US Navy awards LCS contract to Austal and Lockheed

WASHINGTON (BNS): The US Navy has awarded Austal USA and Lockheed Martin Corporation each a fixed-price incentive contract for the design and construction of a 10 ship block-buy, for a total of 20 littoral combat ships (LCS) from fiscal 2010 through fiscal 2015.

"The awards represent a unique and valuable opportunity to lock in the benefits of competition and provide needed ships to our fleet in a timely and extraordinarily cost-effective manner," US Navy Secretary Ray Mabus said in a statement.

The amount awarded to Austal USA is $432 million and the amount awarded to Lockheed Martin is $437 million. The contract includes options for nine additional vessels in the following five years.

The new contracts give each shipbuilding team one ship to build now, with another in 2011. Two more per year for each team will follow in 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015.

Lockheed will build a single-hull LCS, while Austal will provide a trimaran -- three hulls side by side. Both versions will weigh around 3,000 tonnes, have a top speed of 40 knots (74 kilometers per hour) and carry a helicopter, the statement said.

When all 10 ships of each block purchase are awarded, the value of the ship construction portion of the two contracts would be 3.6 billion dollars for Lockheed Martin and 3.5 billion for Austal USA.

"The LCS is uniquely designed to win against 21st century threats in coastal waters posed by increasingly capable submarines, mines and swarming small craft," Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Gary Roughead, was quoted as saying in the statement.

Related Photos

The littoral combat ship USS Freedom (LCS 1) operates off the coast of Kauai, Hawaii, during the at-sea phase of Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) 2010, the world's largest international maritime exercise. (U.S. Navy photo by Lt. Ed Early/Released)







The Navy's newest littoral combat ship USS Independence (LCS 2) arrives at Mole Pier at Naval Air Station Key West. Independence is on the way to Norfolk, Va., for commencement of initial testing and evaluation of the aluminum vessel before sailing to its homeport in San Diego. Independence is a fast, agile, mission-focused ship specifically designed to defeat "anti-access" threats in shallow, coastal water regions, including surface craft, diesel submarines and mines. (U.S. Navy photo by Naval Air Crewman 2nd Class Nicholas Kontodiakos/Released)




The littoral combat ship Pre-Commissioning Unit (PCU) Fort Worth (LCS 3) is launched into the Menominee River during a christening ceremony for the navy's third littoral combat ship. Fort Worth will continue to undergo outfitting and testing at Marinette Marine before delivery to the Navy in 2012. (U.S. Navy photo courtesy of Lockheed Martin/Released)

A composite photograph of the littoral combat ships USS Freedom (LCS 1), top, and USS Independence (LCS 2) provided by Naval Surface Forces, U.S. Pacific Fleet shows the two ships underway. (U.S. Navy photo illustration/Released)

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South Korea deploys more anti-submarine aircraft on sea border

SEOUL (AFP): South Korea has deployed five extra anti-submarine patrol aircraft to guard against a potential attack by North Korea, a report said Tuesday, amid high tension on the disputed sea border.


The military on Saturday deployed five P-3CK surveillance aircraft in addition to 11 anti-submarine planes already in operation to patrol the sea off the west and east coasts, JoongAng Ilbo newspaper reported.

The move is “aimed to improve the ability to detect submarines following a North Korean submarine's attack on the Cheonan warship,” the paper quoted a military official as saying.

Seoul, citing a multinational investigation, blamed Pyongyang for torpedoing its Cheonan warship in March 2010, killing 46 sailors, a charge the North has vehemently denied.


“With the additional deployment of maritime surveillance aircraft, we are able to intensively monitor movements of the North's submarines in the East Sea and Yellow Sea,” the official was quoted as saying.

The aircraft, nicknamed “submarine killer” due to its ability to detect and attack submarines, have taken part in major drills including a joint naval exercise with the United States last July, the paper said.

A navy spokesman confirmed the report to AFP but refused to give details.

Cross-border military tension has soared after Pyongyang's shelling of the border island of Yeonpyeong on the Yellow Sea in late November, which killed four South Koreans including two civilians.

South Korea has staged a flurry of military exercises, including one jointly with the US, in a show of force against its communist neighbour, which did not follow through with threats of a new and deadlier attack.

Despite the tensions, South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak Monday reached out to North Korea, saying Seoul was open to talks and offering closer economic ties.

