Asian Defence Technology - October 2016 Magazine Issue

a GBP publication

07

vol 23 OCTOBER 2016 MCI (P) 109/01/2016 Singapore $15, MALAYSIA RM20, Rest of the world us$20

06 Sea Change | 10 Maritime Might | 14 Roboship Boom 20 Assault from the Sea | 24 Making Waves| 28 Jack of All Trades WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

CONTENTS

CONTENTS Editor: Vittorio Rossi Prudente vittorio.prudente@gbp.com.sg Deputy Editor: Jay Menon jay.menon@gbp.com.sg

SEA SYSTEMS

06

Sea Change

While it is premature to herald the death of the manned submarine, underwater warfare is certainly undergoing an epoch-making transformation

MARITIME AVIATION

Maritime Might

Special Correspondent: Atul Chandra atul.chandra@gbp.com.sg

10

Contributors: Francis Tusa, Peter Donaldson, Ian Kemp, Mitchell Sutton and Serge DeSilva-Ranasinghe

14

Roboship Boom

20

Assault from the Sea

Operations Director: Siva Sachi siva.sachi@gbp.com.sg Art Director: Arthur Chan arthur.chan@gbp.com.sg

New acquisitions are driving maritime capability

SEA SYSTEMS

As robotic weapons are revolutionising warfare, the future of maritime operations may be with autonomous naval vessels The US Navy operates the largest and most capable amphibious force in the world, but its allies in the Asia-Pacific region are enhancing their amphibious capabilities

WARSHIP TECHNOLOGY

24

Web Director Elmer Valencia elmer.valencia@gbp.com.sg Circulation Manager: Khairul Naem khairul.naem@gbp.com.sg

ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY is a monthly publication for diplomats and professionals in the defence, security and academic fields. Opinions expressed by contributors in ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY do not necessarily represent those of the publisher or editor. ŠGBP Pte. Ltd. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced by any means without written permission

Making Waves

Navies in the Asia-Pacific region have shown a strong resolve to develop a home-grown warship and patrol vessel building capability

SEA SYSTEMS

28

Jack of All Trades

32

NEWS

The Landing Ship Dock (Helicopter)/Landing Ship Helicopter Assault (LHD(A)/LHA) have seen a boom in numbers around the world

ADVERTISING REPRESENTATIVES marketing@gbp.com.sg

Global Business Press Pte. Ltd. Level 34, Centennial Tower, 3 Temasek Avenue, Singapore 039190.

Tel : +65 6549 7706 Fax : +65 6549 7011 Email : enquiry@gbp.com.sg Web : www.gbp.com.sg

WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

Europe – and all other countries: Global Communications sas elena@global-communications.it Tel: +39 049 723548 Email: helen@global-communications.it

Israel Contact: Tamir Eshel Tel: + 972 544 508 028 / +972 989 117 92 Fax: +972 989 199 65 Email: eshel_tamir@yahoo.com

USA Contact: Josh Mayer Tel: +1 972 816-6745 Fax: +1 972 767 4442 Email: jm@mayeradvertising.com

China Contact: Xu Yixin Mob: +8613811688955 Tel: 86-10-58354055 / Fax: 86-10-84043033 E-mail: xuyixin@cannews.com.cn

South East Asia Contact: Siva Sachi Mob: +6012-905 6825 E-mail: siva.sachi@gbp.com.sg

OCTOBER 2016 | ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY

3

EDITORIAL

India Seals the Rafale Deal, What Next?

India has become the third international export customer and the first Asian

customer for Dassault Aviation’s Rafale ‘Omnirole’ combat aircraft, with the recent conclusion of the inter-governmental agreement (IGA) with France for direct purchase of 36 aircraft. India will now pay approximately US$8.6 billion for 28 single seat and 8 twin-seat Rafale’s, their weapons, spares and the maintenance package. The number falls far short of the 126 fighters that the Indian Air Force (IAF) had said it needed, when the Rafale emerged as the winner of the medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA) competition in 2012.

The question that needs to be asked, is how many Rafale’s does India really need?

It now appears increasingly unlikely that 126 examples will ever be acquired or made in India. However, informed sources say that anywhere between 60-80 Rafale’s, would certainly be enough to tackle any threats India could face in the future. The Rafale is also expected to demonstrate substantially higher flight line availability and coupled with its ‘Omnirole’ capability; more could be done with less, making 60-80 aircraft sufficient.

The bulk of the IAF’s current combat aircraft fleet are of late seventies/early eighties design. Important combat types such as the Mirage 2000 and MiG-29 are now receiving substantial upgrades and the Jaguar strike fighter will also to be modernised in the future. The large Su-30 MKI fleet is also due for an expensive mid-life upgrade. The IAF’s MiG-21s and MiG-27s are increasingly difficult to maintain, and though delayed, the homegrown Tejas has emerged as a capable light fighter, which will be produced in greater quantity post 2020.

With Hindustan Aeronautics’ completing production of the Su-30 MKI by 2019-2020, one assumed that the Sukhoi T-50 (FGFA) would be the logical successor to make use of the built-up facilities. However, the Indian government is now looking to acquire a new single-engine and a twin-engine fighter type to be produced at home, under its ‘Make in India’ initiative. This presents an extraordinary situation, where the air force instead of reducing the multiplicity of combat types with different maintenance philosophies, is seeking to add to it. It will have at least 10 different combat types in service post 2020! One thing is for certain for the foreign OEMs seeking to sell a combat fighter to India, the Rafale deal is just the beginning.

– Editor Asian Defence Technology

4

ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY | OCTOBER 2016

WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

SEA SYSTEMS

Sea Change

While it is premature to herald the death of the manned submarine, underwater warfare is certainly undergoing an epoch-making transformation By Peter Donaldson It is rarely wise to predict the demise of any major military platform because the technology expected to render them obsolete also tends to generate solutions that preserve their value, or at least make the issue much less clear cut until the results of exercises or combat can be assessed.

However, the dominant position of the manned submarine in underwater warfare is beginning to look shaky because of developments in unmanned vehicles, sensors, communications networks and big data number crunching power and their application to Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW).

Two recent publications focused attention on this. The Emerging Era in Undersea Warfare was written by Bryan Clark for the U.S. Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments (CSBA) and 6

ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY | OCTOBER 2016

published in January 2015. Then, The Inescapable Net: Unmanned Systems in Anti-Submarine Warfare was written by David Hambling for the British American Security Information Council (BASIC) and published in March 2016 as a briefing for the U.K. Parliament in the lead up to the vote on July 18 that authorised the renewal of Britain’s submarine-based nuclear deterrent. This is carried by “Successor” submarines, built by BAE Systems.

Transparent Oceans

The BASIC report argues that emerging technologies could soon “render the oceans effectively transparent and a submarinebased deterrent irrelevant before the submarines are even deployed”. It further argues that “the availability in large numbers of low-cost unmanned platforms...

equipped with sophisticated sensors and able to operate in swarms, is likely to be highly disruptive to naval operations over the next decade...”.

Swarming and goal seeking algorithms for autonomous unmanned vehicles are a major focus of development, and the sensing, communication and processing technologies to support them are also maturing rapidly.

UAVs such as Raytheon’s batterypowered Coyote can already be launched from sonobouy tubes and patrol for 90 minutes. The endurance of similar UAVs could be increased by a factor of five by fuel cells, BASIC argues, and further by other options including solar cells and the ability to land on water to save energy and then take off again.

Ideas for vehicles that can operate like WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

SEA SYSTEMS

sea birds, such as the NRL’s Sail-A-Plane and Flimmer, and NASA’s Albatross dynamic soaring drone, could also add endurance and flexibility. Others including fuelcell-powered UUVs, buoyancy driven gliders, wave gliders and solar powered submersible sailing USVs, such as Ocean Aero’s Submaran S-10, could extend endurance to months.

Advances in underwater sensing and communications, thermal, hydrodynamic pressure wave and wake detection radar also mitigate against submarines retaining their stealth, BASIC argues.

The report cites increases in computing power as a threat: “The Trident Successor submarine is designed and will be constructed using modern electronics from today, will come into service in the 2030s and will be expected to patrol into the 2060/70s. The electronics of 20 years’ time will be vastly more powerful than anything that exist today. This will have a direct impact on the ASW hunting the Successor, which relies heavily on signal processing.”

BASIC also highlights new magnetic sensing technology, such as the developmental atomic vapour magnetometer and the Superconducting Quantum Interference Device (SQUID) magnetometer, which could lead to new generations of compact and very sensitive

Magnetic Anomaly Detector (MAD) equipment used by swarming UAVs.

Double-Edged Technologies

While these technologies are real and developing rapidly, it is a mistake to assume that there are no other new technologies that might successfully counter emerging threats to submarines or that it will always be possible for an adversary to deploy such threats to best effect. For example, SSBNs are likely to operate in waters dominated by friendly forces, as illustrated by the Russia’s use of “bastions” in the White Sea. The processing power argument ignores industry’s ability to upgrade submarines with the computer technology as advanced as that used by anything hunting them.

While in itself this does not ensure that submarines won’t be detectable, it would mean that any new stealth technologies that enable the vessel to blend into its background in all the signature domains relevant to detection are well served with computing power.

While swarming unmanned vehicles could threaten submarine operations, it is also possible that friendly swarms could support them, helping the submarine to remain hidden by acting as jammers and decoys, driving hostile vehicles away or even destroying them.

The CSBA’s report is more broad ranging, arguing that the U.S. superiority in undersea warfare is questionable. The organisation points to some developments that are a direct threat to the U.S. submarines and some that seem that they might take over some of their missions.

In the first category, improved torpedo seekers could enable more effective use of long-range weapons such as ballistic or cruise missiles that deliver homing torpedoes. Even if such weapons do not actually destroy a submarine, they can force it to break off its mission. CSBA points out that ASW might focus on reducing submarines’ effectiveness rather than destroying them.

In the second category come lithium ion battery and fuel cell technologies that can give AUVs endurance of a month or two, enabling them to take on some missions performed by manned submarines today.

Active Noise Cancellation

Advances in acoustic, RF and optical signal processing that are benefiting ASW operations also benefit underwater communications and to other capabilities that submarines might use, CSBA points out. Smarter acoustic algorithms and greater processing power could, for example, enable submarines to use active noise cancellation to eliminate their own radiated noise and nullify or jam active sonar.

OPPOSITE PAGE: Construction work has now started on the Successor programme for the UK’s new, nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine Photo: Crown Copyright LEFT: A low-cost, expendable UAS, Raytheon’s Coyote can perform surveillance imagery, targeting capability, realtime damage assessment.

It can operate for up to one hour and has been designed to accommodate interchangeable payloads.

Photo: Raytheon WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

OCTOBER 2016 | ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY

7

SEA SYSTEMS

The innovative Halcyon USV is a key asset of the French – UK Maritime Mine Counter Measures programme (MMCM) Photo: ASV Global

In a similar vein, the Common Very Lightweight Torpedo could be a defensive weapon for manned submarines, in the Anti-Torpedo-Torpedo (ATT) role, or as an offensive weapon for large AUVs, CSBA points out. Such weapons could be game changers.

Atlas Elektronik Canada announced signature of a co-development agreement covering the rocket motor and warhead sections of ’ SeaSpider ATT on 06 March.

