DEFENSE NEWS

TEHRAN (Tasnim) – An Iranian military official said the Navy has set up a project to install an advanced phased array radar system on one of its locally-manufactured destroyers in the near future.“The phased array radar with very long range, dubbed ‘Asr’ (era), is at the test stage and will soon be installed on one of the navy’s destroyers,” Head of the Iranian Navy's Industrial Research and Self-Sufficiency Jihad Organization Rear Admiral Ali Gholamzadeh told reporters on Tuesday.Iran is now using the most recent achievements in the sphere of radars and smart systems.

Among the new achievements is a modern radar system dubbed the Rejal (men), which is said to be capable of detecting, tracking and processing nearly 100 targets simultaneously.

Some other domestically-developed systems are the Rafee (lofty) – a modern digital altimeter - and ‘Passive’ radar system, as well as locally-developed phased array radar systems.

New passive phased array radars are capable of detecting stealth targets and cruise missiles.

Iran has, on different occasions, announced that its military might is in line with the country's defense doctrine of deterrence and poses no threat to other countries.

INS Vikramaditya will be handed over to the Indian Navy on November 15 at a formal ceremony in the Russian northern seaport of Severodvinsk on the White Sea.

The delivery date was confirmed at talks Defence Secretary R.K. Mathur held in Moscow on Monday, according to informed sources.

A high-level Indian defence delegation paid a one-day visit to Moscow to prepare an annual session of the Indo-Russian Intergovernmental Commission on Military-Technical Cooperation that will meet in Russia next month under the chair of the two Defence Ministers.

The upgraded and retrofitted aircraft carrier is now completing sea trials and is expected to return to the Sevmash Shipyard in Severodvinsk in the next few weeks.

The ship was to be delivered last December, but failed the sea trials after its boilers and some other systems malfunctioned. This time, all systems performed flawlessly, including daytime and night takeoff and landings by MiG-29K deck fighter planes, the sources said.

The sides were tight-lipped on the issue of India acquiring a second nuclear submarine from Russia, but the sources confirmed that Moscow was willing to lease another Akula class submarine if India paid for completing its construction. The submarine has been lying half-built at the Amur Shipyard in the Russian Far East since it was mothballed in the 1990s for lack of funds.

On the recent accident in which INS Sindhurakshak sank after rocked by explosions, the Russian side agreed to provide expert assistance for raising the submarine and carrying out its technical inspection.

Russia will also beef up its team of 100 engineers, now deployed in Vishakhapatnam in order to speed up midterm repairs to INS Sindhudhvaj and INS Sindhushashtra. The Russian side also offered to have two more Indian Navy Kilo class submarines undergo midterm repairs in Russia, the sources said.

In reviewing progress of the Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft, the sides noted with satisfaction the completion of preliminary design phase earlier this year. It is hoped that a contract for detailed design could be signed before the end of the year if the sides sort out the issue of costs.

The US Navy will commission its tenth Virginia-class attack submarine, USS Minnesota (SSN 783), during a ceremony on 7 September at the naval station Norfolk, Virginia, US.

Named to honour the residents of Minnesota for their continued support of the US military, the submarine was christened in 2012 and delivered to the navy in June 2013, 11 months ahead of schedule.

Submarine group two commander, Rear Admiral Ken Perry, said: "[Commanding Officer] Capt. John Fancher and his team have literally from stem to stern worked the combat systems, nuclear propulsion plant, logistics and culinary service."

The USS Minnesota, which began construction in February 2008, was built by General Dynamics Electric Boat and Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) in Virginia.

Designed as an advanced stealth multi-mission nuclear-powered boat, submarine can conduct missions that include anti-submarine, anti-surface ship, strike, special operation forces, irregular and mine warfare, as well as intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions.

The submarines feature AN/WLY-1 acoustic countermeasures system and mast-mounted AN/BLQ-10 electronic support measures (ESM) systems to provide full-spectrum radar processing, automatic threat warning and situation assessment.

