Helicopter Dock Ships Boost Defence

23 Februari 2012

Canberra class LHD (image : McConrads)

THE arrival in 2014 of the first of two 27,000-tonne Landing Helicopter Dock warships represents the biggest change to Australia's "force projection capability" since the navy's first aircraft carrier was acquired more than 60 years ago, Defence Force chief General David Hurley said yesterday.
Speaking at a key defence conference in Canberra, General Hurley said restructuring of the army's three combat brigades into an amphibious assault force - the most ambitious revamp of Australian Defence Force doctrine in decades - was on track to enable company-size ship-to-shore landings by 2018.

He acknowledged "disappointment at the state of the amphibious fleet" and pledged new maintenance practices that would ensure ships "in the right condition" were available for future missions.

Last year, the Royal Australian Navy was unable to provide support to victims of Cyclone Yasi because none of its amphibious vessels was seaworthy.

The challenges in creating an Amphibious Task Force (ATF) should not be underestimated, he warned.

Much would be learnt from the shared experiences of the US Marine Corps, units of which will soon to be based in Darwin, and its British counterpart, the Royal Marines, General Hurley said.

As reported in The Australian in December, the testbed for the new capability will be the Townsville-based 2nd Battalion Royal Australian Regiment, just returned from Afghanistan.

However, outside Afghanistan, the Australian Defence Force's primary operating environment extends from the eastern approaches of the Indian Ocean to the island states of Polynesia and from the equator to the Southern Ocean.

"This area encompasses 25,000 islands, 85,000km of navigable waterways.

"The ADF must be able to maintain situational awareness across this vast area and must be capable of responding swiftly and decisively to a range of scenarios," General Hurley said.

Defence Minister Stephen Smith told the conference it was likely Canberra would follow Washington's lead and postpone the purchase of 54 of the stealthy F-35 Joint Strike Fighters (JSFs) beyond the 14 the federal government is committed to buy.

"It won't be a priority in my view this year to make judgments about the receipt or the delivery or the arrival of future or additional Joint Strike Fighters," Mr Smith warned.

Experts said that was likely to translate into a decision to upgrade at least six of the new 24 F/A-18F Super Hornet fleet to advanced electronic warfare variants.

The federal government had 12 Super Hornets hard-wired on the assembly line for possible conversion as EA-18G Growlers - a move that would give the air force a formidable new .

(The Australian)

Navy Revives Plan to Buy P5-b Ship

06 Desember 2011

Indonesia and South Korea will compete for the tender of MRV ship for Philippine navy (photo : Kaskus Militer)

The Navy has been cleared to begin negotiations for the purchase of a multirole vessel from any of the friendly nations, Rear Admiral Alexander Pama said on Sunday.

“The latest process that we had undergone with the Department of National Defense had good results and we did not encounter anymore objections,” Pama said.

“Hopefully, all the procedures required by the defense acquisition system would be finalized and early next year we can start negotiations for the acquisition,” Pama said.

But Pama said the Navy has yet to obtain President Aquino’s approval for the purchase plan, which is part of the military’s modernization.

An MRV, which costs at least P5 billion, will serve as a mother ship equipped with state-of-the-art radars and sensors for monitoring aircrafts and patrol boats, Pama said.

Early this year, Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin temporarily dropped the acquisition of an MRV

from the list of big-ticket items and gave priority to light sea-crafts for internal security operations and disaster response.

Gazmin changed his mind following China’s alleged intrusions into Philippine territorial waters particularly in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) where the hotly disputed Spratly islands is situated.

Last August, the Philippines acquired a patrol vessel—Hamilton-class cutter—from the United States Coast Guard for P423 million to beef up security at the Malampaya gas project. The Navy renamed it BRP Gregorio del Pilar.

“The dry-docking and repainting of PF15 costs P47.914 million while the refitting to our Navy configuration is P13.872 million. It was funded by the Department of Energy.”

On Dec. 14, the Navy with Aquino as the guest of honor will launch the commissioning of the vessel together with a Philippine-made Landing Utility Craft called BRP Tagbanua (AT296), a BO105 Helicopter (PNH422) and a refurbished Presidential Yacht called BRP Ang Pangulo (AT25).

The P189 million- BRP Tagbanua, made in Misamis Oriental, is configured to transport combat personnel, tanks, vehicles, artillery equipment, and cargoes in support of military operations and perform medical assistance as well as disaster, rescue and relief operations.