Now at Technology Readiness Level 6, SeaSpider is designed to provide hard-kill defence against all torpedoes.

Manned submarines could take advantage of the advance of unmanned vehicles by becoming host platforms. This would mean relinquishing direct combat by standing off to launch and recover unmanned systems.

Preparing for Unmanned Warrior

Meanwhile, progress in cooperative employment of multiple, diverse unmanned naval systems for both surface and underwater applications continues. For example, BAE Systems announced on July 18 that, working with partners such as QinetiQ, SeeByte, ASV, Cloudnet IT Solutions and Blue Bear, its “Unmanned Capability” demonstration had shown how its planning, tasking, control and monitoring systems for unmanned vehicles might support future naval operations, while preparing for the 8

ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY | OCTOBER 2016

Royal Navy’s “Unmanned Warrior” trials planned for October.

The Unmanned Capability demonstration took place on the south coast of England, with various USVs operating in the Solent and Portsmouth Harbour.

BAE Systems’ P950 unmanned Rigid Inflatable Boat (RIB), developed in collaboration with ASV Ltd, was deployed in the Solent to counter a ‘threat boat’ that emerged from nearby Langstone Harbour. Controlled at a command centre at BAE Systems’ Maritime Integration and Support Centre (MISC), a building nine kilometers away, the RIB sent live pictures of the evolving situation back to the MISC, enabling the command team to identify the threat and send the RIB to intercept it.

The company’s Combat Management System (CMS) acted as the information hub for each of the unmanned vehicles creating a picture to support the Command Team’s decision-making, said the company. In service across the Navy’s surface fleet, the CMS was enhanced with Maritime Autonomous Platform Exploitation (MAPLE), which BAE Systems describes as an intelligent software enabler designed to allow integration of unmanned systems from multiple suppliers while minimising the number of screens and controls required.

BAE Systems and Thales, together with other industry partners and the U.K. MoD’s

Defence Science Technology Laboratory (DSTL) is involved in MAPLE, developing the architecture that will enable multiple unmanned platforms, such as unmanned air vehicles (UAV), unmanned surface vehicles (USV), and unmanned underwater vehicles (UUV), and their payloads to be managed from a single station.

MarTacNet technology was another innovation integral to the demonstration.

Developed in collaboration with Cloudnet IT Solutions, MarTacNet is described as an intelligent maritime communications network that enables high-speed communications between multiple unmanned vehicles from different suppliers. It uses part of the UHF spectrum made redundant by digital TV to provide high bandwidth links at long range.

While this demonstration involved a surface warfare application, the same principles would apply to underwater operations including ASW and mine countermeasures, and the Unmanned Warrior exercises will be broader.

Unmanned Warrior will involve around 40 companies from around the world demonstrating their systems in what is described as a tactically representative, operational environment off the U.K. coast in Welsh and Scottish waters.

Thales, for example, emphasises that the Unmanned Warrior event in October will lead the transition to unmanned WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

SEA SYSTEMS

autonomous MCM systems as well as acting as a showcase for its own Halcyon USV and Towed Synthetic Aperture Sonar (T-SAS).

Measuring 12 meter long and 3.5 meter in beam, Halcyon is a small unmanned boat, while T-SAS is a high resolution sonar designed to work at long range and relatively high speeds to enable operators to survey wide areas of sea bottom rapidly. The whole system is designed to be deployed from the Type 26 frigate under development for the Royal Navy, while the control centre can be containerised for rapid deployment ashore.

For the demonstration, plans call for Halcyon to be allocated an area of sea containing an undisclosed number of dummy mines, and the operation to detect them to be managed from a container ashore.

Unmanned Sub-Hunter Aces Trials

A vessel that could become a key element of the US Navy’s unmanned ASW capabilities passed a milestone this summer. Test contractor Leidos announced on July 25 that Sea Hunter, the technology demonstrator for the Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Anti-Submarine Warfare Continuous Trail Unmanned Vessel (ACTUV) had successfully completed its initial performance trials off San Diego, California.

A 132 ft, twin-screw trimaran, Sea Hunter met or surpassed its objectives for speed, manoeuvrability, stability, sea keeping, acceleration, deceleration and fuel consumption as well as establishing

confidence in the reliability of its mechanical systems, said Leidos.

Sea Hunter is designed to operate for months without a crew aboard and requiring only “sparse” supervisory control.

The initial tests required a human pilot to be aboard, but plans call for later tests to be unmanned.

These performance tests were the first stage of a two-year test programme sponsored by DARPA and the Office of Naval Research (ONR). Work scheduled for the coming months is to include testing of sensors, the autonomy suite, compliance with collision avoidance regulations, and proof-of-concept demonstrations for several missions. Pending the results of those tests, the ACTUV programme could transition to the Navy by 2018.

TUNA and POSYDON Networks

Besides unmanned vehicles and their control systems, new communication and navigation networks could also be transformative, with two DARPA efforts again at the forefront. These are the Tactical Undersea Network Architectures (TUNA) and the Positioning System for Deep Ocean Navigation (POSYDON) programmes.

TUNA’s first phase focused on concept and technology development in system design, small fibre-optic cable systems and buoy nodes.

On July 12 DARPA issued a Broad Area Announcement for TUNA Phase 2, the aim of which is to design, develop and

demonstrate “an integrated, end-to-end scaled network prototype to temporarily restore connectivity of an existing tactical data network in a contested environment using small diameter optical fiber and buoy relay nodes”.

This prototype TUNA system is to include an operational planning and management system, a scaled small diameter optical fibre network deployable by commercial vessels or UUVs, common interfaces to scale up the network and connect it to other systems, a Link 16 or representative capability with information assurance and a means of reconfiguration ad restoration to recover from fibre failures.

On May 16, BAE Systems announced its selection by DARPA to develop a deep ocean underwater Positioning Navigation and Timing (PNT) network in support of the POSYDON programme that frees submarines from the need to expose a mast periodically to update their inertial systems GPS fixes.

“BAE Systems has more than 40 years of experience developing underwater active and passive acoustic systems,” said Joshua Niedzwiecki, director of Sensor Processing and Exploitation at BAE Systems. “We’ll use this same technology to revolutionize undersea navigation for the POSYDON program, by selecting and demonstrating acoustic underwater GPS sources and corresponding small-form factor receivers.”

While it is premature to herald the death of the manned submarine, underwater warfare is certainly undergoing an epochmaking transformation.

BAE Systems is working with the U.S. DARPA to support a programme called the Positioning System for Deep Ocean Navigation (POSYDON), which aims to allow undersea vehicles to accurately navigate while remaining below the ocean’s surface. It will replace current navigational methods, which require underwater vehicles to surface periodically to access GPS signals Photo: BAE Systems WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

OCTOBER 2016 | ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY

9

SEA SYSTEMS

Maritime Might

New acquisitions are driving maritime capability

By Atul Chandra

Countries in the Asia-Pacific region have continued to invest in improving their maritime surveillance and strike capability in the face of increasingly sophisticated surface and sub-surface threats. A well-equipped and trained maritime aviation capability is vital, if a nation is to ensure freedom of the seas and protection for its own shipping. Maritime airpower can undertake a broad range of missions, from destruction of an enemy’s land infrastructure and interdiction of enemy maritime and oceanic sea lines of communication, while at the same time being indispensable during amphibious landings, repelling enemy landings, and fulfilling other missions. While countries like India and Australia, have recently inducted and operationalized major new maritime aviation assets, nations like Pakistan, Vietnam and Indonesia are looking to further augment or upgrade their existing maritime aviation assets.

The Indian Navy is the sole operator of 10

ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY | OCTOBER 2016

the MiG 29K in the region and currently 16 of the heavily armed twin-engine type are now deployed on its sole aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya. The remaining MiG-29Ks are currently based at INS Hansa in Dabolim, Goa, as they await the entry into service of the indigenously built aircraft carrier INS Vikrant, a few years hence. Indian has placed orders for 45 MiG-29Ks (37 single-seaters and eight twin-seaters). Only a handful of aircraft now remain to be delivered, from the follow on order for 29 aircraft that was placed in 2010. The first order for 16 jets was placed in 2004. Unfortunately for the Indian Navy, which had carefully customised its MiG-29Ks, serviceability of what is currently, its only carrier based fighter has been poor. According to Navy officials, steps are being taken to increase the serviceability rates of the twin-engine type and attributed the poor serviceability to “Initial teething troubles with a new type.” According to India’s comptroller and auditor general (CAG), “Serviceability of

MiG29K was unsatisfactory, ranging from 15.93 per cent to 37.63 per cent. However, the serviceability of the MiG 29KUB, i.e., trainer aircraft was comparatively better, ranging from 21.30 per cent to 47.14 per cent.” Worryingly, the recent CAG report observed that as of December 2014, the reliability of the fly by wire (FBW) system on the MIG29K/KUB aircraft, “was very poor, ranging from 3.5 per cent to 7.5 per cent between 01 July 2012 and 30 June 2014…” RAC has been making efforts to improve the reliability of the systems.

Surprisingly, the RD-33MK engines fitted on the MiG29K/KUB, which are considered a considerable improvement over the RD33 have also proved troublesome. India had placed orders for a total of 113 RD33MK engines (90 installed on aircraft and 23 spares). The engines were supposed to have a service life of 10 years/4,000 hours with an overhaul life of 1000 hours.

According to the recent CAG report, a total of 46 engines has been withdrawn WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

SEA SYSTEMS

from service/rejected (as of August 2015).

Since induction of the MiG-29K in February 2010, 40 engines (representing 62 per cent of 65 engines delivered at the time) have been withdrawn from service/rejected due to design related defects/deficiencies. “The issue had serious flight safety implications, since in-flight engine defects had led to ten cases of single engine landings.” The MiG29K is a relatively new carrier borne fighter type; RAC MiG had successfully completed carrier demonstration trials from the Russian carrier Kuznetsov in September 2009 and the first deck landing of a MiG29K/KUB on the decks of Admiral Gorshkov was undertaken at Russia in July 2012.

Australia has had a busy year when it comes to maritime airborne acquisitions. An important milestone was achieved with the roll-out of the first P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) on September 27. The first aircraft is due to arrive in Australia on November 15 and Boeing deliveries of the remaining 11 aircraft are to be concluded

by March 2020. According to the RAAF, its first eight P-8As are slated to achieve Initial Operational Capability (IOC) during 20172020. Training of aircrew and maintenance teams, commenced earlier in April and the first cadre of three maintenance teams and three aircrews are expected to graduate in November 2016, to align with the first aircraft delivery.

The P-8A is Australia’s future maritime patrol aircraft and will replace the AP-3C Orion’s, which are to be retired in 2018-19.

Australia will also be the first country in the Asia-Pacific region to jointly have a mannedunmanned maritime reconnaissance capability, as its P-8As will operate alongside MQ-4C Triton Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAS), in the future. The primary role for the RAAF’s P-8As will be tracking and responding to naval surface and submarine threats, surveillance and reconnaissance, and assisting in search and rescue (SAR) operations. RAAF P-8As will have an extensive communications suite that includes radios and data links across the VHF, UHF, HF and SATCOM spectrums.

The acoustic detection system will have a processing capacity that is four times that of the AP-3C Orion.

