Newport News Shipbuilding is looking to stabilise submarine construction in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic. (Janes/Michael Fabey)  Acknowledging that they are still dealing with the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic-related effects, inflation, and supply issues, officials at HII's Newport News Shipbuilding division say they are taking measures to stabilise their US nuclear submarine and aircraft construction programmes.    “It's a complex problem,” Jason Ward, Newport News Shipbuilding vice-president, Virginia-class submarine co...

MBDA has qualified MAADS with the CAMM-ER missile. (MBDA)  MBDA has qualified the Medium Advanced Air Defence System (MAADS) with its Common Anti-Air Modular Missile-Extended Range (CAMM-ER) missile during a recent test firing, confirming the capabilities and performance of both the missile and the entire system in an integrated mode.  The company announced the successful test on 5 May and said it was the first time that the Detection Centre module - Sirius battle management command, control, communication, computer, and intelligence (BMC4i)...

Saab AB's Maritime Live Training solution's field-level components are on display at IMDEX 2023, Singapore. (Janes/Vinod Kumar CV)  Saab AB has unveiled a training system that can simulate various naval operations, including littoral warfare and amphibious assault missions.  The system, Maritime Live Training (MLT), was unveiled at the IMDEX 2023 exhibition in Singapore, held from 3 to 5 May at the Changi Exhibition Centre.  The MLT is similar to the Force on Force Training Systems–Next (FoFTS-Next), the contract for which was secured with th...

The third ship in the Formidable class, RSS   Steadfast  , (pictured here) while it was in the Singapore Strait. The class will undergo an MLU in 2024.  (Janes/Ridzwan Rahmat)  The Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) will begin mid-life upgrade (MLU) works on the country's first Formidable-class frigate in 2024.    The matter was confirmed by the service's Commander First Flotilla Colonel Ng Kok Yeng Daniel during an interview with   Janes   ahead of the IMDEX 2023 naval exhibition held in Singapore fr...

The third-generation UNWAS system enables 24/7 highly automated and cost-efficient surveillance and protection of underwater pipelines, subsea cables, ports, and harbours. (Image Soft)  Image Soft, a Finnish underwater and maritime technology company, launched on 8 May the latest version of its Underwater Surveillance System (UNWAS) designed to protect subsea cables, pipelines, and harbours.  The new third-generation UNWAS system is a highly automated maritime surveillance system that detects, locates, and classifies all underwater threats su...

A Royal Malaysian Navy Scorpène-class submarine. Indonesia is believed to be eyeing a similar boat, but with air independent propulsion capabilities. (Royal Malaysian Navy)  The Ministry of Finance of Republic of Indonesia has approved a request for the country to take on up to USD2.16 billion in foreign loans to procure air independent propulsion (AIP)-capable submarines.  The matter was confirmed in a letter sent by the country's Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani Indrawati to her counterpart in the Ministry of Defense, Prabowo Subianto, on 15...

A still from a video released by the Israel Defense Forces on 18 May 2016 showing an Iron Dome launcher mounted on the helipad of a Sa'ar 5 corvette firing a Tamir missile. Rafael has since released a modular variant of the C-Dome, which is the naval version of Iron Dome, that looks similar to this 2016 set-up. (Israel Defense Forces)  Rafael Advanced Defense Systems has unveiled a modular variant of its C-Dome fleet-area naval air-defence system that can be cross-deployed quickly across multiple vessels.  The concept was unveiled at the IMDE...

The multirole acoustic stabilised system on MSRV   Sentinel  , seen here while the ship was at Changi Naval Base during IMDEX 2023.   (Janes/Ridzwan Rahmat)  The Republic of Singapore Navy's (RSN's) Sentinel-class maritime security and response vessels (MSRVs) are being equipped with Sitep Italia's multirole acoustic stabilised system (MASS).  The non-lethal weapon system was spotted on first-of-class, MSRV Sentinel, during the warship display segment of the IMDEX 2023 naval exhibition that is taking place at Chan...

A mock-up of the naval Iron Beam system, on display at IMDEX 2023. (Janes/Ridzwan Rahmat)  Rafael Advanced Defense Systems unveiled a naval variant of its Iron Beam directed-energy weapon (DEW) system at the IMDEX 2023 naval exhibition held in Singapore from 3 to 5 May.  The variant is based on the land-based Iron Beam high-energy laser (HEL) system, which was unveiled at the Singapore Airshow in 2014.    A representative from Rafael who spoke to   Janes  at IMDEX 2023 described the naval variant as a DEW that can protect its...

A High Altitude Anti-Submarine Warfare Weapon Capability-configured Mk 54 lightweight torpedo is dropped from a US Navy P-8A Poseidon MPA during testing. The wing kit adaptor is visible atop the torpedo body. The Mk 54 torpedo is used by many countries in the APAC region. (NAVAIR)  The Asia-Pacific (APAC) region is one of the most important maritime regions in the world, with several countries possessing extensive coastlines, strategic naval bases, and busy sea lanes. Increasing regional security challenges, including territorial disputes and...

