Australian Military News, Reports, Data, etc.

The Standard SM-2 Block IIIA medium-range anti-air missile has been mandated for the nine Future Frigates to be acquired for the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) under Project Sea 5000, informed sources have confirmed to Jane's .

The SM-2, along with the long-range active phased-array CEAFAR2-S/X/L radar suite under development by Canberra-based CEA, is understood to be the only equipment classed as mandatory rather than desirable for the AUD35 billion (USD26 billion) programme, which will begin replacing the RAN's eight Anzac-class frigates from the mid-2020s.

The three shortlisted contenders - the Type 26 Global Combat Ship proposed by BAE Systems, the anti-submarine variant of the Carlo Bergamini class offered by Fincantieri, and a modified F-100 design proposed by Navantia - are currently undergoing a competitive evaluation process expected to be completed towards the end of 2017.

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Lethe said:

SM-2 on a frigate? Safe to say that this is going to be a big, expensive "frigate".

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Bltizo said:

Have you looked at the subsystems meant for the SEA5000?

48 VLS, same number as the Hobart class... and using their domestic CEAFAR triband AESA in X, S and L bands, using a combat system like aegis or a saab version.

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It sounds like as much of a destroyer as Hobart is... if not moreso!

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Spanish Navy’s Navantia-built frigate ESPS Cristóbal Colón arrived in Perth, Australia with the aim of integrating into the Royal Australian Navy.

Apart from training and navy to navy engagements, another reason for the F-100 frigate to visit Australia was the fact that Spanish shipbuilder Navantia is one of the designers shortlisted for the design of the Australian Navy’s Future Frigate that will replace the existing Anzac-class frigates.

Similarly to the Italian Navy’s Bergamini-class frigate ITS Carabiniere which arrived in Australia last month showcasing Fincantieri’s FREMM frigate design, ESPS Cristóbal Colón will promote Navantia’s F-100 design.

Cristóbal Colón is expected to spend the next 120 days integrated into the Royal Australian Navy.

During the 10,300-mile transit towards Australia, the F-105 participated in NATO’s anti-terrorist operation Sea Guardian and the EU operation Sophia against human trafficking in the Mediterranean Sea. After crossing the Suez Canal, Cristóbal Colón also took part in the counter-piracy operation Atalanta in the Indian Ocean.

The transit was also used to conduct combined exercises with the navies of Italy, Saudi Arabia, India and Malaysia with port calls in Jeddah, Mumbai and Singapore.

After arriving at Rockingham on February 19, Cristóbal Colón was greeted by the Australian Fleet Commander, Rear Admiral Stuart Mayer. During the welcoming ceremony, the operational command of the ship was officially transferred to the Royal Australian Navy which meant that as of February 19, the F-105 was fully integrated into the RAN.

The ship will remain in Rockingham for a few days participating in the coordination meetings prior to the two-week CJTF exercise Ocean Explorer 17 to be conducted in Western Australia. This Combined Joint Task Force will have different naval, air and land elements from Australia, New Zeeland, the United States and Spain.

This will be the first of a series of advanced exercises intended to enhance the strategic association and interoperability between the Spanish Navy and the RAN. The F-105 will also provide training to the crews of the new Hobart-class anti-air warfare destroyers (AWD). To this end, forty RAN servicemen will integrate into the crew of the Spanish frigate.

The Cristóbal Colón is scheduled to visit the ports of Fremantle, Adelaide, Sidney, Brisbane, Cairns and Townsville.

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Jura said:

...
BAE, Fincantieri and Navantia ships on Australian shortlist

source:

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Jura said:

Jan 25, 2017

moved it to Adelaide:
Italian naval frigate docks in Adelaide in bid to secure lucrative contract

source (says Updated earlier today at 2:27am)

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On Tuesday the Italian Militare Marina’s FREMM frigate Carabiniere departed Sydney for Melbourne on another leg of her busy Australian PR tour.

