Welcome to MSW’s Scuttlebutt! Here’s the news for the day.
BAC "Cantabria" Successfully Passes Official Sea Trials
Source: Navantia
The Buque de Aprovisionamiento de Combate (BAC) combat supply ship "Cantabria," which the San Fernando-Puerto Real shipyard built for the Spanish Navy, has successfully completed its final sea trials prior to its delivery. These were conducted from 28 November to 2 December.
The objective of these exercises was provisioning at sea, ensuring the correct functioning of onboard systems (propulsion, communications, combat and electronic monitoring) and noise, vibration, radar (surface search radar and auxiliary navigation radar), shooting guns and dropping anchors, among others.
The tests were supervised by the program directors at Navantia and the Spanish Navy, José Manuel Jimenez-Alfaro and Capt. Salvador Vila, respectively. In addition, Vice-Admiral Jose Angel Pita, the Director of Naval Construction, Ángel Recamán, and the Director of the Shipyard San Fernando-Puerto Real, Fernando Miguélez, were also present during the trials at sea.
This double-hulled tanker is 173.9 meters long and is capable of providing logistical support to a Navy task force, and also can participate in humanitarian and environmental operations.
Its main missions are to provide liquid fuels, water and solid supplies (food, ammunition, spare parts and other supplies) to a naval battle group, and provide support for combined Army and Navy operations.
However, this ship, with a major medical equipment on board (10 hospital beds, surgery, x-ray and dental, laboratory, medical equipment locker and emergency service), can also assist in humanitarian operations. It is also capable of taking on missions of prevention and action in case of ecological catastrophe.
The "Cantabria", displacing 9,800 deadweight tons fully loaded, can reach a maximum sustained speed of 20 knots. It carried a 122-man crew. It is 23 meters wide, has a range of 6,000 nautical miles at 13 knots, and a propulsion plant consisting of two engines rated at 10,890 kW each, among other features.
Air Warfare Destroyer Project Sailing Along
Source: Australian Department of Defence
Greg Combet, Minister for Defence Personnel, Materiel and Science, announced today that Australia’s $8 billion Air Warfare Destroyer (AWD) was progressing well with key milestones in the delivery of its combat and weapons control system being met.
“I am pleased to announce that the US Navy has conducted a ‘pull the plug’ ceremony on the combat system for HMAS Hobart,” Mr Combet said.
“This ceremony marks the ‘de-energising’ of the combat system and symbolises its readiness for installation in the first AWD. To reach this point the system, including the radar and missile fire control equipment, had to complete a full range of US Navy acceptance tests to verify its performance.
“The completion of testing of the Aegis Combat System equipment destined for HMAS Hobart marks a major milestone in the delivery of this world-class capability from the US Navy to the Royal Australian Navy.
“The Aegis Combat System is deployed on nearly 100 warships around the world. In addition to the US and Australian Navies, Aegis is deployed on Japanese, Spanish, Norwegian and South Korean warships.
“This system is capable of detecting and defeating multiple hostile aircraft and missiles at ranges in excess of 150 kilometres. With this system deployed, the AWD will be able to provide protection for a naval task force against air, surface and submarine threats.
“Work on other sub-systems in the AWD combat system is also progressing well with the Air Warfare Destroyer Alliance recently signing a $20 million contract with McDonnell Douglas (a subsidiary of Boeing) for the Advanced Harpoon Weapon Control System.
“As a key element of the Hobart Class combat system, the Harpoon missile will allow our three Air Warfare Destroyers to engage surface and land targets at ranges well beyond the horizon,” Mr Combet said.
HMAS Hobart is the first of Australia’s three Air Warfare Destroyers and is due for delivery to the Royal Australian Navy in December 2014.
Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System Upgrade Successfully Tracks Sophisticated Missile Targets in Exercise Series
Source: Lockheed Martin
MOORESTOWN, N.J. --- The second generation of Lockheed Martin's Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) system, BMD 4.0.1, successfully detected, tracked and conducted simulated engagements against a variety of different ballistic missile targets during a series of tracking exercises in the Pacific.
The key feature of the new system is a new integrated signal processor designed to improve the system's discrimination capability to defeat sophisticated ballistic missiles and their countermeasures.
