SHIP LOCATIONS:

• CITADEL GALE 2012 Added to Naval Exercises grid
• JOINT WARRIOR updated
• Ship & Group Locations Checked / Updated

SHIP LOGS:

March 23^rd

• FS Dixmude (LHD): in Red Sea, cross deck visit with Sudanese patrol ship Yunbou

March 31^st

• FS Dixmude (LHD): Delivers humanitarian supplies @ Djibouti

April 7^th

• FS Aconit (FFG): Engages group of pirates 600km off Somalia
• FS Marne (Supply): Joins EU Piracy Patrol as FLAGSHIP

April 10^th

• USS Helena (SSN-725): Returns to Norfolk from SOUTHCOM deployment (...was replaced by USS Hartford)

April 11^th

• USS Porter (DDG-78): Arrives @ Gulf of Aden; Joins CTF-151; Begins anti-piracy patrol
• HMS Daring (Type-45 DDG): Attended DIMDEX @ Oman (...is halfway through 7-month deployment)

GROUND UNITS:

• US Army / US Marine Unit KIAs updated by DOD Reports up to (4/10/2012)
• JOINT WARRIOR added to grid

NOTEWORTHY NEWS:

April 7^th

• PAYVAND IRAN NEWS: IRGC says USS Enterprise needs permission to enter Persian Gulf (...well, this could be interesting)

April 10^th

• GLOBAL POST: Philippine warship in standoff with Chinese surveilance ships in S. China Sea ...Philippines attempting to arrest Chinese fishermen operating in Philippine claimed waters.
• KITSAP SUN: USS Seawolf (SSN) returns to sea after 31-month layover at Puget Sound for maintenance & modernization.
• RIA NOVOSTI: Georgia completes first test flight of domestically produced UAV ...and S. Ossetia threatens to shoot it down. Georgia cancelled the cooperation agreement with Israel after the Russia-Georgia war in 2008 , and began a domestic UAV R&D program (...after it became known that Israel helped Russia hack the Georgian drones during the conflict).

April 11^th

• AERO NEWS NETWORK: USAF Strategic Command conducted long range strike exercise on April 4^th in Alaska. Primary participants were 477^th Fighter Group, 3^rd Wing and 673^rd Air Base Wing from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska [F-22's] and [E-3's]. [F-16's] from Misawa, Japan, [B-1's] from Ellsworth AFB, and [KC-135's] from Eielson AFB supported exercise. Eielson AFB also provided aggressor [F-16's].
• RIA NOVOSTI: Iran halts oil delivery's to Germany.

April 12^th

• BETA: SERBIAN Ministry for Kosovo says any “special ops” in N. Kosovo against serbian rebels by Kososvo police will be dangerous, urges dialogue.
• REUTERS: Mali interim leader, sworn in by Supreme Court as part of deal from March 22^nd coup by military, promises to hold elections and oppose Tuareg Rebellion
• REUTERS: SYRIAN cease fire begins (...Syrian Army appears to be behaving).
• REUTERS: SUDAN vows to repeal S. Sudan Army from Heglig oilfield on border. S. Sudan says they seized it last Tuesday, and will hold it until cross border attacks and threats by Sudan end. The US and EU officials fear an escalation of the continuously simmering conflict between the two old foes.