa and Europe through the Strait of Gibraltar, each year.
Now under Joint Force Command the station is largely staffed by Royal Navy personnel.
Commander British Forces Gibraltar, Commodore Mike Walliker, said: ‘The facelift that we are giving over the next few months means that the first-class support that the Rock has provided to the many tens of thousands of ships of all shapes, sizes and nationalities which all - annually - navigate through one of, if not the most important maritime choke-points, will improve and be second to none.
‘Equally - and importantly - today serves as a warning and a reminder to all those who wish to use this narrow and congested stretch of water for criminal or nefarious activity.’
More from Naval Warfare
-
General Dynamics Electric Boat wins Virginia-class submarine supply contract
General Dynamics Electric Boat (GDEB) has been awarded a $517.2 million delivery order against a previously issued basic agreement for procurement and delivery of initial Virginia-class attack submarine spare parts to support maintenance availabilities.
-
L3Harris Technologies awarded $212 million contract for Royal Australian Navy's maritime underwater tracking ranges
L3Harris Technologies has been awarded a contract valued at A$328 million ($212 million) for the delivery of new Maritime Underwater Tracking Ranges (MUTR) to the Royal Australian Navy as part of SEA1350 Phase 3.
-
Pakistan Navy renewal gathers pace as new OPV launched
The launch of the first of a new pair of Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs) for the Pakistan Navy (PN) on 12 September indicates an acceleration in the modernisation of the service as it introduces new ships into service.
-
Can a new operational profile fix Canada's submarine problem?
The four Victoria-class diesel-electric attack submarines (SSKs) of the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) are in the midst of an evolution into a new operations and maintenance regime. Shephard investigates whether this will solve the navy's recurring issues with having only one boat (or even none) operational for long periods.
-
Freedom-class Littoral Combat Ship USS Marinette Littoral Combat Ship commissioned
The latest USN Littoral Combat Ship (LCS), the Freedom-class USS Marinette (LCS 25) was commissioned on 16 September. It will be homeported at Naval Station Mayport, Florida.
-
DSEI 2023: SEA launches high-performance countermeasures system for surface platforms
UK ship protection specialist SEA has unveiled Ancilia, a trainable decoy launcher system designed to provide rapid and effective protection against missile, including hypersonic, and torpedo threats to surface vessels.