The P-8A will be able to conduct low level anti-submarine warfare missions at a distances greater than 2,000 km from base and will be compatible for air-to-air refueling with the KC-30A MRTT. With Australia’s Government having committed to acquire a total of 15 P-8A Poseidon’s, it is expected orders for the three additional aircraft will be placed at a later date. Home base for Australia’s P-8A Poseidon’s will be RAAF Base Edinburgh, which is also where the AP-3C Orion’s are based.

Marking the completion of a quantum leap in its rotary aviation capability, the

ABOVE: Indian MiG29K carrier borne strike aircraft have suffered poor serviceability levels associated with the teething troubles of inducting a new type into service Photo: Indian Navy RIGHT: Initial Operational Capability (IOC) for the first eight Royal Australian Air Force P-8A Poseidon’s is slated to be achieved during 2017-2020 Photo: Commonwealth of Australia WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

OCTOBER 2016 | ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY

11

SEA SYSTEMS

Royal Australian Navy (RAN) also recently took delivery of the last of 24 Sikorsky Sea Hawk MH-60R “Romeo” helicopters it had on order. All aircraft were delivered on budget and ahead of schedule. Australia was the first international customer for the MH-60R, which was acquired as part of the Defence’ AIR9000 Phase 8 programme.

The new MH-60Rs are replacing the RAN’s fleet of 16 Sikorsky S-70B-2 Seahawk ‘Classic’ helicopters that undertake antisurface/anti-submarine warfare missions.

The Seahawks were acquired in 1989 and are to be retired by 2018. According to Australia’s Department of Defence, “The Seahawk Romeo aircraft have a higher security classification than other current aircraft…. The machine is largely, in fact, almost entirely, identical to that which is operated by the United States. As such it has certain obligations on Australia to observe the security requirements of protecting that machine and what is in it.” The Seahawk Romeo capability has advanced anti-submarine warfare and anti-surface capabilities as a result of its sophisticated sensor suite, torpedoes and air-to-surface missiles. The new type also led the induction of the new U.S. Mk54 lightweight torpedo into RAN service (it will also be carried by the P-8As), which is a substantial advance over the Mk 46 currently used by the S-70B and AP-3C aircraft. Seahawk Romeo’s also carry the AGM-114 Hellfire air-to-surface missile. The RAN has already formed three

embarked flights, with a fourth MH-60R embarked flight to be operational before the end of the year. Acquired at a cost of US$ 3 billion, the 24 helicopters will afford the RAN with the capability to provide at least eight warships with a combat helicopter at the same time (including Anzac Class frigates and the new Air Warfare Destroyers). The remaining helicopters will be based at HMAS Albatross in Nowra, New South Wales, where they will be used for training purposes and undergo maintenance related activities. In addition to its primary ASW role, The MH-60 ‘Romeo’ also adds multimission and multi-target precision strike capabilities to the RAN helicopter fleet and will be easier to maintain and generate ontarmac availability compared to the ageing Seahawks. According to Defence, “The Seahawk is an ageing aircraft with a number of mission system related obsolescence issues under careful management.” The new-generation, multi-role MH-60R can also be used by the RAN for secondary missions such as search and rescue, vertical replenishment, naval surface fire support, logistics support, personnel transport, medical evacuation, and VHF/UHF/link communication relay.

In terms of popularity, the Sukhoi Su27/30 Flanker Family are in widespread use in the region and its combination of an appealing price tag, large range and weapons load has seen the air forces of India, China, Vietnam, Indonesia and

Malaysia become operators of the type.

Of particular interest to the air forces of Vietnam and Malaysia will be the option in the future to procure the air-launched version of India’s Brahmos supersonic cruise missile. BrahMos Aerospace, a joint venture between India’s Defense Research and Development Organization and Russia’s NPO Mashinostroyenia, is expected to undertake the maiden test fire of the 2.5 tonne Brahmos-A, air launched cruise missile from a Su-30 MKI aircraft towards the end of the year. The Indian air force (IAF) will modify 40 of its Su-30 MKIs into a configuration capable of carrying the Brahmos-A, and a certain number of aircraft are expected to be used in the maritime strike role. The BrahMos missile has three existing land and naval variants: Block-I (anti-ship), Block -II (land to land) and Block-III (with steep dive capabilities for mountain warfare). Vietnam has already expressed its interest in acquiring the shiplaunched version of the Brahmos, which has a range of just under 300km and hurtles towards a target at a speed of 3000kmph.

Vietnam which already operates the Su30 MK2 is also reportedly interested in acquiring the Su-35. According to media sources, by the end of the year, Vietnam will have approximately 36 Su-30 MK2s in operational service. The aircraft were ordered in batches across 2003, 2009, 2010 and 2013. Vietnam also operates approximately 12 27SK/Su-27UBK fighters.

The Royal Australian Navy’s new Sikorsky MH-60R ‘Romeo’ helicopters represent a quantum leap in the RAN’s rotary wing ASW capability, as also precision strike capability against surface or land targets.

The aircraft is pictured here with its crew and AGM-114 Hellfire air-to-surface missiles are visible Photo: Commonwealth of Australia

12

ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY | OCTOBER 2016

WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

SEA SYSTEMS

Malaysia has a partnership with India for spares and maintenance support for its fleet of 18 Su-30 MKMs, deliveries of which were concluded in 2011.

Pakistan is seeking to further augment is maritime surveillance assets and is now looking to acquire a single PT Dirgantara Indonesia (PTDI or Persero) CN235220 Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPA). The Indonesian airframer announced the interest in the acquisition of a single aircraft, during the recent visit of a senior delegation from the Pakistan Armed Forces. Future requirements for the type could also arise from the Pakistan Army and Air Force. The country is already an existing operator of the type; four aircraft are operated in the military transport and VIP transport role.

Pakistan has been offered the latest version of the CN235-220, which can undertake maritime surveillance and patrol along with anti-submarine warfare. The aircraft can accommodate 4 mission consoles and is equipped with FLIR (Forward Looking WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

Infrared) to detect and classify targets, as also to record the surrounding airspace situation for evaluation missions. Persero’s new generation CN235-220 offers increased maximum weight, a more modern avionics system with a full glass cockpit, autopilot, radar detector, etc. Indonesia is also upgrading her own maritime surveillance platforms and in 2015 announced that Leonardo (Selex ES at the time) had been selected to provide the SAGE electronic warfare system for fitment on Indonesian Air Force CN-235 aircraft. Under the contract with Indonesia, SAGE will be integrated by prime contractor Integrated Surveillance and Defense Inc onto an Indonesian Air Force CN-235 aircraft and will be used by the Air Force for maritime patrol missions.

According a company spokesperson, “The system is drawing attention in the region for its ESM capability that borders on ELINT, passively collecting emitter data from RF sources and then identifying and geolocating any threats to an aircraft.” This is

the first time that the SAGE ESM has been chosen for a fixed-wing maritime patrol requirement and it has previously been in use with the UK MoD and has also been provided to the Republic of Korea as part of a package of electronic warfare equipment for the country’s Maritime Operational Helicopter (MOH) programme.

Pakistan has expressed interest in the acquisition of a sole CN-235-220 from PT Dirgantara Indonesia (PTDI or Persero). The Indonesian air force is also in the midst of upgrading its CN-235s Leonardo SAGE ESM systems for maritime patrol missions Photo: Leonardo OCTOBER 2016 | ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY

13

SEA SYSTEMS

Roboship Boom

As robotic weapons are revolutionising warfare, the future of maritime operations may be with autonomous naval vessels

By Jay Menon Unmanned or autonomous vessels have passed through the trial and evaluation stage and are now being adopted for civilian and military applications. Over the next decade, the maritime sector is likely to see these robot vessels navigating the open seas along with cruise ships and shrimp boats. Israeli firm Rafael Advanced Defense Systems developed one of the earliest successful unmanned systems with its remotely-controlled, offense-capable Protector Unmanned Surface Vessel, first deployed with the Republic of Singapore

14

ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY | OCTOBER 2016

Navy in 2005. Pentagon’s top defense tech innovator Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), very recently pulled back the veil on its revolutionary ship, dubbed Anti-Submarine Warfare Continuous Trail Unmanned Vessel, or ACTUV. The 132-foot twin-screw trimaran autonomous submarine-tracking ocean vessel, named “Sea Hunter”, is designed to travel thousands of miles over the open seas for months at a time without any crew members on board. The robotic ship – the first in a new class of ocean-going vessels

– features a composite hull and foam core with GFRP skin. “Several navies across the world, including ours, have experimented with smaller unmanned surface vehicles,” says Scott Littlefield, program manager in DARPA’s tactical technology office.

“The difference here is two-fold: One is the size of the vessel, which allows it to go greater distances directly from a pier and not be launched from another ship.

The second is the high level of autonomy we are striving for.” The Sea Hunter was developed under DARPA’s Anti-Submarine

WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

SEA SYSTEMS

OPPOSITE BOTTOM: DARPA’s ‘Sea Hunter’ is an autonomous ocean going unmanned vessel, that was primarily developed to track submarines. The programme is also expected to result in the development of advanced sensors for the task

by DARPA and the U.S. Office of Naval Research Photo: DARPA RIGHT: Rolls-Royce has unveiled a concept that features a fleet of self-driving drone ships.

Sensor arrays that will help steer autonomous vessels are already being tested by the company Photo: Rolls-Royce

Warfare Continuous Trail Unmanned Vessel programme in conjunction with the Office of Naval Research (ONR). The vessel was basically built to perform a submarine track-and-trail mission. “One thing we are working on in the near-term is an advanced minesweeping system that incorporates technology developed by the ONR. That system is likely to be tested in 2017.

Also, since the vessel is larger than other unmanned vehicles and can carry a greater payload, the ACTUV can be used for other possible missions,” says Littlefield. The ACTUV system has sensor technologies that can track even the quietest submarine targets over their entire operating envelope.

“While the ACTUV programme is focused on demonstrating the ASW tracking capability in this configuration, the core platform and autonomy technologies are broadly extendable to underpin a wide range of missions and configurations for future unmanned naval vessels,” he adds.

The ACTUV programme is structured to help explore the performance potential of a surface platform conceived from concept to field demonstration under the premise that a human is never intended to step aboard at any point in its operating cycle. “The objective is to generate a vessel design that exceeds state-of-the art platform performance to provide propulsive overmatch against diesel electric submarines at a fraction of their size and cost,” says Littlefield. Raytheon Company provides its latest Modular Scalable Sonar WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

System (MS3), the fifth-generation hullmounted sonar system, for the ACTUV programme. The U.S.-based company has completed delivery recently.

Israel’s USVs

The Israel Navy is also planning to deploy a new generation of unmanned surface vessels (USVs) based on U.S.-built combat craft and remote-control technologies and subsystems developed by state-owned Rafael. The Seagull Unmanned Surface Vessel, constructed by Israel’s Elbit Systems, is also expected to enter service in the Israeli Navy. The Seagull recently held its first torpedo launch test at Haifa port, making it the first unmanned sea platform capable of firing torpedoes.

The Seagull is designed to shield high-value assets from underwater threats, including submarine assaults and water mines. “The test highlighted Seagull’s unique capacity to detect and engage submarines, in addition to its ability to detect and destroy sea mines,” says Ofer Ben-Dov, Vice President of Naval Systems Business Line at Elbit Systems.