The Italian FREMM (Frigate European Multi-Mission) has of course been down selected for Australia’s future frigate program and her builder Fincantieri, along with Italian defence primes Leonardo, MBDA, and Telespazio Elettronica have been keen to show her off capabilities. ADM was fortunate to be invited aboard for the leg and was joined by a team from the Navy’s STRATFORCOM and also DST Group.

Having exited the heads following an aerial photo shoot within the surrounds of Sydney Harbour, the ship wasted no time bringing its gas turbine online and proceeding at speed towards Melbourne. With 24 knots rung on she proceeded comfortably at 27 knots thanks to the following East Australian Current. The ship has a CODLAG (COmbined Diesel Electric And Gas) propulsion configuration giving her a great deal of flexibility and engine efficiency.

For the deployment, the vessel has embarked a single SH-90 helicopter though it is capable of embarking two aircraft including the larger EH-101.

Commandante Francesco Pagnotta, the ship's commanding officer, said the ships had been designed to stay at sea for extended periods outside of their usual operating area and their larger size certainly adds a greater level of comfort to the normal ships' company of 168 (in reality this is more like 140 when personnel leave is taken into account).

“The comfort and sustainability of the ship is much higher than what I have experienced in the past.”

Since being commissioned in April 2015, the ship has almost spent a year of that time at sea, with the current deployment expected to last until May (she departed La Spezia on 20th December), and a previous anti-piracy mission off Somalia lasting approximately six months.

After departing Melbourne on the 25th February the ship will participate in an exercise with the Royal Australian Navy off the West Australian coast before she proceeds to other destinations in South East Asia, including Jakarta and Langkawi. The exercise will include an LHD and six other units of the RAN and ADM understands ASW exercises will also be conducted in company with a Collins class submarine.

CMDTE Pagnotta was keen to demonstrate the ship's ASW capabilities during the exercise, acknowledging that the design had been down selected for Sea 5000 and the RAN's desire for an ASW capable frigate.

“Our detection range is much greater than what I have been used to in the past,” he said.

“With a bow mounted sonar and variable depth sonar it's quite normal to detect a submarine at around 40,000 yards (20 nm) and during an exercise with a German submarine using Air Independent Propulsion another FREMM (Carlo Margottini) detected the submarine at this range.”

The ship's ASW officer LT Fabio Scialpi said that previous detection ranges were more in the vicinity of around five nm.

“But the ship also has great multi-role capabilities and we are looking forward to showing what we can do,” CMDTE Pagnotta said. “Even the ASW FREMMs are very capable in both the air defence and anti-surface roles for example,” he said.

The Chief Engineer LCDR Ugo Nieri said the engineering systems had performed well during the deployment, and his team was able to carry out a high degree of preventative maintenance while at sea. For maintenance tasks that required a greater level of sophistication, Pagnotta said they were able to rely on external support on the longer missions and two Isotta Fraschini engineers were embarked during the leg for planned diesel engine maintenance.

Regarding lessons learnt thus far in the deployment, CMDTE Pagnotta said the habitability of the FREMM had made a big difference. Also the redundancies built into the design made it a very easy platform to operate with fewer crew and the modern communications suite facilitated the ships' connection to support mechanisms back in Italy; it was even able to conduct remote training as if it were operating in formation with other naval units.

CMDTE Pagnotta said the ship had also outperformed expectations when it came to its own noise levels, being more silent than the design specifications. With regard to machinery space noise for instance, the actual in service levels were around 85 decibels compared to the 110 decibels as outlined in the specifications.

“From my point of view the ship outperforms the builders requirements, the diesels are housed so their noise is drastically reduced and they are also situated away from the hull,” Pagnotta said.

In ASW silent mode operations the ship runs on two diesel engines (out of a total of four) and the close proximity of the diesels to the shafts is another factor in delivering drastically reduced noise levels.

