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Danish warships could end up as targets for Russian nuclear missiles if Denmark joins the NATO missile defence shield, according to Mikhail Vanin, the Russian ambassador to Denmark.

“I do not think that the Danes fully understand the consequences if Denmark joins the US-led missile defence shield,” Vanin told Jyllands-Posten. “If that happens, Danish warships become targets for Russian nuclear missiles.”

Vanin said that Denmark would become “part of the threat to Russia and relations with Russia will be damaged”. Vanin warned that joining the defence shield would be “Denmark’s decision” and that  the country would “lose both money and security”.

Foreign minister angry
Martin Lidegaard, the Danish foreign minister, was not pleased with Vanin’s comments.

“This is obviously unacceptable,” Lidegaard said. “Russia knows very well that NATO’s missile defence system is defensive. We disagree with Russia on many important things, but it is important that the tone between us remains as positive as possible.”

Portugal is expected to procure from the Royal Danish Navy (RDN) four modular patrol boats developed under Denmark's Standard Flex (or Stanflex) concept.

With technical support from the Portuguese Navy (Marinha Portuguesa), the Portuguese procurement arm DGAIED (Direção-Geral de Armamento e Infra-Estruturas de Defesa) is negotiating to procure four Flyvefisken-class (or Stanflex 300/SF300) vessels from the Danish Ministry of Defence. But the Portuguese Navy told IHS Jane's on September 24 that neither a contract signature date nor delivery schedules have been confirmed.

Stanflex was conceived in Denmark in the early 1980s as a framework within which the RDN would take a modular, container-based approach to embarking on vessels mission-specific equipment that could be switched in or out.

Denmark has signed a contract with Karstensens Skibsvaerft for a third Knud Rasmussen-class arctic patrol ship, it was announced on 18 December.

Worth DKK355 million (USD64.9 million), the contract will see the vessel completed in 2017. In Royal Danish Navy service the vessel will provide sovereignty enforcement, patrol, and fisheries duties in the waters around Greenland, the defence of which remains a Danish responsibility.

The Royal Danish Navy currently operates two Knud Rasmussen-class vessels, with the country's cross-party 'Agreement on Defence', announced in November 2012 and covering the period 2013-17, setting out plans to bring forward the retirement of the navy's last Agdlek-class oceangoing patrol cutter, HDMS Tulugaq , to 2014 and to replace it with a third Knud Rasmussen vessel. The total cost of completing the third ship is valued by the Danish Ministry of Defence at over DKK500 million.

The new vessel will be slightly different to its sister ships, providing improved support for marine environmental research missions. Innovations include a modular crane and boom system, a larger tender, hydrographic multi-beam survey sonar, and space for research stations. As with the other vessels of the class, it will be just less than 72 m long and will displace 1,720 tonnes. Armed with a 76 mm main gun, the ships can deploy ice-capable CB-90 high-speed combat craft from the stern, have a flight deck which can embark a helicopter in a lily pad manner, and have space on board to embark containers.

The vessel will be built at Karstensens Skibsvaerft's dry dock in Skagen.

DSEi 2013, London - Ultra Electronics Command and Control Systems has been contracted by the Republic of Indonesia’s Ministry of Defence for the mid-life modernisation of the first of the Fatahillah Class corvettes.

Terma’s SCANTER 4100 radar has been selected by Ultra for integration as part of the new Combat System. Terma and Ultra expect to finalize negotiations this autumn.

The SCANTER 4100 systems are considered technologically state-of-the-art and equipped with the newest software and electronics resulting in significant improved performance shared with the SCANTER 6000 radars.

The radar supports operation of both UAVs and helicopters and provides unsurpassed small target detection – in close range and up until the radar horizon in all weather conditions. Air targets are detected to 96 nm and sea skimming missiles as they meet the radar horizon. The SCANTER 4100s high resolution pictures offer unique situational awareness for all missions from Search and Rescue to missile detection.

About Terma
Terma develops products and systems for defense, non-defense, and security applications, including command and control systems, radar systems, self-protection systems for ships and aircraft, space technology, and advanced aerostructures for the international aircraft industry. The company has a total staff of 1,050 and realized 2012/13 revenues of MUSD 210.

The parent company Terma A/S is headquartered at Aarhus, Denmark, and maintains international subsidiaries and operations in The Netherlands, Germany, Singapore, India, and the wholly owned U.S. subsidiary Terma North America Inc. headquartered in Arlington, VA.

The first Sea Acceptance Test (SAT) of Thales’s APAR multifunction radar on the new Iver Huitfeldt class frigates of the Royal Danish Navy was a success. Thanks to the excellent cooperation with the Danish Defence Acquisition and Logistics Organization, this test could be completed in one week instead of a more usual three weeks.

The test was performed with the first APAR delivered to the Royal Danish Navy, installed on HDMS Peter Willemoes.

In December 2006, the contract was signed for the delivery of the three APAR systems for the Iver Huitfeldt class frigates. Between January 2011 and January 2012 the Factory Acceptance Tests for all three radars were performed and in 2011 and 2012 the systems were installed on the three ships of this class: HDMS Iver Huitfeldt, HSMS Peter Willemoes and HDMS Niels Juel.

Thales Nederland CEO Gerben Edelijn says: “This SAT demonstrates our capability to maintain the highest possible level of product quality over a long period of time. We are proud of the excellent relation with the Royal Danish Navy.”