Describing the technology as a “revolution”, he says, “We are witnessing the proliferation of submarines, both conventional and nuclear, and sea mines. The cost and risk of dealing with these threats are high.” Costly task forces, made up of sonar planes and helicopters, or frigates that cost hundreds of millions of dollars to build and operate, have traditionally been used to detect and neutralize such threats. A submarine’s advantage lies in its covert presence, and

radars are ineffective in discovering it, he says. Seagull, which costs only tens of million dollars “changes the balance of power between defender and submarine. “This is a robotic boat that sends other robots into the water,” he adds. Once a threat is confirmed, the USV will launch a wire-guided torpedo that receives sonar guidance data from the USV. As it closes in on the target, it switches on its own electro-optic camera for the approach; when very near the target, it detonates itself. The two-vessel format enables Seagull to be fitted with payloads for antisubmarine warfare, countermining (including floating mines, which can be shot and blown up), sea and port security missions, or electronic warfare missions.

The Seagull “becomes an asymmetrical advantage for those who use it” against submarines and sea mines. Israel fears that with the defence establishment securing the country’s air and sea spaces against enemy threats, hostile states and terrorist organizations could seek the underwater arena as the next place to try to mine ports and launch attacks. During the 2014 edition of Euronaval International Naval Defense and Maritime Exhibition, Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) had showcased a manned/ unmanned patrol boat for homeland security and other applications. The vessel Katana can operate autonomously through the use of an advanced command-andcontrol station or controlled by personnel on board. IAI says the vessel has multiple uses, including detecting and tracking ships and OCTOBER 2016 | ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY

15

SEA SYSTEMS

RIGHT: Israel Aerospace Industries’ (IAI) KATANA USV can be used for tasks such as harbour security, patrol of shallow coastal and territorial waters, surface and electronic warfare and offshore platform protection (plus oil rigs, pipelines, and more) Photo: Israel Aerospace Industries’ (IAI) OPPOSITE BOTTOM: The Royal Navy’s Maritime Autonomy Surface Testbed (MAST) is a USV based on the innovative Bladerunner hull shape. Pictured here undergoing trials in the tidal Thames Photo: Royal Navy

boats, protecting exclusive economic zones, harbour security, patrol of shallow coastal and territorial waters, surface and electronic warfare, and offshore platform protection.

IAI describes the Katana as a combat marine system. It is fitted with advanced communications systems, weapons systems, and sensor payloads.

BAE’s Unmanned Boat

Unmanned technology with the potential to change the face of naval operations within a decade has successfully been demonstrated

by BAE Systems in partnership with unmanned and autonomous specialist ASV. The new system will allow crews to carry out vital tasks such as high speed reconnaissance and remote surveillance while keeping sailors out of harm’s way. The modified boat is capable of operating autonomously for up to 12 hours at a time on either a preplanned route or via remote control. It can reach speeds in excess of 38 knots (44 miles per hour), providing unique ship-launched manoeuvrability and enhanced situational awareness to support the decision-making of its operators. The technology is designed to be fitted to the Rigid Inflatable Boats (RIBs) like those already used extensively

by Britain’s Royal Navy. “This technology delivers an extremely robust and fastmoving unmanned boat that is able to perform a number of surveillance and 16

ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY | OCTOBER 2016

reconnaissance roles, even when operating at high speed or in choppy water,” says Les Gregory, Product and Training Services Director at BAE Systems.

The unmanned system and software algorithms controlling the boat were provided by Portchester-based unmanned and autonomous specialist, ASV. BAE Systems has been working closely with ASV to integrate the technology and prove the concept through the demonstrator. The next stage in its development is to create the sensor suite before ensuring a seamless integration with the combat management system on the parent ship. Dan Hook, Managing Director for ASV says, “The algorithms we’re developing with BAE Systems allow the boat to perform complex missions and navigate through waters avoiding collisions. “This gives it the flexibility and sophistication to operate in a number of different tactical roles, whether it’s patrolling areas of interest, providing surveillance and reconnaissance ahead of manned missions, or protecting larger ships in the fleet.”

The boats will be able to operate up to 40km away from their parent ship. As well as being completely autonomous they can also be remote-controlled by crew on land, from the ship via a hand-held controller or piloted as usual. The technology is designed as a retrofit to the manned Pacific 24 RIB already deployed across Type 23 Frigates

and Type 45 Destroyers. These boats will also go on to the Royal Navy’s Queen Elizabeth Class aircraft carriers once they enter service.

MAST Trial

The Royal Navy’s Maritime Autonomy Surface Testbed (MAST) underwent trials for a range of autonomous technologies and systems that the U.K. Ministry of Defence is exploring. Again developed by the Portchester-based ASV with funding from the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL), the 32ft unmanned surface vessel uses the Bladerunner hull shape. “This is a chance to take a great leap forward in maritime systems. The growing scale of Unmanned Warrior is a clear demonstration of the Royal Navy’s ambition to lead and win through technological innovation,” says Britain’s Admiral Sir Philip Jones, First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff. MAST is able to operate autonomously in an unmanned mode, sensing and avoiding other vessels in its vicinity. Avoidance algorithms are designed to comply with internationally mandated collision regulations, but when operating on a busy waterway – such the Thames – a coxswain is on board ready to take control if necessary. Its primary function is surveillance and reconnaissance, and it does not carry weapons.

WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

SEA SYSTEMS

Germany Gets USV

Earlier this year, Germany received a multirole unmanned surface vessel from Atlas Elektronik UK for assessment for use in antimine operations. The company, a subsidiary of Germany’s Atlas Elektronik GmbH, said the ARCIMS was delivered to the German Naval Technical Center at Eckernfoerde Naval Base. The ARCIMS USV is an 11m platform with a large open deck space and a 4 tonne payload capacity. It has been specifically designed for unmanned military applications with a shock resistant hull and a low platform underwater signature. The high tow performance across a wide speed range assists minesweeping and towed sonar operations. The cathedral hull and twin jet propulsion provides a manoeuvrable yet stable platform with a top speed of over 40 knots, says Head of Surface Ships division at AEUK, James Young. The German Navy has a requirement to assess the use of unmanned mine countermeasure (MCM) systems.

WTD71, the Bundeswehr Technical Centre for Ships and Naval Weapons, is responsible for the development and evaluation of such equipment from pre-phase to service use. The USV is part of the ARCIMS

WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

Mission System that includes a range of reconfigurable Mission Modules to deliver MCM and Hydrographic operations, ASW, Maritime Security and Force Protection.

“The ARCIMS USV can be operated remotely, autonomously or as a manned platform and offers the flexibility to test and evaluate a range sweep equipment as well as the deployment of off-board payloads.

This procurement will help WTD71 to develop their next generation unmanned minesweeping and mine hunting solutions including the evaluation of the ARCIMS USV itself as a candidate platform,” Young adds. In 2015, Atlas Elektronik UK was awarded a contract by the U.K. Ministry of Defence to supply the Royal Navy with an Autonomous Minesweeping Capability.

Currently, ARCIMS is being integrated with the Northrop Grumman Corporation AQS-24B Synthetic Aperture Sonar (SAS).

It is the only operationally proven, high speed towed mine hunting system in the world that can be deployed from airborne and surface platforms. ARCIMS has high tow performance across a wide speed range, making integration easy. Integration testing of ARCIMS and AQS-24B, including remote launch and recovery of the towed

sonar, are being conducted at the AEUK Bincleaves waterside facilities at Portland Harbour. ARCIMS is reconfigurable with modular payloads for MCM, Hydrography, Coastal ASW, Maritime Security and Force Protection. The ARCIMS USV can operate remotely, autonomously or as a manned vessel. ARCIMS has proven USV capabilities, with two contracts received from international navies since 2015.

“Due to this increase in demand, we are ramping up our production capacity, and are currently fitting out the sixth ARCIMS at our dedicated Integration Facilities at Winfrith in Dorset,” Young says.

Underwater Vehicle from General Dynamics

As recently as in September this year, General Dynamics successfully launched an autonomous underwater vehicle as part of a U.S. Navy-sponsored capability exercise. In several demonstrations, the Bluefin SandShark mini-AUVs launched by the heavy-weight Bluefin-21 surfaced and then transferred data and target imagery they had received from the larger vessel to a Blackwing unmanned aerial vehicle. That UAV then relayed the information back to a

OCTOBER 2016 | ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY

17

SEA SYSTEMS

Elbit Systems recently conducted the first torpedo launch test at Haifa port with its Seagull USV, making it the first unmanned sea platform to undertake a torpedo firing.

The Seagull USV is expected to enter service with the Israeli Navy Photo: Elbit Systems

18

ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY | OCTOBER 2016

submarine combat control system ashore for decision-making authority and subsequent command of Bluefin SandShark M-AUVs. “Our successful ANTX demonstrations showed that unmanned vehicles can deliver capabilities across the undersea and air operating domains,” says Tracy Howard, a senior manager for Autonomous Undersea Vehicles for General Dynamics Mission Systems. “This system of systems approach leverages Bluefin-21’s larger payload delivery, longer endurance and superior navigation capabilities to deliver smaller payloads such as autonomous underwater vehicles or unmanned aerial vehicles and sensors, providing the Navy with additional mission capabilities,” Howard adds. The Bluefin-21 AUV is modular and designed with the flexibility to carry and launch a variety of AUVs in configurations that include M-AUVs, larger AUVs, and unmanned aerial vehicles. It can be reconfigured for multiple missions with varying payloads including intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance sensors and communications nodes to expand maritime network communications.

Raytheon’s AN/AQS-20A

Meanwhile, U.S.-based Raytheon Company and the Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC) – Division Newport have enhanced Raytheon’s AN/AQS-20A minehunting sonar for better performance and reliability, including higher-quality imaging of objects deep under the sea, improving the system’s ability to identify and classify mines.

Raytheon and NUWC formally launched the AN/AQS-20A collaboration last year, under a ‘work for private party’ contract funded

by Raytheon. Improvements in both system performance and image quality resulted from the strong working partnership of this Rhode Island-based, governmentindustry team of experts. Tested at sea, the system’s optimized sonars captured images of the ocean floor with enough clarity to see the contents of lobster pots. “Together with NUWC, we’ve applied our collective expertise to enhance this critical undersea warfare technology – and we’ve achieved outstanding results,” says Paul Ferraro, vice president of Raytheon Integrated Defense Systems’ Seapower Capability Systems. “Building on the system’s proven performance, we’ve increased its ability to

WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

SEA SYSTEMS

already being tested in a range of weather conditions in Finland and Rolls-Royce has created an early version of the ship control simulation to test how the system might work in reality.

