INFOGRAPHICS #27: The attack submarines of Latin America in 2018

Written  by D-Mitch

Colombia has in service today four submarines of German origin

In the following infographic, named The Attack Submarines of Latin America in 2018, I depict all the attack submarines that are in active service in Latin America right now (and will continue to be part of their Navies until the end of 2018). Please note that in comparison with the previous graph about The Attack Submarines of Europe in 2017 (updated for 2018), there is no nuclear-powered  submarine (SSN) in any Navy (at least until Brazil commissions its first vessel after 2020), neither there is a submarine equipped with Air-Independent Propulsion (AIP) system (the Chilean Scoprene class submarines are fitted but not with the system and will receive it in a future refit). It should be mentioned also that from the 21 countries of Latin America, only seven navies (7) have submarines in their fleet; Peru has the most numerous fleet but Brazil and Chile the most modern submarine fleets in the region. Moreover, the 92% of the Latin American submarines are German-built (!). Also, Argentina, while it has in its inventory the largest submarine in the region (TR1700 class: 67 meters length and 2,100t displacement), none of its submarines is in active service.

The new eyes of the Hellenic Navy Fleet: Miltech Hellas TDR-10 and IRB-75U

Written by D-Mitch

Miltech TDR-10 sensor on board Salamis, Hydra class frigate

A Greek company, named Miltech Hellas, has begun equipping Hellenic Navy vessels with its electro-optical (EO) sensors. The EO sensor has been the centerpiece of combat throughout the history of warfare; these sensors and their data processors often serve as the eyes of deployed military forces. An EO sensor except the surveillance duties and SAR operations, it is used as a tracking and fire control system while it can provide early warning and threat assessment to ensure efficient and effective response to emerging threats. Miltech Hellas S.A has developed an excellent EO sensor which has been tested intensively on Hellenic Navy ships with excellent results, the TDR-10. The dual-axis gyro stabilized platform mounted system (pan-tilt unit HI-PTU100-DSG), designed by Hellenic Instruments, is equipped with a high performance 3rd generation cooled sensor with a high resolution detector, a laser rangefinder (up to 10km), motorized thermal lens, GPS and a high resolution day camera full HD. The whole system weighs less than 15kg while approximately 9kg is the weight of the pan-tilt unit. A terrific system all Made in Greece!

INFOGRAPHICS OF COAST GUARD VESSELS #6: The large patrol vessels of the Turkish Coast Guard

Written by D-Mitch

The Turkish Coast Guard 1,700-ton Guven. Photo by Yoruk Isik

This is the sixth post about infographics of various coast guard vessels and coast guard fleets from around the world. Following on my previous post about the offshore patrol vessels of the Hellenic Coast Guard and due to the very recent incident between the two countries where their largest ships were involved (Umut from Turkish side and Gavdos from the Greek side), I created an infographic where I depict the large patrol vessels (>100tons and >34 meters) of the Turkish Coast Guard (Türk Sahil Güvenliği), as of February 2018. It should be mentioned here that the Turkish Coast Guard has much more large patrol boats (55 boats larger than 30 meters including nine 31-meter Kaan 29 class boats) than the Hellenic Coast Guard (Λιμενικό Σώμα), has built several new and highly sophisticated patrol boat classes locally, and the majority of those ships have or received modern electro-optical sensors and remote-controlled stabilized machine gun platforms (RWS). Moreover, 33 boats are equipped with 40mm gun turrets except the usual armament of a pair of manually remoted 12.7mm heavy machine guns. Notice though that Turkey currently has only four (very) large offshore patrol vessels while all the rest are smaller than 41 meters. There are plans to replace older classes such as the Type 80 class.

WARSHIPS OF THE PAST: USS Juneau (CL-119) anti-aircraft cruiser of the United States Navy

Written by Keith Jacobs

Images by D-Mitch

USS Juneau (CLAA-119), lead ship of the Juneau class cruisers

The USS Juneau (CL-119), lead ship of the Juneau class, a modified version of Atlanta class light cruisers, had three distinctions that set this single cruiser apart from the many other cruisers of the United States Navy (USN). First, USS Juneau was the first of the “last series” of Atlanta class anti-aircraft light cruisers (CL) built for the Navy; second, it was one of only two light cruisers to be modernized with new 3”/50 Mk.33 twin anti-aircraft mounts (the other being USS Manchester, CL-83) post-war; lastly, the only gun cruiser to engage in a surface battle with enemy ships during the Korean War (1950-53). The cruise was initially designated CL-119, but changed to CLAA-119 on 18 March 1949, representative of the intended role of the class, as fleet anti-aircraft protection ships. Let's see her story!

INFOGRAPHICS OF COAST GUARD VESSELS #5: Large patrol vessels of the Hellenic Coast Guard

Written by D-Mitch

Stan Patrol 5509 of the HCG

P355, the winner of competition!

This is the fifth post, after a long time, about infographics of various coast guard vessels from around the world. The following infographic is part of an article I wrote together with my friend Davelis, in Greek, for the Greek online magazine e-Amyna, about the current situation of the Hellenic Coast Guard (Λιμενικό Σώμα) large patrol vessel fleet and the new boats that the Coast Guard might purchase in the near future. The title of the article is "Present and future of the large patrol vessels of the Hellenic Coast Guard". That article briefly summarizes the issues, the needs for new acquisitions, modernization programmes regarding the current fleet as well as and the candidates for the Coast Guard's new competition for 3+1 30-45-meter armed patrol boats. Enjoy the article Παρόν και μέλλον των μεγάλων περιπολικών του Λιμενικού Σώματος!