A model of the Blue Spear missile on display in Singapore. The weapon will soon be deployed on the country's Formidable-class frigates. (Janes/Ridzwan Rahmat)  The Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) will replace the Harpoon surface-to-surface missile (SSM) on its Formidable-class frigates with the Blue Spear SSM.    The weapon will be incorporated as part of the Formidable class' mid-life upgrades (MLUs), said the RSN's Commander First Flotilla, Colonel Ng Kok Yeng Daniel, in a recent wider-ranging interview with   Janes  to di...

A mock-up of the Torbuster SP on display at IMDEX 2023. (Janes/Ridzwan Rahmat)  Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and its subsidiary DSIT Solutions have jointly unveiled a surface vessel-launched variant of the Torbuster hard-kill torpedo countermeasure system.  The original Torbuster is a submarine-launched torpedo countermeasure, which was developed to meet a requirement for the Israeli Navy.  The surface vessel-launched variant is known as the Torbuster SP, and it is being unveiled for the first time at the IMDEX 2023 naval exhibition held...

The configuration of Rheinmetall's ‘Total Ship Trainer' features simulators including full-mission bridges, part-task bridges, engineering rooms, damage control trainers, and ship-handling systems. (Rheinmetall)  Rheinmetall unveiled its ‘Total Ship Trainer', a networked and integrated training solution, at the IMDEX 2023 naval exhibition held in Changi, Singapore, from 3 to 5 May.  According to Rheinmetall, the ship trainer will enable navies to conduct realistic, land-based, and simulated training for an entire warship crew, in part or toge...

As Newport News Shipbuilding is building aircraft carrier   Enterprise  , the yard finds it needs to outsource unit and panel work.  (Janes/Michael Fabey)  HII is looking to outsource some construction work for aircraft carrier Enterprise (CVN 80) at its Newport News Shipbuilding yard, HII officials confirmed on 4 May during a quarterly call with investment analysts.  “On CVN 80, we find ourselves from a time capacity and throughput [standpoint] needing to offload and/or outsource unit work and panel work right no...

ST Engineering said its new Autonomast system is designed to convert a manned vessel into an unmanned surface vessel for autonomous missions. (Janes/Vinod Kumar CV)  Singapore Technologies Engineering (ST Engineering) displayed its new Autonomast system at the IMDEX 2023 naval exhibition in Changi, Singapore, held from 3 to 5 May.  According to the company, the modular Autonomast is designed to convert a manned vessel into an unmanned surface vessel (USV) for autonomous missions.  “[The system] integrates various mission controls and payloads...

IAI has developed its first unmanned mini submarine, named BlueWhale. (IAI)  Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) has unveiled its first unmanned mini submarine, named BlueWhale.  Developed by IAI's subsidiary Elta Systems, the modular, electric-propelled large autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) is designed for covert intelligence-gathering operations above the sea surface, as well as anti-submarine warfare (ASW) and minehunting missions.  According to IAI, BlueWhale has already undergone thousands of hours of submerged and autonomous operation...

Rheinmetall's MASS decoy system is pictured here firing an Omni-Trap multispectral decoy round during a live trial. Australia will become the 16th user nation of the system. (Rheinmetall)  The Australian government has signed a deal with Rheinmetall Defence Australia (RDA) to procure the company's Multi-Ammunition Soft-kill System (MASS).  The Department of Defence (DoD) in Canberra said on 5 May that the MASS decoy system will be integrated onto the Royal Australian Navy's (RAN's) Anzac-class frigates and Hobart-class destroyers.  The deal a...

A computer-generated image depicting the possible stern view of Singapore's future multirole combat vessel. (Singapore Ministry of Defence)  The Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) will soon be equipped with a new class of frigate-sized combatants under a plan to replace the service's six Victory-class corvettes with the multirole combat vessel (MRCV).  While earlier computer-generated images issued by the country's Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) have long hinted that the MRCV will be larger than the Victory class, official comments on the new ves...

The Lanza 3D medium-range surveillance radar (pictured) is part of two of the three Defence Deployable Air Traffic Management and Control Systems (DDATMCS) delivered by Indra to the RAAF. (Indra)  Spanish technology company Indra delivered three deployable air traffic management systems to the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) under the Australian Department of Defence's (DoD's) Project AIR 5341 Phase 1.  The systems, named the Defence Deployable Air Traffic Management and Control Systems (DDATMCS), will enable the RAAF to manage airfield and...

The Giraffe 1X is a lightweight X-band 3D radar with an AESA digital beam-forming antenna. It is available in land and naval iterations. (Saab EDS)  The British Armed Forces will be equipped with new Saab Giraffe 1X radars.  According to a company announcement on 2 May, the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has ordered 11 Saab Giraffe 1X radars for approximately SEK264 million (USD25.6 million).    Deliveries began at the end of 2022 and are scheduled to conclude in the summer of 2023 (June to September), an MoD spokesperson told   Janes...