Market Forecast

Analysts with the firm Research and Markets have forecast six per cent growth over five years in the market for autonomous naval vessels, driven by military expansion, the increasing use of off-the-shelf components and research spending by government agencies like America’s DARPA. American investment in the new technology is expected to account for about 40 per cent of the market. The firm forecasts that the leading contractors in the field will be Atlas Elektronik, BAE Systems, General Dynamics, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Raytheon. Sea-based robots cannot fill the gap completely, but they can fill important missions and add new capabilities to confound potential adversaries. With autonomous systems highlighted as one of the most significant technologies for the future, this current crop of small unmanned vessels are only the tip of the iceberg for the maritime sector, writes John Haynes, an Associate Fellow of the Nautical Institute, a Yachtmaster Ocean and Advanced Powerboat Instructor.

go further and see objects more clearly – critical abilities for the Navy’s mine warfare mission.” AN/AQS-20A is the only minehunting sonar currently in production for the U.S. Navy and the only system certified for deployment from the Navy’s Littoral Combat Ships, as the primary sensor for mine countermeasure missions. The system demonstrated solid performance throughout a recent Technical Evaluation, conducted by the Navy, where AN/AQS20A performed as designed and exceeded reliability and operational availability requirements. Tests show that the robot boat could execute a difficult military mission without violating the maritime laws outlined in the Convention on the International Regulations for Preventing WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

Collisions at Sea. They also reveal that the big floating robots can, indeed, navigate the open seas along with cruise ships and shrimp boats.

Rolls-Royce Vision

Rolls-Royce in June presented a vision of the future at the 2016 Autonomous Ship Technology Symposium in Amsterdam, where it unveiled a concept fleet of selfdriving drone ships, which could be launched by 2020. The company’s vice president of marine innovation, Oskar Levander, says, “This is happening. It’s not if, it’s when. The technologies needed to make remote and autonomous ships a reality exist.” Sensor arrays that could be used to help steer autonomous vessels are

TOP: A next generation unmanned Mine Counter Measures (MCM) solution, the ARCIMS system from ATLAS ELEKTRONIK is a 11m USV platform, that is capable of being deployed and operated from the shore, from a surface ship and even hosted on a mine countermeasures vessel.

Photo: ATLAS ELEKTRONIK MIDDLE: Currently the only mine hunting sonar that is in production for the U.S. Navy, Raytheon’s AN/AQS-20A is also the only system certified for deployment from the U.S. Navy’s Littoral Combat Ships, as the primary sensor for mine countermeasure missions.

Photo: Raytheon OCTOBER 2016 | ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY

19

SEA SYSTEMS

Assault from the Sea

The US Navy operates the largest and most capable amphibious force in the world, but its allies in the AsiaPacific region are enhancing their amphibious capabilities

By Ian Kemp “With the increasing concentration of the world’s population in littoral areas, the ability to operate simultaneously on the sea, ashore, in the air, and to move seamlessly between these three domains is critical,” Lieutenant General Robert Walsh, Deputy Commandant Combat Development and Integration, and Commanding General, Marine Corps Combat Development Command, told the Senate Armed Services Committee in April 2016. “Amphibious forces, a combination of Marine Air-Ground Task Forces (MAGTFs) and Navy amphibious ships, remain a uniquely critical and capable component of both crisis response and meeting our 20

ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY | OCTOBER 2016

maritime responsibilities.

Operating as a team, amphibious forces provide operational reach and agility; they provide decision space for our national leaders in times of crisis; and they bolster diplomatic initiatives by means of their credible forward presence. Amphibious forces also provide the nation with assured access for the joint force in a major contingency operation. No other force possesses the flexibility to provide these capabilities and yet sustain itself logistically for significant periods of time.”

The U.S. Navy (USN) and US Marine Corps (USMC) have determined that to meet their amphibious lift requirement

they require 38 amphibious ships but acknowledge that budgetary constraints will limit the number of ships to 34. For operational planning it is assumed that a minimum of 30 operationally available ships are require to deliver an assault force of two complete Marine Expeditionary Brigades. This would require a force made up of ten Landing Helicopter Dock (LHD) and Landing Helicopter Assault (LHA) ships, ten Landing Platform Dock (LPD) ships and ten Landing Ship Dock (LSD) ships. At the end of Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 the navy’s amphibious force structure will be 32 ships - 9 LHD/LHAs, 11 LPDs, and 12 LSDs – which is planned to increase to 34 WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

SEA SYSTEMS

LEFT: The Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group, including three amphibious assault ships USS Makin Island (LHD 8), USS Comstock (LSD 45), and USS Somerset (LPD 25), train off the coast of California in September 2016 in preparation for deployment Photo: USN RIGHT: HMAS Adelaide is manoeuvred towards her berth at Fleet Base East Garden Island near sister ship, HMAS Canberra Photo: © Commonwealth of Australia

ships throughout the 2020s and 2030s.

An Amphibious Ready Group (ARG) ideally consists of three amphibious ships – an LHD, an LSD, and an LPD – with a Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) of about 2,500 personnel embarked and accompanying ships to provide protection and logistics support. Usually an ARG is deployed in the Pacific Ocean, a second in the Mediterranean/Red Sea region, and a third in the Persian Gulf/Arabian Sea. On 12 September 2016, for example, the Boxer ARG, with the 13th MEU embarked, returned to its homeport of San Diego, California following a seven-month deployment during which it conducted 19 exercises and seven operations with coalition and partner nations across the Indo-Asia Pacific, Southwest Asia, and the Horn of Africa.

The Ingalls Shipbuilding Division of Huntington Ingalls Industries delivered the USS America (LHA 6), the first Americaclass amphibious assault ship, in April 2014 and the second ship, USS Tripoli (LHA 7), is under construction at the company’s Pascagoula, Mississippi shipyard and is expected to join the fleet in 2018.

The two ships, commonly referred to as Flight 0 ships, are a further development of the USS Makin Island (LHD-8), the last of eight Wasp-class amphibious assault ships built by Ingalls from 1985-2009. Optimised for aviation capability key differences WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

from the Makin Island include: removal of the well deck, an enlarged hangar deck, enhanced aviation maintenance facilities, increased aviation fuel capacity, additional aviation storerooms, and an electronically reconfigurable C4ISR suite. Operated by a crew 1,059 the 44,449 ton ships carry 1,687 marines plus another 184 in ‘surge’ operations. A typical Marine air group could include 12 MV-22B Osprey tiltrotor transports, seven AH-1Z attack and/ or UH-1Y utility helicopters, six F-35B Lightning II short take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) fighters, four CH-53K King Stallion heavy transport helicopters, and two Navy MH-60S helicopters for airsea rescue and utility missions.

On 30 June US Naval Sea Systems Command awarded Ingalls a fixed-price incentive firm (FPIF) contract worth $272.5 million for planning, advanced engineering, and procurement of long-lead items for LHA-8 which will be the first Flight I ship. The ship will incorporate a well deck to increase operational flexibility and a smaller island to increase flight deck space.

Construction is funded in the FY2017 and FY 2018 budget with delivery planned for FY 2024.

Ingalls is also building the San Antonioclass of LPDs for the USN with 12 ships funded. The first of class, USS San Antonio, was delivered to the navy in July 2005 and has since been joined by LPDs 18-26) with

latest, the USS John P. Murtha (LPD 26) delivered in May 2016. Ingalls is currently building the future USS Portland (LPD 27), scheduled to be delivered in 2017. The 25,300 ton ships are operated by a crew of 377 and embark a landing force of 699 marines which can be surged to 800. The ships can carry two air-cushioned landing craft (LCAC) and have flight decks large enough to launch or land two MV-22B simultaneously.

In December 2015 Ingalls was awarded a contract for long lead time material to support detailed design and construction of the 12th San Antonio-class ship which will be named USS Fort Lauderdale (LPD 28). According to the navy “LPD 28 will possess all of the key fundamental capabilities and characteristics associated with LPDs 17 through 27, to include command and control, aviation operations and maintenance, well deck operations, and medical and will also incorporate system updates due to obsolescence. LPD 28’s design and construction features will, at the same time, exploit many of the ongoing LX(R) design innovations and cost reduction initiatives that are necessary for the program to achieve affordability goals while maintaining the high level capabilities of the LPD 17-class.”

The next generation LSD, known as LX(R), is planned to replace two LSD classes: the eight-strong Whidbey IslandOCTOBER 2016 | ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY

21

SEA SYSTEMS

The Japanese Maritime SelfDefense Force Osumi-Class amphibious assault ship JDS Kunisaki and two LCAC steam through the South China Sea during a photo exercise Photo: US Navy

class, led by the USS Whidbey Island (LSD41) which entered service in 1985, and the Harpers Ferry-class, led by the USS Harpers Ferry (LSD-49), in service since 1995.

The Whidbey Island-class was designed specifically to four LCACs, the largest capacity of any USN amphibious platform, and also provides docking and repair services for LCACs and for conventional landing craft. The Harpers Ferry-class operates two LCACs but features increased cargo capacity. “LX(R) is envisioned to be a flexible, multi-mission warship with capabilities that support execution of the full range of military operations,” said Vice Admiral Joseph Mulloy, Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Integration of Capabilities and Resources, in April 2016.

“The need to support disaggregated or split operations away from the Amphibious Ready Group or to deploy independently is a key driver for the design of this ship class.

LX(R) will leverage mature design using the LPD-17 hull form while balancing cost and requirements to deliver key capabilities.”

Under present plans the lead LX(R) will be commissioned in FY2025 in advance of LSD 43’s retirement in FY 2027.

New Australian Capability

BAE Systems Australia is the prime contractor for the A$3 billion project to deliver two 27,800 tonne Canberraclass LHDs and an integrated logistics support package to the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). Australia’s 2016 Defence White Paper, released on 25 February 2016, highlights the importance of the Australian Defence Force’s (ADF) improved 22

ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY | OCTOBER 2016

amphibious capability: “The Canberra Class provides the ADF with the capability to undertake a range of operations, including supporting the security of maritime South East Asia and Pacific Island Countries and addressing emergent threats in the broader Indo-Pacific region.”

The Canberra-class design is based on the ESPS Juan Carlos I built by Navantia for the Spanish Navy. The two hulls were built by the Spanish shipbuilder and then delivered to BAE Systems Australia’s Williamstown facility for fitting out. The lead ship, HMAS Canberra, was commissioned in November 2014 and HMAS Adelaide was commissioned in December 2015. Operated by 358 personnel the ship can carry 1,046 troops in standard conditions and 1,600 in overload conditions, and transport up to 110 vehicles including M1 main battle tanks on two vehicle decks. Four Navantia LCM-1E landing craft are carried in the well deck and the ship can embark up to 18 helicopters if one of the vehicle decks is used to provide hanger space. Six MRH-90 helicopters can be operated simultaneously on the flight deck or four CH-47 Chinooks.

“In addition to our amphibious role where we use our landing craft and helicopters, Adelaide is also well equipped for large scale humanitarian and disaster relief missions featuring two operating theatres, an eight bed Critical Care Unit, resuscitation, pathology, radiology, x-ray, pharmacy and dental facilities,” explained Captain Paul Mandziy, the commander of HMAS Adelaide during a port visit in August 2016. HMAS Canberra conducted its first operational

mission in February 2016 when it carried an Australian Army engineer squadron and equipment, and 50 tonnes of humanitarian supplies including food, water, and medical equipment to assist Fiji after a tropical cyclone hit the country.

Both ships are continuing their work up training. During mid-2016 Canberra participated in its first international exercise, the USN-led RIMPAC 2016 off Hawaii, during which it successfully completed flight trials with USMC CH-53 Super Stallion and MV-22 Osprey aircraft.