The twin rudders are also skewed at an angle, serving to stabilise the ship using dynamic control but also reducing the amount of cavitation.

LCDR Nieri also said there were redundancies that allowed quieter diesel fuel oil pumps to be used in silent mode and confirmed the maximum speed in that mode was 15.6 knots.

The warmer waters the ship had experienced both during this deployment, and the former African operations (up to 30 degrees) had not posed any problem, he said.

There will be more detail on the Italian FREMM and the Sea 5000 CEP in ADM's upcoming Seapower edition in April.

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Jura said:

... it'll be F-35 plus Growler!
JOINT STRIKE FIGHTER TO MAKE AUSTRALIAN DEBUT AT THE AUSTRALIAN INTERNATIONAL AIR SHOW

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The first two EA-18G Growlers flew into the international airshow at Avalon from Naval Air Station Whidbey Island in the US via RAAF Base Amberley, marking their first appearance on Australian soil.

Defence Minister Marise Payne welcomed the arrival of the Growlers at a brief ceremony and said the aircraft was a true force-multiplier and would be a potent and technologically advanced new capability for the ADF.

“The Growler can disrupt military electronic systems, such as radars, to protect personnel and improve situational awareness,” Minister Payne said.

“Australia is the only country outside the United States flying the EA-18G Growler and its arrival is a significant leap forward in Australia’s joint electronic warfare capability and introduces a dedicated electronic attack option,” Minister Payne said.

Minister Payne today also announced that Australia will partner with the US to develop a next-generation radar and radio jammer for the Growler.

“This is a $250m investment by the Turnbull Government that will future proof the Growler’s capability,” Minister Payne said.

“As this is a rapidly evolving area we will work in partnership with the United States Navy to develop the next generation jamming capability, which will ensure that these aircraft remain at the technological forefront throughout their service life.”

Chief of Air Force Air Marshal Leo Davies, said the Growler was a vital part of Air Force’s evolution to a future fifth-generation Air Force.

It's our job to show what this aircraft can do, not just for the Royal Australian Air Force, but also for the Army, the Navy and the ADF and that's going to be a really exciting journey.

AIRMSHL Davies listed the wide array of ADF platforms the Growler would have to work with, including the Navy's new air warfare destroyers and also the ARH Tiger armed reconnaissance helicopters in service with Army.

“I expect this aircraft to spend more time flying with the Army and the Navy than it actually does with the Air Force. He also praised CASG, which had worked hard to understand the sustainment and engineering aspects of the aircraft in order to make it effective and efficient.”

He said there would be 12 Growlers in Australia by mid-2017 forming No. 6 Squadron at RAAF Base Amberley. and this task had been a credit to Boeing and the US Navy.

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The two jets – part of Australia’s largest and most controversial defence purchase worth about $17bn – will take part in Avalon air show

Two F-35 Joint Strike Fighter jets have landed in Australia for the first time, arriving at Amberley air force base outside Brisbane on Monday.

Australia has

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in the country’s largest – and most controversial – defence purchase, in a deal worth about $17bn. The jets will

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at a cost per fighter of about US$90m.

The United States air force

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; the $379bn program to develop and builder the fighter is the Pentagon’s largest weapons project.

But the project, which was launched in 2001, has been plagued by long delays, cost overruns of nearly 70% and technical problems.

Problems with the fighter jet have included

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and increased risk of neck injury to lower-weight pilots when they eject from the aircraft. The jet was also reportedly outperformed by the

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.

Suggestions by

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that the US may review or cut its F-35 joint strike fighter procurement

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in Australia’s plans to buy the jet.

Australia’s first F-35 jets are now based at Luke air force base in Arizona, with four RAAF pilots training to fly the fifth-generation aircraft. The F-35 will replace the ageing FA-18A/B Classic Hornets.

The RAAF F-35s will be revealed to the public at the Avalon air show in Victoria at the weekend.

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