(Manila Standard Today)

BAE Systems Contracted For LHD Training

21 September 2011

Canberra class LHD (image : shipsmodel)

Williamstown, Australia - BAE Systems has been engaged by the Commonwealth for the development and delivery of training for the Royal Australian Navy’s (RAN) Landing Helicopter Dock (LHD) ships.

The training will rely heavily on simulation and virtual scenarios using the latest technology, including avatars.

BAE Systems Director of Maritime, Harry Bradford, said the use of advanced, computer-based technology for training had a number of advantages for the customer in terms of both cost and flexibility.

“The most obvious benefit in using computer simulation is that the technology allows us to recreate, and for the crew to interact with the LHD environment, without the actual completed ship. This means greater flexibility and lower cost for our customer.

“For instance the system is capable of familiarising various elements of the defence forces, including both army and navy, with the ship in terms of systems, capability, size and layout and these defence personnel can be in separate geographical locations across the country.

“With training commencing prior to delivery of the first ship, the flexibility of being able to train and familiarise defence forces at their home bases represents substantial cost savings for the Commonwealth.”

Mr Bradford said in addition to familiarising personnel with the LHD the training being developed by BAE Systems also included simulating emergency procedures and failure modes, all in a safe environment.

“This is also a major benefit for the crews of these ships in that we can recreate and test emergency procedures in a safe environment before procedures are implemented on the ship.”

There are also flow-on benefits from the creation of these training packages for other navy vessels.
Mr Bradford said once created, these simulator programs can be easily migrated to AWDs, ANZACs and FFGs which could benefit the navy for all future training programs.

Work is underway on the development of some of the simulated training through KBR, which developed the avatar technology used in the Virtual Ship Training and Information System (ViSTIS), to be used for the LHD. BAE Systems has also recently awarded a contract to Kongsberg Maritime to provide a custom engine room simulator for the engineers who will serve aboard the LHDs.

A team of approximately 30 people at BAE Systems will manage the training process for the LHD Project. BAE Systems is the prime contractor. The first hull is expected to arrive in Williamstown in August 2012. Delivery of the first training packages is expected in 2013 ahead of the completion of the first ship.

(BAE System)

Japan to Build New Helicopter Carrier by 2012

15 September 2011

Japan already has two helicopter carriers (photo : Chosun Ilbo)

Japan plans to build a 19,500-ton aircraft carrier capable of housing helicopters after China launched its first own aircraft carrier, Chinese media reported on Wednesday. Japan already has two helicopter carriers -- the Hyuga deployed in March 2009 and the Ise deployed in March 2011 -- but the planned new vessel will be bigger.

The 22DDH is scheduled for deployment in 2015. It will be 248 m long and cost around US$1.04 billion. It is 30 percent bigger than the Ise and can carry 14 helicopters. The Ise measures 197 m, has a displacement of 13,500 tons and can carry 11 helicopters.

Although dwarfed by China's aircraft carrier, which is 320 m long and can carry 50 fighter jets, the Japanese vessel will be equipped with the latest U.S. weapons systems to maximize its capability. It will be equipped with the Raytheon air and missile defense system, which has so far only been installed on U.S. vessels, and 11 missile launchers.

Japan had several aircraft carriers during World War II, but since its defeat it has focused on developing helicopter carriers, which are deemed purely defensive. It appears to be bolstering defenses to counter China's increasing submarine warfare capabilities. The new carrier will house mainly helicopters designed for anti-submarine warfare operations.

The new carrier is expected to be used to carry F-35B VSTOL aircraft (image : connect.in)

There are increasing calls within Japan to modify the 22DDH for fighter jets. But critics say it would be unrealistic to build such an aircraft carrier since its navy has only 45,000 personnel, and the already indebted government would run deeper into debt.

Chinese media speculated that Japan could buy Lookheed Martin F-35B stealth fighters capable of vertical takeoff and landing and base them on the new carrier.

Japan is also speeding up the development of stealth fighters and drones. Since 2009, it has invested 39 billion yen (around W562.2 billion) on development of an indigenous stealth fighter codenamed ATD-X. A prototype is expected to be unveiled in 2014, and development is to be complete in 2016.

Japan's Defense Ministry is also spending 15 billion yen this year on developing drones and robots. One unmanned helicopter has already been deployed with the Self-Defense Forces, while four prototype drones have been developed.

(Chosun Ilbo)