The two LHDs are scheduled to achieve full operational status following Exercise Talisman Sabre 2017 after which the army will assess the lessons learned by 2nd Battalion Royal Australian Regiment, which has developing amphibious doctrine and procedures, and decide how best to generate a landing force in the future.

The Mistral from France’s DCNS was other designs considered by Australia to meet its LPD requirement. The lead ship of the class, Mistral, entered service with the French Navy in February 2006 and was followed by Tonnerre in December 2006 and Dixmunde, the final ship planned for the navy, in December 2012. The navy classifies the Mistral-class as a Batiment de Projection et de Commandement (BPC, projection and command ship).

Displacing 21,500 tons, the BPC can carry 150 headquarters personnel, 450 troops for long duration missions which can be increased to 900 for shorter missions, and 60 vehicles including 13 Leclerc main battle tanks. With six helicopter landing spots the design can carry 16 heavy or up to 35 light WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

SEA SYSTEMS

helicopters, and either L-Cat roll-on/rolloff catamaran landing craft two LCACs or four conventional landing craft. Extensive automation enables the ship to be operated by a crew of only 160.

Russia signed a deal for two BPCs on 24 December 2010 but the $1.3 billion contract, which would have provided a huge boost to Russia’s amphibious capabilities, was suspended and then cancelled following the 2014 Russian annexation of the Ukraine.

In October 2015 DCNS announced that the two ships had been sold to Egypt: the first, named ENS Gamal Abdel Nasser, was handed over on 2 June 2016, and the second, ENS Anwar el-Sadat, was handed over on 16 September.

Japans Forces

Expands

Amphibious

“Japan is comprised of a little over 6,800 islands, and is surrounded by wide sea space, which includes the sixth largest Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in the world,” states the Japanese Ministry of Defence in the new white paper, Defense of Japan 2016, published in August 2016.

“In order to enable the SDF [Self-Defense Force] to land, recapture and secure without delay any remote islands that might be invaded, an amphibious rapid deployment brigade will be established.” To achieve this the Japan Ground Self-Defense

Force (JGSDF) is converting two infantry regiments to the amphibious role to allow an amphibious brigade to be formed by March 2018. “Furthermore, in order to secure capabilities for swift and largescale transportation and deployment of units, initiatives are underway to enhance rapid deployment capabilities through: the improvement of Osumi-class transport LST (Landing Ship, Tank); overseas research to review the role of multipurpose vessels; and the introduction of V-22 Ospreys.”

Although classified as LSTs by the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) the three Osumi-class ships, commissioned in 1998, 2002 and 2003, are comparable to an LSD with a well deck able to accommodate two LCACs. Operated by a 138-strong crew each ship is able to embark 330 troops. The ships were used for disaster relief following the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami off the Pacific coast of Tohoku. The ships are being upgraded to enable them to operate MV-22s and AAV7A1 amphibious assault vehicles which Japan is buying through the US government’s Foreign Military Sales program. The military attaché at the Japanese embassy in Washington, Colonel Masashi Yamamoto, said at a Center for Strategic and International Studies event in March 2016 that Japan will buy 17 MV-22 Ospreys and 52 AAV7A1s through 2018, with 9 Ospreys and 30 AAV7A1s already on order.

In March 2015 the JMSDF commissioned the 27,000 ton helicopter carrier JS Izumo, the largest warship built for Japan since the Second World War. The second and final Izumo-class ship, JS Kaga, was launched at the Japan Marine United shipyard in Yokohama on 27 August 2015 and is scheduled to be commissioned in March 2017. Although the primary mission of the new ships will be anti-submarine warfare, they will be capable of embarking 400 troops and 50 3.5 ton trucks.

Korea Building Second DokdoClass

In December 2014 Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction (HHIC) received a contract from South Korea’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) to build a Landing Platform Experimental (LPX) based on the LPH ROKS Dokdo which the company built for the Republic of Korea Navy in 2002-07. Operated by a 330-strong crew, the 18,800 ton Dokdo can carry 720 troops, and 10 tanks which are landed using the two LCAC carried in the stern dock.

With five landing spots the ship can carry up to 10 UH-60 helicopters. According to HHIC, as well as carrying troops and their equipment, the new LPX will “used in commanding maritime operations such as anti-surface warfare, anti-air warfare and anti-submarine Warfare. It is also available in government-led support activities such as disaster relief, maintenance of world peace and emergency evacuation of overseas Koreans.” The experimental designation reflects the intention to equip the ship with a ski jump to operate STOVL aircraft and other innovations to inform the planned development of two 30,000 ton light aircraft carriers to enter service by 2036. The LPX is expected to be operational by 2019.

The Republic of Korea Navy’s ROKS Dokdo, lead ship of the Dokdo-class will be joined by a second ship modified to include a ski jump Photo: HHIC WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

OCTOBER 2016 | ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY

23

SEA SYSTEMS

Making Waves

Navies in the Asia-Pacific region have shown a strong resolve to develop a home-grown warship and patrol vessel building capability

By Atul Chandra Navy’s in the Asia-Pacific region have shown a strong resolve to develop a strong home-grown warship and patrol vessel building capability. These in turn have led to growing confidence in warship design, ship-building and integration of sensors and armament. The race to equip warships with potent sensors, networking capabilities, gun and missile armament, make them far more potent than the ships that preceded them. Australia’s Air Warfare Destroyer commenced its Builder’s Sea Trials in September and the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) is now performing sea trials of their new Littoral Mission Vessels (LMVs). Earlier this year, Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Director Arati Prabhakar, gave the name ‘Sea Hunter’ for a new technology demonstration vessel developed as part 24

ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY | OCTOBER 2016

of its Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) Continuous Trail Unmanned Vessel (ACTUV) programme. The Sea Hunter is being heralded as an entirely new class of ocean-going vessel and is a future technology that could see widespread acceptance in Asia-Pacific, due to the sheer volume of stealthy diesel submarines that are in operation here.

Australia’s Air Warfare Destroyer Project

The Air Warfare Destroyer Alliance is a contract arrangement that is tasked with delivering on an Australian ship building programme aimed at developing a new family of naval warships as part of the Royal Australian Navy’s (RANs) Air Warfare Destroyer programme. One of the most complex warship projects ever undertaken

in Australia, the new generation Air Warfare Destroyers will be crucial to the RAN’s ability to provide an area air warfare capability that provides air defence for other Australian Defence Force (ADF) assets and against hostile aircraft and missiles over large areas. The ships are being designed in response to the proliferation of high-end combat aircraft and high-speed missile threats in the region, that have reduced the reaction times to an imminent air threat to the bare minimum. The programme achieved a major milestone in September, when it was announced that the ‘Builder Sea Trials’ had been successfully completed for the first destroyer of the Class, NUSHIP Hobart. Additional sea trials are now to completed by early 2017, following which the Air Warfare Destroyer Alliance is slated to deliver NUSHIP WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

SEA SYSTEMS

LEFT: The Royal Australian Navy will receive its first new generation Air Warfare Destroyer in the latter half of 2017 Photo: Air Warfare Destroyer Alliance BELOW: The RAN’s Air Warfare Destroyer is bristling with sensors and weapons that will make it the preeminent air defence warship in the region. It will also embark the RAN’s latest Sikorsky MH-60R ‘Romeo’ multi-role combat helicopter Photo: Air Warfare Destroyer Alliance

WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

Hobart to the Department of Defence in June 2017. The NUSHIP Hobart in early 2017 will undertake further trials to test and demonstrate the ship’s more advanced systems and the combat system performance. The latest trials which took place over several days at sea off the coast of South Australia, were used to demonstrate the functionality of the ship’s propulsion, manoeuvring, auxiliary, control and navigation systems. AWD Alliance General Manager Lloyd Beckett said, “This first phase of sea trials, conducted over several days in the local South Australian waters, marks the successful testing of the ship’s hull, propulsion and navigation systems. A second phase of more advanced trials will take place in early 2017 when NUSHIP Hobart trials its combat and communications systems.” The ship build started in January 2010 and the NUSHIP Hobart was officially launched in May 2015.

The integration of a number of key combat systems including the Vertical Launch System, the Australian Tactical Interface, the Aegis Combat System and four AN/ SPY-1D(V) Phased Array radars, plus

various navigation and communication systems, have already been completed. The AWD program is being delivered under an alliance-based contracting arrangement between ASC AWD Shipbuilder as the lead shipbuilder, Raytheon Australia as the mission systems integrator and the Government, represented by Defence.

The AWD Alliance is headquartered in Adelaide with industry partners located across the globe. The AWDs are being constructed in blocks at three shipyards in Australia – ASC in Adelaide, BAE Systems Australia in Melbourne, and Forgacs in Newcastle – as well as at Navantia’s shipyard in Ferrol, Spain. “Raytheon Australia is responsible for the design, delivery and integration of the AWD Combat System which comprises ten major subsystems, and more than 3,500 major pieces of combat system equipment,” said Raytheon Australia Managing Director, Michael Ward. The next two ships are Brisbane, which will be launched in December 2016 and the third destroyer Sydney, whose hull consolidation will take in August 2017.

OCTOBER 2016 | ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY

25

SEA SYSTEMS

Republic of Singapore Littoral Mission Vessel

Navy

Perhaps typical of a Navy vessel designed and developed in Singapore, the new RSN Littoral Mission Vessels (LMVs) pack quite a punch despite their small size! The first two, of what will eventually be a fleet of eight LMVs, have already been handed over to the RSN; The LMVs independence and Sovereignty will be commissioned into service in 2017. The first of the class, LMV independence, which took almost two years to build is now in the midst of its ICIT (Installation, Checkout, Integration and Testing Phase, which will be completed in mid-2017. The new ships will replace the RSN’s Fearless-Class Patrol Vessels (PVs), which were designed and built by ST Marine in the nineties. Singapore’s Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) awarded ST Marine the contract to design and build eight new LMVs for the RSN in 2013. 80m in length,

26

ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY | OCTOBER 2016

with a beam at 12m and displacement of 1,250 tonnes, the LMVs are 2.5 times larger than the ageing Fearless-class patrol vessels (PVs) and will offer far improved seakeeping capabilities, allowing for operations in higher sea state conditions. The second ship of the class LMV Sovereignty is expected to be commissioned in 2017 and all eight vessels will be fully operational by 2020. The eight new generation LMVs will replace the 11 Fearless-Class PVs, which are presently in operation with the RSN and are over two decades old. The new LMV’s also require less crew to operate (a 10 percent reduction) and with eight LMVs now having to do the work of 11 PVs, it frees up precious additional trained personnel for the RSN. The incorporation of a large mission-configurable space and modular mission capabilities mean that the new vessels can undertake a wide-variety of roles, ranging from maritime security and

mine clearing, to humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations.

Singapore’s Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA) was the overall programme manager and systems integrator for the Littoral Mission Vessel (LMV) programme. According to the DSTA, “To fulfil the RSN’s unique operational requirements, DSTA looked at what was available in the market to obtain the most cost-effective solutions. The team integrated components and systems from different manufacturers to function effectively as one integrated suite.” The integrated sensors, weapons, advanced C4 systems and a 360-degree electro-optical surveillance system, allows the new ships to quickly detect and respond to maritime threats.

The new ships feature an impressive sensor and weapon suite, which allows the LMVs to punch well above their weight.