UPDATE: the Hellenic Coast Guard will acquire four P355, a design by Cantiere Navale Vitoria (CNV) SPA. The boats will be 37-meters in length, 160 tons displacement at full load and will achieve a maximum speed of 40 knots. The equipment will consist of two LRCWS (Light Remotely Controlled Weapon Stations), a pair off JRC navigation radars and two  electro-optical sensors

FLEETS #19: Royal Netherlands Navy, Turkish Navy, Brazilian Navy and Romanian Navy in WWII

The following images illustrate the most important classes of warships that were in service with the navies of the Netherlands, Turkey, Brazil and Romania during the World War II. All the images are created by www.naval-encyclopedia.com. In that page you can read some excellent naval history articles, to download other graphs or you can purchase the same graphs in high resolution in the online shop! More posts will follow for your collection of current naval fleets but also of fleets from the past.

Royal Netherlands Navy (Koninklijke Marine) in WWII

Click to enlarge and save the image to view the details - Royal Netherlands Navy in WWII. It should be mentioned that the battlecruiser Holland was never completed and remained a project (Design 1047, also known as Project 1047)

Bayraktar class landing ships of the Turkish Navy

Written by D-Mitch

TCG Bayraktar (L402), lead ship of the Bayraktar class LST

There are very few countries today which develop and built modern tank landing ships (LST). Such countries are South Korea with the Cheon Wang Bong-class, Russia with the Ivan Gren class, China with the Type 072A class and Turkey with the Bayraktar class. Of these three classes, the largest, the most modern and most heavily armed, is certainly the Turkish Bayraktar class, which will be described thoroughly in this article. The first of the ship in the class was launched on October 3, 2015, and was commissioned just recently, in April 2017. The ship, which was designed and built for the Turkish Navy by Anadolu Deniz Insaat Kizaklari Sanayi ve Ticaret (ANADOLU Shipyard), was named Bayraktar (L402) replacing the old TCG Bayraktar, a LST-542 class landing ship/minelayer (and not LST-511 class as it is reported in many sources). The original contract signed in June 2011 for the procurement of two vessels with an option for two more ships and thus to replace the two 30-year old Bey-class ships. It should be mentioned that the Bayraktar was designed, built and commissioned in a period of just 46 months! Moreover, the domestic industry participation in amphibious ship construction is more than 70 percent! The second ship, TCG Sancaktar (L403) was launched on 17 July 2016 and will be commissioned the coming months. The ships of the class are primarily intended for amphibious missions and transportation of troops and equipment, while their secondary missions include humanitarian aid, disaster relief, medical assistance and transportation. The ships of the class will also serve as flagships and logistic support vessels.

NAVAL FORCES #12 and COAST GUARD VESSELS #5: Cyprus Naval Command & Coast Guard patrol vessels

Written by D-Mitch

Cypriot C382 patrol boats during a maritime exercise. Notice
that the one in the back belongs to the Coast Guard while the
other one in the foreground to the Cypriot Navy

This article will summarize the current naval vessels in service with the Cyprus Naval Command and Cyprus Port and Marine Police (i.e. Cyprus Coast Guard). The article is accompanied by graphs and tables, a large number of photos and a brief description of the vessels' armament. The Cyprus Naval Command (Greek: Ναυτική Διοίκηση Κύπρου) (also known as the Cyprus Navy or Cypriot Navy) is the armed sea wing of the Cyprus National Guard. This force does not possess any capital ships or other major warships, but is equipped with patrol boats, none of them equipped with missiles except MANPADS, a number of Aerospatiale MM40 Exocet Block II mobile coastal defence missile systems and integrated radar systems, as well as SEALs-type naval underwater demolitions units. The Cyprus Navy has the primary mission of defending the sea borders of the Republic of Cyprus.

NAVAL FORCES #11: The Hellenic Navy emits SOS - Current situation and challenges

Written by D-Mitch

Frigates of the Hellenic Navy fleet in formation

This is the introduction to an article I wrote in Greek, for Πτήση & Διάστημα (Ptisi & Diastima, english: Flight & Space) magazine's website, the oldest aviation and defense magazine in Greece, about the current situation of the Hellenic Navy fleet and the challenges the Navy will face by 2025. The title of the article is "The Hellenic Navy emits SOS". Today, Hellenic Navy, is one of those Navies that maintain a significant amount of firepower thanks to the numerous fleet of surface combatants and submarines in its inventory.  However, this situation is bound to change in the near future as the ongoing economic crisis hits hard the country and moreover as Greece tries to recover via spending cuts including a high proportion of the defence budget. This article briefly summarizes the issues, the needs for immediate replacements and modernization programmes as well as the serious efforts by the Navy staff, who despite the wage cuts and the few available resources, to keep the aging fleet operational and prepared for battle. Enjoy the article Το Πολεμικό Ναυτικό εκπέμπει SOS!