During a series of four tests, the guided missile cruiser USS Lake Erie upgraded with the BMD 4.0.1 Weapon System successfully detected, tracked and guided simulated Standard Missile-3 (SM-3) Block IBs to intercept ballistic missile targets launched from the Pacific Missile Range Facility in Kauai. The targets ranged from simple separating medium-range missiles to sophisticated, separating short-range missiles designed to confuse missile-defense systems.
During the tests, USS Lake Erie transmitted data via a tactical data link to other ships and shore command facilities.
Over the next year, USS Lake Erie will complete additional tests, leading up to full operational certification of the Aegis BMD 4.0.1 system in early 2011.
"We were thrilled to see the significant performance improvements with the Aegis BMD 4.0.1 Weapon System and the preliminary data shows the system's performance matched our predictions," said Lisa Callahan, Lockheed Martin's vice president, Maritime BMD Programs. "These exercises allowed us to get an early look at the system. We're eager to learn from these events, focus on the remaining development and enable the improved capability to reach the fleet. "
The guided missile destroyer USS Paul Hamilton (DDG 60) and the Japanese Aegis destroyer JS Myoko (DDG 175) also participated in the events, exercising their respective systems in parallel with the USS Lake Erie, and providing additional crew training opportunities for both ships.
The 92 Aegis-equipped ships currently in service around the globe have more than 950 years of at-sea operational experience and have launched more than 3,500 missiles in tests and real-world operations. In addition to the United States, Aegis is the maritime weapon system of choice for Australia, Japan, Norway, South Korea and Spain.
The Missile Defense Agency and the U.S. Navy are jointly developing Aegis BMD as part of the United States' Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS). Recently the Navy's independent operational test agent assessed the Aegis BMD and SM-3 Block IA system to be operationally effective and operationally suitable. Currently, a total of 22 Aegis BMD-equipped warships -- 19 in the U.S. Navy and three in the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force -- have the certified capability to engage ballistic missiles and perform long-range surveillance and tracking missions. Two additional U.S. East Coast-based Aegis-equipped ships are being modified to perform ballistic missile defense in the several months and an additional Japanese destroyer will be upgraded by 2010.
Newest MV-22 Trainer Delivered to Marine Corps
Source: US Naval Air Systems Command
NAVAL AIR SYSTEMS COMMAND, PATUXENT RIVER, Md. --- The newest MV-22 Osprey flight trainer was delivered to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Calif. Nov.16.
The fully self-contained, $8.6 million containerized flight training device (CFTD) is the second of four MV-22 trainers for fleet use at MCAS Miramar, Calif.
“The arrival of this newest MV-22 trainer marks another crucial step in increasing the training opportunities for our fleet aircrews,” said Capt. Darryl “Spike” Long, Aviation Training Systems program manager (PMA-205). “”V-22 crews use these type of trainers to accomplish more than 50 percent of their training requirements so when we deliver them early, on-time and on-budget, everyone benefits.”
Another benefit to these new training systems is how they are designed.
“Once these fully self-contained training systems are built, they only require a concrete pad and dedicated power hookups,” said Lt. Col. David Owen, PMA-205, Marine Corps Department Head. “This saves the Marine Corps quite a bit of military construction funding.”
Once operational, the MV-22 CFTDs have a solid history of being reliable with very little maintenance downtime added Owen. “On average, these trainers have a 98 percent reliability rating with an average of only 12 to 15 hours of operational down time due to maintenance per year.”
Over time, the cost of these trainers has gone down and their capability has increased according to Owen.
“When the first trainers were bought three years ago, they cost $12 million each but today they cost $8.6 million,” said Owen, “with the cost reduction and the increasing power of today’s computers, we are able to buy additional trainers that have more capability.”
The third and fourth trainers are scheduled to be delivered to MCAS Miramar in early to mid-2010. A fifth V-22 flight trainer is scheduled for delivery to MCAS New River, N.C. in the fall of 2010.
This Day in U.S. Naval History
1814 - Destruction of schooner Carolina, the last of Commodore Daniel Patterson's make-shift fleet that fought a series of delaying actions that contributed to Andrew Jackson's victory at the Battle of New Orleans. After loss of craft, the naval guns were mounted on shore to continue the fight.
Photo of the Day
Lt. Jon Sunderland dresses in a Santa suite while directing aircraft operations aboard the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) Christmas Day.
Gator