Developed for deep ocean anti-submarine warfare and littoral or shallow water operations, the 377ft-long advanced stealth multimission nuclear-powered submarines can cruise at a submerged speed of 25k while carrying a crew of 134.

In addition, the submarine features a fly-by-wire ship control system to enhance ship handling in shallow water, as well as larger lock-in/lock-out chamber and a reconfigurable torpedo room to support special operations forces and their equipment.

MOSCOW, September 4 (RIA Novosti) – The Russian Defense Ministry has announced a tender for the delivery of a fuel tanker with a maximum contract price of 3.08 billion rubles ($90 million).

The Project 23130 medium-sized tanker will be designed to store and transport fuel as well as dry cargo, and provide support to surface ships and submarines in peace time and in wartime, the Defense Ministry’s procurements arm said in a press release.

The tanker should be 130 meters long, 21 meters wide and have a displacement of 14,000 tons. It should have a range of no less than 8,000 nautical miles, a cruising capacity of 60 days before refueling and be operable by a crew of 24.

The tanker is to be delivered before October 2016. Bids will be accepted by September 24.

Alors que l’Aquitaine sera prochainement admise au service actif et que la Normandie prépare ses premiers essais en mer, la Provence, troisième frégate multi-missions de la Marine nationale, sera mise à flot mi-septembre...

Lire l'intégralité de l'article sur Mer et Marine :

http://www.meretmarine.com/fr/content/la-fremm-provence-flot-mi-septembre

September 3, 2013: South Korea recently launched the first of a second batch of six Type 214 submarines. This one was built by Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering. The first three were built (from German components) by Hyundai Heavy Industries. Much to the chagrin of the South Koreans, who are trying to develop their own submarine building capability, the first three Type 214s had quality problems. Mostly it was defective components and poor construction techniques that left the three boats noisy and easier to detect.

The first three Type 214 subs were out of action for most of 2010 because of these problems. This was very embarrassing, as these subs were built in South Korea and that was a big deal in South Korea. Building submarines is a very specialized and exacting type of manufacturing, and South Korea has only been doing it for less than a decade. The first subs built in South Korea were these three German Type 214s, and the first of those entered service five years ago. The boats were built using licensed technology from the German developer (HDW) and many of the components were manufactured in South Korea as well. But then metal bolts in the Type 214s began coming loose or breaking seven years ago. The problem was traced to the South Korean supplier of the bolts which were not, it turned out, manufactured to the German specification. Eventually, German specialists were called in, and by 2011 the problem had been fixed.

South Korea went ahead with plans to build six additional Type 214 subs over the next 12 years. South Korea already had nine 1,100 ton Type 209 subs, designed and built in Germany. The Type 214 boats use fuel cells, enabling them to stay underwater for up to two weeks. The Type 214 is a 1,700 ton, 65 meter (202 foot) long boat, with a crew of 27. It has four torpedo tubes and a top submerged speed of 35 kilometers an hour. Maximum diving depth is over 400 meters (1,220 feet).

AIP boats go for up to a billion dollars each. The second batch of South Korean 214s will have an improved AIP system, which is apparently more reliable, and provides a small increase in time underwater. South Korea will probably become a supplier of AIP systems as well, because they now have the industrial expertise for this sort of high tech. The latest Type 214 boat is important because if it proves to be flawless it will make South Korea a contender in the international submarine market.

03/09/2013

(Infodefensa.com) Caracas – Fueron asignados los fondos para completar los trabajos de mantenimiento mayor y repotenciación del submarino Caribe (S-32), así como para la adquisición de equipos para el Escuadrón de Submarinos del Comando de la Escuadra de la Armada de Venezuela.