The main sensors are; Thales NS100 3D

WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

SEA SYSTEMS

The U.S. DARPA and Office Navy Research (ONR) are presently conducting ocean tests, off the coast of California as part of the AntiSubmarine Warfare (ASW) Continuous Trail Unmanned Vessel (ACTUV) Programme Photo: DARPA

Surveillance radar, Kelvin Huges Sharpeye navigation radar, Stelop’s 360-degree allround surveillance system and Compass D electro-optic detector. The weapons fit on the ship consists of a mix of gun and missile armament; OTO Melara’s 76 mm main gun,12.7mm HITROLE gun and Rafael’s 25mm Typhoon gun system, coupled with a state-of-the-art MBDA MICA anti-air and anti-missile system. Unlike the older Fearless-class PVs, the new LMVs will be able to embark a single helicopter and also operate UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles).

DARPA’s ACTUV, essentially a large unmanned surface ship (or boat) of which the first prototype was named ‘Sea Hunter’ earlier in the year, is likely to be keenly followed by Navies in Asia due to its unique position of being the first unmanned ocean going vessel and its intended task. According to DARPA potential missions include submarine tracking and countermine activities, when the programme is handed over to the U.S. Navy by 2018 (pending results from the test phase). Speaking during the christening of the vessel, in April, Rear Admiral Robert Girrier, Director, Unmanned Warfare Systems U.S. Navy (OPNAV N99): “The unprecedented unmanned surface vessel you’re looking at right here—this heralds the look and shape of things to come. It moves our unmanned strategy forward…” The twoyear extended test phase will test a number of important new technologies and payloads WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

for the Sea Hunter; the results of which will allow the U.S. Navy to observe, understand and then decide, if it wants to transition the ACTUV into an actual acquisition program.

Sea Hunter weighs in at just under 100 tonnes without fuel (it has a 40 tonne fuel capacity) and was designed keeping in mind a 70-day mission that involved heading out of port to a designated search area, a certain amount of loiter time for performing a submarine track and trail mission, following which the unmanned vessel would return back to port. The vessel can attain speeds of upto 27 knots and is powered by two diesel engines with two separate propulsion trains. While the unmanned vessels design is certainly unusual, in that it does not have spaces inside the ship to support a permanent crew; one of the benefits that a vessel like ACTUV brings is the reduced need to build human survivability features into the ship, thereby saving on weight and complexity.

According to Scott Littlefield program manager in DARPA’s Tactical Technology Office, “Potentially, it allows you to build a smaller and less costly vessel, and also potentially put it in situations where you would not be willing to put a manned vessel,” he adds, “ACTUV isn’t exactly expendable but in an all-out war you certainly would consider it to be attritable, and it would okay to lose some of these if as part of the overall campaign that reduced the threat to your manned ships.” According to Littlefied,

the production cost of the Sea Hunter was around US$23 million and economies of scale during series production could certainly bring the costs down further. These costs however, don’t cater for programme development expenses, design and software.

“In terms of the daily cost to operate. We’ve done a cost model and we think that when you get into an operational mode with a platform like this it’s in the ballpark of US$15,000 to US$20,000 a day.”

DARPA and the Office of Naval Research had signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) In September 2014, to jointly fund an extended test phase of an ACTUV prototype.

The test phase which is now underway would test the capabilities of the vessel and several innovative payloads during open-water testing off the California coast. The name “Sea Hunter” follows in the footsteps of earlier experimental vessels from DARPA and the Navy, such as the ‘Sea Shadow’ (completed in 1985 as the first experimental stealth ship) or the more recent ‘Sea Fighter’ that was built about a decade ago by the ONR. Though very early days yet, the promise of the ACTUV programme is immediately apparent and while larger Navies in the Asia-Pacific region are likely to have similar programmes; those that haven’t, should quickly commence work on such technologies to avoid being out outmanoeuvred in future conflicts.

OCTOBER 2016 | ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY

27

SEA SYSTEMS

Jack of All Trades

The Landing Ship Dock (Helicopter)/Landing Ship Helicopter Assault (LHD(A)/LHA) have seen a boom in numbers around the world

By Francis Tusa Last century, amphibious assault shipping were signs of a navy close to the pinnacle of capabilities. Although landing ships might not have quite been as sophisticated and powerful as aircraft carriers, they came close. Amphibious shipping showed the world that your navy had offensive capabilities to take forces almost anywhere in the globe, striking across beaches when you felt like it. As such, it comes as no surprise that it was countries such as the USA (the pre-eminent example),

28

ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY | OCTOBER 2016

the U.K., France, and a handful more that actually had such capabilities.

But this exclusivity is no longer the case: since the turn of the century, close to a dozen countries have entered the landing ship market, many in Asia. And this excludes those countries - possibly an extra dozen in total - who have upgraded their capabilities from far smaller, lighter, and often secondhand Western ships, to modern assault vessels. And the growth in this market has seen one type of amphibious

ship - the Landing Ship Dock (Helicopter) see amazing popularity among those seeking to expand their capabilities.

Why an LHD(A)? Put simply, it contains a lot of capabilities within what can be a relatively small box, and can be used for a very wide variety of tasks. The key is that it combines both the well-deck/dock of an assault ship, with the deck and hangar of a helicopter carrier, so there are a minimum of two main ways of delivering effects from an LHD(A). And as both of these transport

WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

SEA SYSTEMS

LEFT: Algeria is one of the new entrants to the LHD market.

There is a military role for the ship, but disaster relief and lower level military missions are the key requirements, as is true for many other ne LHD operators OPPOSITE PAGE: The Royal Australian Navy has quadrupled its amphibious capability with the introduction into service of two Navantia-designed Canberra-class LHD(A) s. Combining a well deck for landing craft, as well as sophisticated aviation facilities, these vessels can address task right across the spectrum Photo: Australian DoD

capabilities are ones that do not necessarily require a port, the range of areas that an LHD(A) can deliver effects to is far wider.

The Military Imperative

The traditional - main? - reason why navies have bought LHD(A)s is the military one: the need to deliver marines for military operations, generally offensively, into an area without having to use ports. The U.S. Navy is, of course, the leader in this area.

With the America-class LHAs, continued ships of the San Antonio-class (although these are classified as Landing Platforms Docks, they do have embarked aviation facilities), and late models of the Waspclass, the U.S. Navy has been building ever bigger LHDs, almost all with one purpose: offensive action. The ships have seen changes, with a new emphasis on the F-35B Lightning II, the V-22, and eventually the CH-53X super-heavylift helicopter. But to be fair, at 35-45,000-tonnes, the US Navy and Marine Corps are in a different league from everyone else..! However, they provide the template that everyone else, when considering an LHD(A), opts for.

But on this basis, it is easy to see why navies such as the Australian and Japanese ones have operated amphibious shipping in the past in a “military role”, and why they have upgraded their shipping.

Australia replaced its Tobruk-class Heavy Landing Ship Logistic, a 1970s WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

design, with two Navantia-designed LHD(A)s, called the Canberra-class. The increase in capabilities is instantly evident.

On top of all of the statistics, it is worth considering that if necessary, the Canberraclass can take the F-35B vertical take-off Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter... The RAN Canberra-class is arguably a good starting point as to the popularity of the LHD(A), and the capabilities that such a design can provide for offensive operations, especially compared to the type of vessel that was operated before it. Equally, although it is “only” two thirds the size of a U.S. Navy LHD, it is less than half the cost - which is attractive to cost-conscious navies.

The Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force’s Osumi-class, although still lighter at 12,500-tonnes, have the same range f capabilities as the Canberra-class, leading to a major military role: a well deck that can take LCACs or landing craft, and can carry 8-10 helicopters, although without a dedicated hangar. Japan’s MSDF is also deploying the 25,000-tonne Izumo-class “helicopter destroyer” which can carry up to 28 aircraft, including the V-22 Osprey, including in an integral hangar, which can then work alongside the Osumi-class if necessary, providing aviation support facilities.

But the rising tensions in the NorthEast Asian area, as well as the South China Sea, has seen a rising requirement for the

military standard-type LHD(A). That the interest in both theatres is on small islands, archipelagos and the like, means that the LHD(A) has been the ship of choice for more and more navies.

Indonesia ordered 4 Makassar-class LHD ships from 2004, the Philippines two slightly larger variants in 2013, and South Korea two Dokdo-class LHD(A)s in 2005, with the possibility of more to follow. For archipelagic nations such as Indonesia or the Philippines, the threats from, primarily, China, mean that if any attacks on sovereign territory are to be met, then troops and equipment have to be transported hundreds of nautical miles to distant areas with limited infrastructure. Even South Korea has islands which it has concerns that North Korea might try to occupy, and for which a multi-purpose landing craft/ helicopter assault ship makes sense. And if, at the highest end of the spectrum, fortified Chinese reefs/islands are to be captured, then an LHD(A) is an ideal platform to achieve this with.

Disaster Support Need

In the aftermath of the 2004 Asian-Pacific tsunami, amphibious shipping was much in demand to reach remoter areas where the infrastructure had been destroyed, making flying supplies/aid in near impossible. The Singapore Navy used its Endurance-class LHDs to provide emergency supplies to OCTOBER 2016 | ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY

29

SEA SYSTEMS

parts of Indonesia and elsewhere in the region affected by the flooding. Apart from the fact that these ships can carry several thousand tonnes of supplies/vehicles, and it can also deliver those supplies via landing craft or helicopter - the Endurance-class can hangar 2-3 medium support helicopters the ship can also provide extra vital support for these assets. Amphibious/LHD-like assets were all rushed to the area from over a dozen navies in the aftermath, all able to deliver multi-role, multi-spectrum relief to devastated areas.

Looking at what the Endurance-class LHDs provided: For example, the electrical power generation of these vessels was used to provide some onshore power for emergency medical facilities, and other vital infrastructure that had been affected by the tsunami. Then, the existing medical facilities on-board could be used for critical cases, and containerised medical units could add capability to coping with the huge number of casualties. And as amphibious shipping has to be able to produce its own drinkable water to supply its own crew and embarked marines, so

30

ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY | OCTOBER 2016

this type of facility can then be used to produce potable water for disaster relief.

The utility of an LHD(A) for disaster relief is one reason why so many other navies have bought them. Algeria bought a Fincantieri-designed LHD, the Kalaat BeniAbbas, in 2011, and the issue of disaster relief to the remote parts of the Algerian coast was one reason. The countries that have bought the Makassar-class design from South Korea have also all had a disaster relief mission as one of the key uses, too. Although there are military uses of an LHD in archipelagic areas, as seen in the 2004 tsunami, as well as the 2014 Hurricane Haiyan which hit the Philippines, in the aftermath of a catastrophic event, multi-role amphibious vessels can play a major part.

Once again, the LHD, has the capabilities that are required for multirole operations in the disaster relief area. The significantly larger size, well larger than the average frigate, has the capacity to carry the bulky and out-sized loads that are needed for disaster relief. They have the space to store them, and the required means to deliver them in austere environments. As

an example of this truth, the UK’s Royal Navy used to deploy a destroyer in the Caribbean during hurricane season - the vessel of choice now is a Bay-class Landing Ship Dock: it can carry the loads needed for post-hurricane relief; can accommodate extras bodies to cope with such an eventuality; can support the delivery means (helicopter, landing craft); and either has integral means, or can carry containerised means for medial support.

