Posted on 01/01/2008 7:00:02 AM PST by sukhoi-30mki
Front-line frigates in $1.4bn upgrade bungle
IAN McPHEDRAN, DEFENCE WRITER
January 01, 2008 11:40pm
THE navy's front-line fighting ships cannot defend themselves and are unable to be sent into battle, despite a $1.4 billion upgrade.
A navy insider close to the 4000-tonne Adelaide Class Guided Missile Frigates has revealed the ships' complex electronic systems are not working properly. He told The Advertiser that sending the 1970s ships to war would be like sending a VK Commodore to race at Bathurst.
Senior officials now admit that the 1997 frigate upgrade project was a "debacle" created by the Howard Government's decision to maximise the sale price of the Sydney-based contractor, Australian Defence Industries, when it was sold to the French firm, Thales.
Defence Minister Joel Fitzgibbon described the upgrade as "another nightmare" Labor has inherited from the previous Coalition government.
The project is four years late and includes four ships – not the original six.
The navy insider, who asked not to be named, said sailors were quitting because their ships could not be deployed to the Middle East or any conflict zone.
Navy chief Vice-Admiral Russ Shalders last year refused to accept the first ship in the program, HMAS Sydney, for "operational release" as its fighting systems did not function properly.
The whistleblower said the ships' anti-missile and anti-torpedo systems could not be integrated. Their electronic support measures (eyes and ears for detecting incoming airborne threats) were "a joke".
"That means they would be going into a war zone virtually blind," the sailor said. "The torpedo detection system cannot be integrated." The ships also are unable to:
USE long-range chaff, which confuses enemy missiles and takes them from ships
LINK their helicopters to war-fighting data
INTEGRATE towed and on-board sonars to detect enemy torpedoes.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.com.au ...
How does something like this happen? Why didn’t they get the US to upgrade it?
This is ridiculous. A blind baboon could have done it for 1.4 B Dollars.
“..revealed the ships’ complex electronic systems are not working properly.”
This is welcome news to the Chinese. The blabbermouth who leaked this story should be held responsible for it.
We've had similar disastrous problems ourselves in naval construction and it would have cost twice as much for us to do the work.
Yeah, better they go into combat with nobody knowing the combat systems aren’t integrated and the people that screwed up not held responsible.
I doubt the Australian Navy is large enough that they can park 4 ships for very long without people noticing. Deploying them with non-functional systems would be criminal.
I still can’t get over a 4,000 ton FFG.
? They’re old US Perry-class FFGs from the 1970s, except for the last two that were built in Australia. We’ve called them FFGs the whole time.
After our precious liberties have been burdened by one insidious encroachment after another at the hands of the self-appointed, PC ‘language police’, it’s a wonder that anybody can get away with using the word ‘frigate’ anymore, isn’t it... :-)
At least our made-in-AZ product worked...:^)
All I am saying is that they could’ve kept it under wraps and allow the Australian Navy to handle this matter internally. But then again, where were the electronic components made - China?
As a retired officer of the Royal Australian Navy, this article is basically a load of garbage with a small kernel of truth.
There were problems. They were fixed. The solution may not be as perfect as some people would like, but the ships can do their job.
I can’t say anymore than that.
Which illustrates the problem with a lot of these stories. Security considerations often mean garbage can be promulgated in the media and can’t be adequately challenged.
I'm not surprised, the media always get military issues wrong and this article has the "tone" of a hit piece.
I just went back and read the first three paragraphs again,...no bias here, move-along, nothing to see here.
I remeber my uncle talking about his time in the navy during WW2 on an LSt. Had an intrest in navy his whole life. I think light cruisers ran 4,000 to 8,000 tons.
I have read much since. With the increase in capabilities and the downward pressure on numbers and sailors, it is possible to do more with less.
The days of Regans 600 ship navy are gone. Sone it will be one massive ship in each ocean! (joke)
Isn't that the truth.
Remember the hits pieces written about the M1 Abrams? The Bradley?
'They won't work in the desert, they break down too often, zillion dollar boondogle' Blah, blah
Had me concerned, then they proved themselves
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