An internal view of the Space Surveillance Telescope inside the dome at the Naval Communication Station Harold E Holt in Western Australia. On 1 July the ADF operationalised its first joint space unit, the No 1 Space Surveillance Unit, which will be responsible for operating the SST to enhance space domain awareness of the forces. (Commonwealth of Australia)  The Australian Department of Defence (DoD) announced on 3 July initiatives taken in accordance with the Defence Strategic Review (DSR) 2023 to improve space defence capabilities of the A...

SEA will build and install communications systems for the Royal New Zealand Navy's Te Kaha and Te Mana (pictured) frigates under phase two of the MoD's Frigate Sustainment - Communications project. (Petty Officer Chris Weissenborn, New Zealand Defence Force)  UK-based Systems Engineering & Assessment Ltd (SEA) has secured a contract worth GBP26 million (USD33 million) to build and install communications systems for the Royal New Zealand Navy's (RNZN's) two MEKO 200 ANZ Anzac frigates.  The contract is part of the New Zealand Ministry of Defe...

USS   Charleston  conducted the first set of overseas mine-countermeasures operations.  (US Navy)  The littoral combat ship (LCS) USS Charleston (LCS 18) recently completed the first set of overseas mine-countermeasures (MCM) training missions during a 26-month forward deployment in the Western Pacific, US Navy (USN) officials confirmed.  “The emphasis was showing we have the mission package capable of doing MCM not just inside US waters, but doing it outside US waters in conjunction with other units,” Commander...

A rendering of an MQ-4C Triton UAS demonstrating persistent targeting for long-range fires during ‘Northern Edge 2023'. (Northrop Grumman)  Northrop Grumman is gleaning lessons learned from the MQ-4C Triton's recent participation in the US Navy (USN)-led Arctic military exercise ‘Northern Edge 2023', as programme officials are preparing for the unmanned aerial system (UAS) to reach initial operating capability (IOC).  Achieving IOC for the Triton Integrated Functional Capability (IFC)-4 variant remains “a critical step as the [USN] achieves i...

Australian Army soldiers from the 5th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, onboard F470 Zodiacs conduct small-boat training in the littoral environment during Exercise ‘Tiger's Run 2022' on the Timor Sea off the coast of Northern Territory. (Commonwealth of Australia)  The Australian Army has initiated restructuring of its units to support a Defence Strategic Review (DSR) recommendation that requires the country's ground force to engage in littoral operations.  The DSR – released in late April – recommended restructuring the army to focus on...

Artist impression of ASW frigates. (Damen Naval)  The Dutch Materiel and IT Command (COMMIT) signed a contract with Damen for the design, build, and delivery of four anti-submarine warfare (ASW) frigates for the Netherlands and Belgian navies on 29 June.  At the same time, COMMIT signed a separate contract with Thales to equip the ships with its Above Water Warfare System (AWWS) fire control cluster and sensor suite.  Under their joint ASW Frigate (ASWF) programme, the Belgian and Dutch navies are procuring two ships each to replace their res...

The German Navy's two ageing Type 704 tankers   Spessart  (pictured) and   Rhön  have been in service since 1974 and are fast approaching the end of their service lives.  (Michael Nitz – Naval Press Service)  A steel-cutting ceremony for the first of two new Type 707 fleet replenishment tankers for the German Navy was staged at Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany, on 29 June.  The two ships are being built under the lead management of prime contractor NVL Group (formerly Lürssen Werft) in co...

Illustration of the LPD Flight II-class amphibious warfare ship LPD 31, the future USS Pittsburgh. (US Navy )  Should the US Navy (USN) decide to end its amphibious shipbuilding pause to buy more San Antonio-class landing platform dock (LPD) vessels, the service should quickly return to the production pace for the current ships being built by Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Mississippi, according to George Nungesser, company vice-president – Program Management.  The navy is now studying its amphibious building and operational needs while...

The US is making investments in its submarine industrial base to help meet AUKUS and US Navy needs. (Janes/Michael Fabey)  Country members of the AUKUS security pact – Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States – have begun to work towards Pillar 2 of the pact, according to US officials.  “We have begun efforts associated with Pillar 2,” Kurt Campbell, deputy assistant to the president and co-ordinator for Indo-Pacific Affairs on the National Security Council, said on 26 June during an AUKUS discussion at the Center for Strategic an...

An artist's concept of a notional patrol ship design. (OMT)  The Danske Patruljeskibe K/S consortium – comprising Terma, Odense Maritime Technology (OMT), and PensionDanmark – has been awarded a contract to design a new class of flexible patrol ship for the Royal Danish Navy (RDN).  Signed on 23 June by the Danish Ministry of Defence's Materiel and Procurement Agency (Forsvarsministeriets Materiel- og Indkøbsstyrelse: FMI) and Danske Patruljeskibe K/S, the contract represents the first stage of a long-term co-operation intended to deliver the...