El tal sentido, mediante resolución del Ministerio de la Defensa, se designa a la Oficina Coordinadora de Hidrografía y Navegación (Ochina), como el organismo ejecutor para la suscripción y desembolso del convenio financiero a ser suscrito con el Fondo de Desarrollo Nacional, S.A. (Fonden). Asimismo, se delega en el contralmirante José Ernesto Acuña Moreno, director de Ochina, la facultad de ejecutar financieramente y suscribir el convenio con Fondem, así como, la administración de de los fondos para la ejecución de los proyectos, Recuperación Funcional del submarino Caribe (S-32) y Adquisición de Equipos  de Escape para Submarinos e Implementación del Soporte Logístico de Tierra del Escuadrón de Submarinos, por los montos de 254.554.546,37 bolívares (40.414.800 dólares) y 77.704.391,81 dólares.

Cabe señalar, que la Armada de Venezuela dispone de dos submarinos tipo U209A-1300/ clase Sábalo, el Sábalo (S-31) y el Caribe (S-32), los cuales fueron construidos en Kiel, Alemania, por la entonces Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft GmbH (HDW) y entregados en 1976 y 1977, respectivamente.

En 2004, ambos buques comenzaron a ser sometidos a un proceso de revisión quinquenal y modernización en las instalaciones de Diques y Astilleros Nacionales C.A. (DIANCA) ubicadas en Puerto Cabello, con la asistencia técnica de ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (antigua HDW) y otras empresas especializadas internacionales. El Sábalo fue puesto en grada en marzo de ese año y el Caribe en diciembre siguiente. Era la primera vez que ese tipo de trabajos se realizaba en Venezuela. El objetivo era prorrogarle la vida útil a los dos submarinos por diez o doce años, a partir de 2006-2007, cuando estaba previsto que iban a ser reincorporados al servicio, pero nueve años después la labores aún no han concluido. El Sábalo fue reincorporado a la flota en enero de 2011, mientras que el Caribe permanece varado en Dianca.

Se ha dicho que varias han sido las razones del atraso del proceso. Entre otras, la prohibición impuesta por Estados Unidos, en octubre de 2006, a la venta y transferencia de material y tecnología militar norteamericana a Venezuela, lo que motivó a que varias empresas internacionales se retiraran del proyecto, así como, la suspensión de la entrega de equipos, piezas y sistemas previamente encargados. Se suman, además, causas relativas a la falta de disponibilidad de fondos.

No obstante, la Armada aspira a reflotar al Caribe en el primer semestre de 2014, para reincorporarlo al servicio activo meses después. Mientras eso sucede, vuelven los rumores sobre la supuesta reactivación del proyecto de adquisición de nuevos submarinos y, una vez más, se apunta a un modelo ruso, esta vez al Amur 1650.

09/04/2013

(Infodefensa.com) Madrid - Spain for the first time will use unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) in Somalia , Canarian waters after completing integration testing helicopter Skeldar V-200 of Saab on board maritime action Lightning .

The Spanish Navy reported that it is expected that since mid-September this unmanned aerial system becomes operational in Atalanta , fighting piracy in the Indian Ocean, aboard the ship Meteoro , patrol in the same class as the Relámpago .

"Thus, we conclude one of the milestones included in the first phase of the recruitment of unmanned aerial systems in the Navy," said Defense. According ahead Infodefensa.com , the Navy awarded the use of the UAV program embarked Swedish company Saab last June 26 by a negotiated procedure without publication. The resolution for the award, which involves your rent until the end of the year, noted that the total amount was 2.5 million euros. ( see news )

With the experience gained in the use of these systems during these tests and area of operations, the Navy plans to begin the second phase of the recruitment through the acquisition of ownership of a specific model of unmanned helicopter.

Philippine Parliament voted to allocate $403 million for the purchase of two new light frigates. This order will be a very important one for Korean Hyundai Heavy Industries since it will establish the Incheon class as a viable candidate on the international market.

The Coalition has backed away from its earlier promise to fast track the acquisition of a Global Hawk/Triton UAV if elected to government on Saturday. In launching the coalition’s defence policy on Monday, Opposition Leader Tony Abbott said the Coalition would now “consider closely the need for unmanned aerial surveillance vehicles” as part of a new Defence White Paper, a reversal on its previous promise to fast track such an acquisition.