Following this SAT, there will be a Harbour Acceptance Test later this year to test the ship’s Anti Air Warfare and Fire Control capabilities. The program is scheduled to end early 2014.

Le Danemark a officiellement sélectionné l’hélicoptère américain MH-60R Seahawk, en service dans l’US Navy, dans le cadre du MHRP (Maritime Helicopter Replacement Program) visant à remplacer les Lynx de la marine danoise. Le MH-60R était en compétition avec l’AW109 Wildcat, d’AugustaWestland. En tout, neuf appareils doivent être livrés d’ici 2018, le montant du contrat, avec les prestations de soutien logistique associées, atteignant 686 millions de dollars. Le Danemark devient le second client export du MH-60R, déjà été retenu par l’Australie, qui en a commandé l’an dernier 24 exemplaires. Les Seahawk danois seront notamment embarqués sur les trois nouvelles frégates du type Iver Huitfeldt, ainsi que les deux bâtiments de projection du type Absalon....

The Royal Danish Navy’s HDMS Peter Willemoes has demonstrated its air defence capabilities using the Thales Active Phased Array Radar (APAR). The vessel performed live firing trials in November, which saw four Evolved Sea Sparrow Missiles being successfully directed by APAR to four targets.

The trials, performed at the Missile Test Range off the Scottish coast in the Atlantic Ocean, saw all launched missiles performing a successful intercept.
In the first firing, a Banshee drone was successfully eliminated, with APAR guiding the missile to the target with ‘pinpoint accuracy’.
The next firing saw three Banshee drones launched simultaneously. APAR’s unique Interrupted Continuous Wave Illumination technology enables the simultaneous guidance of multiple missiles to various targets; as a result this test was also a success.
Gerben Edelijn, CEO, Thales Nederland, said: ‘This excellent result proves that Thales’ APAR and the unique technology are the standard in missile guidance.’
HDMS Peter Willemoes is one of the three Iver Huitfeldt class air defence frigates of the Royal Danish Navy. The vessels’ anti-warfare suite includes the Thales long range surveillance radar SMART-L in addition to the multi-function radar APAR.

Kenya has taken delivery of two Danish patrol boats for security operations on the country’s two largest lakes. The boats, worth Sh115 million, are powered by twin 910 hp engines and will be used on Lake Victoria and Lake Turkana to combat illegal fishing and other maritime crime. The vessels were launched to mark World Fisheries Day.

MV Kingfisher will police Lake Victoria and deal mainly with illegal fishing while MV Lorup will monitor Lake Turkana which has been the site of attacks on local fishermen by Ethiopians. Lake Victoria will at some stage receive another vessel to patrol its waters

DSEi 2013, London - The Danish Defence Acquisition and Logistics Organization (DALO) has chosen Terma’s solutions for its Mid-Life Upgrade of the Danish Navy’s Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs). During the next four years, the THETIS-class OPVs will be updated with the SCANTER 4100 radar and the C-Flex command & Control System.

erma will deliver four SCANTER 4100 radar systems, with an option for an additional four systems. The additional systems are aimed at training at the Danish Navy’s schools, as well as extra systems for the KNUD RASMUSSEN-class OPVs, which the Danish government in 2012 decided to expand with an additional ship. Furthermore, Terma is to support the deliveries with spare parts and technical preparedness.  

Thomas Blom, Vice President, Naval, is very pleased with contract: “We are proud that the Royal Danish Navy once again has selected Terma as their supplier of solutions for the Danish vessels. This is an invaluable sign of trust, and a stamp of quality for our products”.  

The first radar must be operational in mid-2014, and the remaining radars towards the end of 2014. Among others, Terma has already supplied the SCANTER 4100 radar to Royal Navy’s HMS Clyde and the Brazilian Navy’s Amazonas-class.  

The C-Flex Command & Control system will replace the ship’s existing C3 solution. C-Flex will support the full mission cycle in maritime domain security and surveillance by integrating the shipboard sensor and weapon systems to generate a real-time confident situational awareness display that can be shared in full over datalink. 

Today, the Terma C-Flex is the preferred solution across the Royal Danish Navy’s platforms and supplied in customized versions to a number of navies throughout the world, including the Romanian Navy, the Royal Thai Navy, and other ASEAN countries.

The Danish Navy’s four THETIS-class OPVs have been operating successfully in the Northern Atlantic seas surrounding Greenland and The Faroe Islands for 20 years. With the Mid-Life Upgrades, the ships will continue to patrol the Arctic waters for years to come.

Late on December 15th, the Danish MV Torm Kristina was sailing to Muscat, Oman, in order to perform a quick logistical port visit, when she was approached by 2 suspected pirate skiffs. The crew quickly assembled in the citadel and sent a mayday message out.
Meanwhile the mayday message was passed to the Commander of the NATO counter piracy task force, Rear Admiral Antonio Natale. He tasked one of the NATO warships HDMS Iver Huitfeldt, which was in Muscat for a port visit and therefore only 90 miles away, to proceed to the MV Torn Kristina and assist her.
By the time the NATO warship arrived on the scene three hours later, the pirates had left the Torm Kristina. It is believed that they saw the warship coming towards them and realised they had no realistic possibility of taking control of the Torm Kristina.
A boarding party from the Iver Huitfeldt boarded the Torm Kristina, searched the ship to ensure that no pirates were still on board and once this was established they freed the crew from the citadel.