The French and Italian navy's four Horizon-class anti-air warfare destroyers in formation. (Italian Navy)  A formal contract for the mid-life upgrade (MLU) of the four Franco-Italian Horizon-class anti-air warfare (AAW) frigates is expected to be signed in the coming weeks, Fincantieri and Naval Group, operating under their 50/50 joint venture (JV) partnership Naviris, announced.  The pending deal follows a memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed by representatives from Italy and France at the Paris Air Show 2023 on 20 June.  Built under a...

The Independence-class Littoral Mission Vessel, RSS   Fearless  . Its sister vessel, RSS   Dauntless  , has carried out the class' inaugural firing of the VL MICA anti-air missile at Exercise ‘Pacific Griffin' 2023.  (Janes/Ridzwan Rahmat)  A Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) Independence-class littoral mission vessel (LMV) has fired an MBDA VL MICA missile for the first time, validating the vessel's anti-air capabilities.  Janes understands that the inaugural firing was conducted during the US Navy (...

The USN awarded HII a contract modification to fund the new delivery schedule for carrier   John F Kennedy  .  (Michael Fabey)    The US Navy (USN) awarded HII a USD274 million fixed-price incentive (firm target) modification and a USD119.2 million cost-plus-fixed-fee and cost-plus-incentive-fee modification for the Ford-class aircraft carrier,   John F Kennedy  (CVN 79), on 23 June to help fund the carrier's new delivery schedule changes.     Officially, the contract modifications are mea...

It will cost more than planned to upgrade shoreside facilities, such as those in Kodiak, Alaska, to support the proposed US Coast Guard Offshore Patrol Cutters. (Michael Fabey)  The expected costs for new or upgraded facilities to accommodate the proposed US Coast Guard (USCG) Offshore Patrol Cutter (OPC) fleet has more than tripled over the last decade, according to a recently released US Government Accountability (GAO) Office report.  “[The] OPC's facilities acquisition cost estimate – including home ports and shore facilities – increased f...

The AN/WSN-12 Inertial Sensor Module, which provides accurate positioning data with or without Global Positioning Systems for US Navy ships and submarines. (Northrop Grumman)  US Navy (USN) leaders have approved full-rate production for the newest variant of the sea service's Inertial Sensor Module (ISM), which will provide surface and underwater combatants with precision positioning data, even in the absence of Global Positioning Systems (GPSs).  Low-rate initial production (LRIP) variants of the Northrop Grumman-built AN/WSN-12 ISM had alre...

Raytheon Australia has conducted a flight test of the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System at the Woomera Test Range in South Australia. The above picture shows NASAMS from a live-fire exercise in the US. (Kongsberg)  Raytheon Australia has conducted a flight test of a short-range ground-based air-defence (SRGBAD) system at the Woomera Test Range in South Australia, the company said in a press release on 20 June.  According to Raytheon, the “successful” flight test demonstrated the SRGBAD system's “accuracy and capability” to detec...

JS Atago, USS Benfold, and ROKS Yulgok Yi seen here conducting a trilateral BMD exercise in the Sea of Japan. (JMSDF)  Japan's Aegis-equipped destroyers that are presently deployed for ballistic missile defence (BMD) duties will revert to air-defence roles once the country operates dedicated BMD vessels.    This is according to information provided by the Japanese Ministry of Defense's (MoD's) press office in response to questions from   Janes  on the country's future sea-based BMD capabilities.   The Japan Maritime Self-D...

The Turkish Navy's first Istanbul-class frigate is pictured before its departure on initial sea trials on 20 June. (Turkish MoD)  The Turkish Navy's first Istanbul (TF-100)-class frigate started sea acceptance trials on 20 June – marking another milestone for the programme, the Turkish Ministry of Defence has announced.  The future TCG Istanbul was laid down at Istanbul Naval Shipyard in 2017 and launched in 2021. It is the first of four planned frigates in the class, which are planned to enter service by 2026.  The three follow-on ships are...

A file image of   Bunga Mas Lima  , which has been deployed to shadow the presence of the Chinese research vessel   Haiyang Dizhi 8  in the South China Sea.   (Royal Malaysian Navy)  The Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) has deployed its auxiliary support ship Bunga Mas Lima in response to the presence of yet another Chinese government vessel in what Putrajaya considers to be its exclusive economic zone (EEZ).  The deployment appears to be an attempt by the RMN to project a more proportionate response amid...

The US Coast Guard is trying to extend the service lives of its Medium Endurance Cutters. (US Coast Guard)  The additional delivery delays for the US Coast Guard (USCG) Offshore Patrol Cutters (OPCs) could disrupt some USCG operations – even with the USCG attempts to lengthen the service lives of its ageing Medium Endurance Cutters (MECs) – according to the US Government Accountability Office (GAO).  As noted in its report, Coast Guard Acquisitions Offshore Patrol Cutter Program Needs to Mature Technology and Design, released on 20 June the i...