“The acquisition of unmanned aerial vehicles will be dependent on the advice of the Chief of the Defence Force and service chiefs, as well as a clear cost-benefit assessment that demonstrates the value of these aircraft,” the Coalition’s Defence policy document reads.

“We believe there is merit in acquiring new state-of-the-art unmanned aerial vehicles – such as the Triton or equivalent capability. Australia lost its pre-eminent position in the Triton program and delivery schedule because of Labor’s ill thought-out decision in 2009 to delay this program [AIR 7000 Phase 1B] to 2022-23.”

The British government is trying to renegotiate a contract with the BAE-led alliance that is building two 65,000-tonne aircraft carriers for the Royal Navy in order to control rising costs, but it says the terms of the deal leave it with little room to maneuver, according to Defence Secretary Philip Hammond.

Responding to a critical Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) report into the aircraft carrier program due to be published here Tuesday,, Hammond said in a statement, “We are currently negotiating with industry to seek to secure proper alignment between industry and the MoD over the balance of the project and so bring the costs under control, but we are doing so within the context of a contract that gives us very little negotiating leverage.”

The PAC criticized the contract signed by the MoD and the alliance, saying it was “not fit for purpose as it fails to provide industry with any real incentive to control costs.”

The British lawmakers said that as things stood, the “contractors will continue to make a profit until the 5.24 billion pound target cost has been exceeded by 2.5 billion pounds.”

At one point, the original contract negotiations — which led to the signing of the construction deal for the Royal Navy’s largest-ever warships in 2008 — were targeting a cost of 3.65 billion pounds.

A spokesman for the Aircraft Carrier Alliance declined to comment beyond confirming negotiations with the MoD were ongoing. The alliance includes BAE, Babcock and Thales.

Margaret Hodge, the PAC chairwoman, said in a statement the committee was still “not convinced that the MoD has this program under control. It remains subject to huge technical and commercials risks, with the potential for further uncontrolled growth in costs.”

Senior alliance officials reported to the MoD this summer that the program faced time and cost overruns, said one industry source. He said he did not believe they were significant problems at this point.

Labour were responsible for signing the construction deal, but it is the Conservative-led coalition government that came in for much of the report’s criticism.

The PAC was prompted to investigate the carrier program after the government’s 2012 decision to do a U-turn and revert to the F-35B short takeoff and landing version of the Joint Strike Fighter to equip the carriers.

The British originally selected the F-35B, but the coalition government opted to change to the F-35C conventional carrier variant in a botched decision made as part of the 2010 strategic defence and security review (SDSR).

Two years later, when the spiraling cost of fitting catapults and traps to the two STOVL-designed warships became clear, the government changed its mind again and reverted to the F-35B.

The PAC said the decision to switch to the F-35C was “deeply flawed” on cost grounds and wasted at least 74 million pounds of taxpayers’ money.

Hodge said that “at the time of the SDSR, the MoD believed the cost of converting the carriers for the new aircraft would have been between 500 million pounds and 800 million pounds. By May 2012, it had realized that the true cost would be as high as 2 billion pounds.”

The renegotiations come as the carrier construction program is approaching the halfway mark. The alliance is preparing to fit the last major structural element of the first of the warships around mid-November, ahead of it being floated out of the yard at Rosyth, Scotland, next summer.

The government has committed only to operating one of the carriers and will decide in the 2015 SDSR whether it can afford to operate the second vessel as well or whether it will mothball or sell it.

Negotiations to buy a first production batch of F-35Bs to equip the aircraft carriers are currently underway, and the British hope to start flying from HMS Queen Elizabeth in 2018.

The PAC report said that aside from trying to change the terms of the carrier contract, the MoD was also attempting to renegotiate a wider maritime agreement with UK industry “with a view to incentivise contractors more by transferring cost risk.”