New Missions

Apart from “straight-up” military, offensive operations and civilian, disaster relief ones, LHD(A)s can also be used to meet an even wider range of military requirements. Recently, French Navy Mistral-class LHD(A)s have worked on an exercise with the coastal forces of Ghana. Exercise/Operation Corymbe has focussed on dealing with counter-piracy, counter-terrorism missions, as well as working against illegal fishing. What the ship Dixmunde has proved is a number of functions—Aviation facilities to allow helicopters to stay at sea, rather than having

WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

SEA SYSTEMS

to work from shore bases, thus extending their reach and endurance; Command and control facilities on Dixmunde are far in excess what exist onshore, so forces can be far better coordinated at sea; Boat support facilities using the well-deck mean that search teams, or smaller fast craft can be supported at sea, rather than having to return to the coast each night.

Although they are not “true” LHD(A) s, the Royal Fleet Auxiliary’s Landing Ships Dock - the Bay-class, one of which is now operated by the Royal Australian Navy, lack hangar facilities - also show the extra roles and missions that can be taken on by amphibious shipping. In the Persian Gulf, a regularly rotated vessel has been used to: Support a flotilla of mine counter-measure vessels involved in clearance of mines from key waterways both coastal and deep water. The ships can provide re-stocking of consumable items, a floating repair shop for simple breakdowns, and a command and control facility; Support of nuclear submarines. A similar operation to that of MCMV ships; Provision of a floating base for Special Forces and fast craft for searching suspected pirate/smuggler vessels; In other seas - Mediterranean, Red Sea, these ships have also been used for counter-piracy and refugee support.

Egypt’s two new Mistral-class LHDs (originally ordered and built for Russia) WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

are set to be deployed in the Red Sea/ North West Indian Ocean, and will have a multirole portfolio of tasks ranging from disaster relief through to acting as a command ship for counter-terrorist missions. Arguably, the least important mission would be sending marines over a beach in the traditional role for an LHD. That Russia had been considering buying LHDs shows how their strategic outlook had changed, too. Other navies - Brazil, Chile - using secondhand assault ships - also seek to maximise the multirole capabilities of the vessels, and arguably have a far lower priority for offensive marine missions.

It is well-worth considering one thing about many Asian (and elsewhere...)

LHD(A)s: they are being built by largely commercial shipyards that are trying to increase their military capabilities. The Makassar-class LHDs built for Indonesia, Philippines, and Peru have been built in South Korean, Indonesian, and Peruvian commercial yards. But this type of vessel allows commercial shipyards to cut their teeth on military/naval ships, but of a less demanding standard than, say, a destroyer. It might be that they have lower build standards then “warships” - but even the RAN Canberra-class LHD(A)s are built to the commercial Lloyds standards, not higher military/ naval ones...

An LHD(A) is arguably an ideal platform for many navies to cut their teeth on for a wide range of missions, from highly military through to civilian ones.

The multiple means of delivery - by air and sea; the multiple on-board capacity - water production, power, medical, command and control; the inherent flexibility. All of these are attractive to navies which Might not desire - let alone want - the highest end LHD that, say, the US Navy operates.

ABOVE: The South Koreandesigned Makassar-class LHD is at the lighter end of the ship class. But it gives nations with emerging military and civilian roles a platform that allows them to gain experience in amphibious operations across a range of missions from military to civil OPPOSITE PAGE: The French Navy LHD, Dixmunde, on an exercise with West African navies. Being tested are counter-piracy, illegal fishing monitoring, and antiterrorism missions, showing the advantages of an LHD that can provide floating support, as well as command and control Photo: SIRPA/French MoD OCTOBER 2016 | ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY

31

HEADLINE NEWS

INDUSTRY NEWS

ECA Group Delivers First Robotic Mine Counter Measures Systems

USN EA-18G Green Growler Flies with 100-percent Advanced Biofuel A U.S. Navy EA-18G “Green Growler” recently completed flight testing of a 100-percent advanced biofuel at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland. The flights took place at the Navy’s Atlantic Test Ranges and data was collected using the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division’s (NAWCAD) Real-time Telemetry Processing System (RTPS).

The fuels programme supports the U.S. SECNAV’s operational energy goal to increase the use of alternative fuels afloat by 2020. “From takeoff to landing, you couldn’t tell any difference,” said Lt. Cmdr. Bradley Fairfax, project officer and test pilot with Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 23, after the first test flight Sept. 1. “The information presented to us in the airplane

is pretty simplified but, as far as I could tell, the aircraft flew completely the same as [petroleum-based] JP-5 for the whole flight.” The 100-percent bio-JP-5 looks just like petroleum JP-5 and this is one of the goals of the Navy’s alternative fuels test and qualification program: the JP-5 produced from alternative sources must be invisible to the user. “We are excited to work with the U.S. Navy as it takes this important step toward the use of 100-percent dropin renewable jet and diesel fuels in its aircraft and ships,” said Chuck Red, vice president of fuels development for ARA. The 100-percent drop-in renewable jet fuel tested, CHCJ, is produced by Florida-based Applied Research Associates (ARA) and Chevron Lummus Global.

AERO Vodochody Concludes 1st L-39 Users Group Conference

Czechoslovakian airframer AERO Vodochody recently conducted its 1st L-39 Users Group Conference, with representatives from Austria, Bangladesh, Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Hungary, 32

ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY | OCTOBER 2016

Lithuania, Mozambique, Nigeria, Slovakia, Thailand, Tunisia and Uganda, meeting at Odolena Voda in the Czech Republic. The conference took place in mid-September and after its completion, the L-39NG was also on static display during the NATO Days security show. “The legacy of the L-39 Albatros is a big commitment for us. We would be happy if this conference was a start of a long-lasting relationship with the users of this remarkable aircraft from all over the world,” said Giuseppe Giordo, the president and CEO of AERO Vodochody AEROSPACE on the significance of the meeting. Held under auspices of the Czech Air Force and organised by AERO

The delivery of several fully robotised underwater mine counter measure systems, has been completed by the ECA Group, since the beginning of the year. Deliveries have taken place to two navies, including that of Kazakhstan. The first unmanned mine counter measure systems ever to be manufactured, the systems are considered a breakthrough in the underwater mine counter measures market. The technology allows the systems to be deployed, while keeping the crews at a safe distance away from the minefield.

According to the Group, “The selling price of such robotic naval mine counter measure systems can range from €3 million to €30 million, depending on the configuration and service offered to the customer by ECA Group to support implementation.” The system uses specialized robots and high resolution sonar to detect mines. Inspection robots such as the SEASCAN MK2 are used to confirm via video images, that an object is indeed a mine, once it has been detected by Sonar and confirmed.

Vodochody AEROSPACE, manufacturer of the aircraft, and Omnipol, original exporter of the Albatross, the L-39 Users Group Conference allowed aircraft operators to share the experience of the operating the aircraft under various conditions and scenarios not only with fellow operators but also with AERO Vodochody AEROSPACE. AERO also used the opportunity to brief the gathering on the new the L-39NG and future outlook of existing programmes.

Discussions were also held with the attendees on sustainment services and possible future development of the aircraft.

At the end of the conference a flight of the L-39NG demonstrator was made.

WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

HEADLINE NEWS

INDUSTRY NEWS

MDL Launches India’s Second Project 15B Ship

UK MOD Proceeds with Laser DEW Capability Demonstrator An agreement for a £30M contract with a UK industrial team led by MBDA, to develop a Laser Directed Energy Weapons (DEW) Capability Demonstrator, has been finalised by the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence (MoD). The UK industrial team, named UK DRAGONFIRE is a collaborative consortium led by MBDA with QinetiQ and Leonardo-Finmeccanica.

The Laser Directed Energy Weapons (DEW) Capability Demonstrator, will deliver a significant step change in the UK’s capability in High Energy Laser Weapon Systems. The programme is expected to result in the engagement of representative targets in land and maritime environments in 2019. In the meantime, it will mature key technologies for a high energy defensive laser weapon system. “Under MBDA’s lead,

UK DRAGONFIRE will put the UK at the forefront of high energy laser systems, capitalising on the experience of joint MoD/ Industry working in the complex weapons environment,” said Dave Armstrong Executive Group Director Technical and UK Managing Director of MBDA. The high-powered laser system that will be used in the test will be provided by QinetiQ. Leonardo will contribute the electro-optic beam director to the programme and support the trials and evaluation. The UK MoD and Industry have over the years made significant investments in the areas of laser coherent beam combining, weapon systems command and control, advanced pointing systems and high power storage.

All these aspects will be further improved upon by UK DRAGONFIRE.

Saab Bags U.S. Navy Shipboard Air Traffic Radar Order

Combat Ship and we look forward to a continued partnership with the new SPN50 program,” says Erik Smith, President and CEO of Saab Defense and Security USA. The new AN/SPN-50 (V)1 will replace the AN/SPN-43C Air Traffic Radar which is currently deployed on the US Navy’s Aircraft Carrier (CVN) and Amphibious Assault (LH)Class ships. The deployment, sustainment and operation of aviation assets will be supported by the SPN-50 system which will provide aircraft position, radar signal, and weather data.

The U.S. Navy has placed an order with Saab USA for delivery of the AN/SPN-50 (V)1 Shipboard Air Traffic Radar. This is the first award for the Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) phase of the programme. As part of the award, three radars will be initially procured over a four-year period. “Saab’s naval radars are a proven success with the U.S. Navy. Our AN/ SPS-77 radar is currently deployed aboard the Navy’s Independence-class Littoral 34

ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY | OCTOBER 2016

Indian shipyard Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL) launched the second ship of the Project 15B, (i.e.

Visakhapatnam Class) ships ahead of schedule in September. The new ship has been named as Mormugao (The name of Goa’s main port). The P-15B destroyers of which four will be built are a follow-on to the P15A class guided missile destroyers (Kolkata class). The first ship in this class Visakhapatnam was launched in April 2015.

MDL is now also deep into the design of India’s futuristic P17A stealth frigates, and work on this will commence in early 2017.

The ships will be built using integrated construction methodology by leveraging the new infrastructure in the yard. MDL has delivered one major warship platform to Indian Navy almost every year, starting with the stealth frigate INS Shivalik, which was delivered in 2010. Following this the Yard delivered INS Satpura and INS Sahyadri in the same class and this was followed by the stealth destroyer INS Kolkata, which sported a unique silhouette as a result of its MF STAR antenna. These deliveries were followed by INS Kochi and the third and last destroyer in this series, Chennai was delivered to the Navy in August 2016 and is to be commissioned shortly. MDL is also constructing six Scorpene class submarines for the Indian Navy; the first boat in this class, Kalvari, will be commissioned into the Fleet very shortly and the second boat is slated to be launched later this year.

WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT

Protect Your Fleet

Naval BARAK-8: The most advanced air & missile defense system for challenging operational scenarios • • •

•

• •

SEE US AT www.iai.co.il marketing@iai.co.il

EURONAVAL 2016 Hall 2, Stand L-86

Fully networked system architecture Multiple simultaneous engagements From short to long range, from supersonic sea-skimmers to high altitude targets Vertical launch all aspect missile, easily fitted to existing or new vessels Advanced RF seeker 2-way data link