Australia to fit warships with anti-missile defence systems

Reuters ^ | 3 October 2017 | Colin Packham

[sukhoi-30mki]

SYDNEY, Oct 3 (Reuters) - Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said on Tuesday nine war ships set for construction in 2020 will be fitted with long-range ­anti-missile defence systems to counter the threat of rogue nations.

Australia's proposed frigates will use Aegis combat systems, produced by Lockheed Martin, in conjunction with SAAB Australia technology, Turnbull said.

Tensions in the region have spiked considerably in recent months as North Korea conducted a series of tests of its medium- and long-range ballistic missiles, some of which flew over Japan, as well as its sixth nuclear test on Sept. 3.

Pyongyang, which ultimately wants to target the U.S. mainland with a nuclear-tipped ballistic missile, has said its missiles could strike Australia.

"Recent events in our region have proven that Australia's future frigates must be equipped to defend Australia from the threat of medium- and long-range missile attacks," Turnbull said in a speech in Sydney.

Work on the frigates is set to begin in 2020, with BAE Systems, Navantia and Fincantieri all competing for the A$35 billion ($27.39 billion) contract.

Turnbull said the decision to award the missile defence system contract allows the three bidders enough time to incorporate Aegis technology into their bids.

Australia is expected to announce the winner of the frigate contract in early 2018.

The decision to fit the frigates - also a cornerstone of Australia's plan to counter an expected rise in submarine activity in the region - suggests Canberra will use the ships in a dual capacity.

"The missile defence will protect Australia's forward based forces and in a coalition scenario," said Euan Graham, director of the national security programme at the Lowy Institute, an Australian think-tank.

Countering submarines requires vessels that move freely in the region, in contrast to static vessels used for detecting missiles.

[sukhoi-30mki]

[Oztrich Boy]

Well that's the Air Warfare Destroyer. The Frigates will look more like

It looks like the

2. RAN Combat Capability Preferences

The DOD has stated its preferences for the combat capabilities of the SEA5000 Future Frigates. These include the CEA Technologies S/L/X radar suite, the SAAB 9LV combat system and Aegis FCS. It is also highly likely that the RAN will have a preference for the Mk-41 VLS since it is already in service with other RAN ships, it facilitates interoperability with the US Navy and provides a multi-mission weapons battery capability (see Table 1).

stated here are now a firm requirement

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks sukhoi-30mki.

[Gen.Blather]

Hezbollah in Lebanon has fired several Chinese made anti-ship missiles at Israeli and one mistaken identity Greek ship. The Israeli’s run with missile defense active while in range of Lebanese beaches. Non state actors have also deployed a few mines against commercial shipping in the Straits of Hormuz. These activities started over twenty years ago.

The sea is rich with largely undefended and valuable targets. If the idea is to gain attention at low cost and low danger, the sea is an obvious place to do it. Improving technology is enabling smaller and, for attention-getting purposes, capable weapons. Smart mines, probably programmed by somebody at Berkley or in Bangalore, could strangle trade and devastate world economies. Bird sized drones could endanger people on the decks of military vessels and cause, at least, changes in how ships are operated.

Terrorists are becoming increasingly more tech-savvy. If we don’t defeat Islam worldwide, we will suffer ever greater costs, inconvenience and deaths.