In his New Year policy address, just days after Pyongyang called for improved relations in 2011, Lee also urged the North to abandon its “military adventurism.”

The North, in a joint New Year editorial of state media on Saturday, said tensions “should be defused as early as possible,” stressing dialogue and cooperation “should be promoted proactively.” Related tags .....

Lockheed Martin's JAGM completes flying tests on Super Hornet

ORLANDO, FLORIDA (BNS): Lockheed Martin has successfully completed a comprehensive series of tests to demonstrate the flight characteristics of the US Navy’s F/A-18E/F while carrying the Joint Air-to-Ground Missile (JAGM). 

The flying qualities test series consisted of six flights from Patuxent River Naval Air Station, Maryland, between October 5 and November 2 with a total flying time of 11.2 hours. 

The aircraft flew at altitudes ranging from 5,000 feet to 35,000 feet and at speeds approaching Mach 1.0. During each flight, the Super Hornet was refueled in the air by a support tanker to enable the aircraft to reach all the required speeds and altitudes at which JAGM had to be tested, according to the company news release. 

"The F/A-18E/F presents some of the most challenging environments for JAGM. Collecting vibration, acoustic and shock data in these environments for 11.2 hours of flight with no anomalies or problems represents a very successful beginning of flight test efforts that will continue into the EMD phase to integrate JAGM on the Super Hornet," Hady Mourad, JAGM program director at Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control, was quoted as saying in the release. 

The JAGM test articles were six instrumented measurement vehicles (IMVs) equivalent in weight, size and dimensions to tactical JAGM rounds and outfitted with resistive temperature devices, acoustic sensors and accelerometers to measure the flight environments experienced by the launchers and the missiles. 

Three IMVs were loaded onto each of two new Navy fixed-wing triple-rail launchers designed and manufactured by Lockheed Martin and Marvin Engineering to carry JAGM on the F/A-18E/F. Fully outfitted, the Super Hornet could be configured to carry 18 JAGMs, as opposed to just four of the Maverick air-to-ground missiles that JAGM will replace, the report added. 

For the flight series, the two 'three-packs' of JAGM IMVs were carried at the most challenging stations—outboard and midboard—in varying load-out combinations with other weapon systems including bombs, anti-radiation missiles and air-to-air missiles, as well as external fuel tanks. 

Currently, the threshold aviation platforms include the US Army’s AH-64D Apache attack helicopter, the Army’s Extended Range Multi-Purpose (ERMP) Sky Warrior unmanned aerial system, the US Marine Corps’ AH-1Z Super Cobra attack helicopter, the US Navy’s MH-60R Seahawk armed reconnaissance helicopter and the Navy’s F/A-18E/F Super Hornet jet fighter. The tri-service Joint Strike Fighter also is under consideration as an objective platform. 

The initial operational capability of JAGM on the AH-64D, AH-1Z and F/A-18E/F is scheduled for 2016, and the IOC for the MH-60R and ERMP is 2017 Related tags .....

Russia to pay nearly $2 billion for French warships: report

MOSCOW (AFP): Russia will pay France 1.37 billion euros (USD 1.81 billion) for two Mistral-class assault warships that Moscow agreed to purchase from the NATO member last week, according to news reports.





“The first ship will cost 720 million euros and the second 650 million euros,” the RIA Novosti news agency cited a source close to the negotiations as saying on Thursday.

The deal, which involves joint construction of the vessels, is the first sale to Russia of such naval high-tech by a NATO country.

It has been condemned by Alliance members from the three Baltic nations, with leaked cables showing that US Defence Secretary Robert Gates also raised the issue while on a visit to Paris this year.

The helicopter carrier costs about 500 million euros (USD 650 million) and it was not immediately clear why Russia was paying a premium.

Moscow had sought to purchase the craft together with their sensitive equipment and the December 24 announcement in Paris made no mention of whether Russia had got its way.

The source close to the negotiation said Moscow was paying a higher price for the first craft because most of it would be produced in France, with Russia's share in the project growing by the second vessel.


“If Russia's share of construction on the first ship is 20 percent, it may reach up to 40 percent for the second ship,” the source told RIA Novosti.

The source said the third and fourth ships would be fully manufactured in Russia as per agreement, but gave no time frame of when the craft would be built.

A Mistral-class ship can carry up to 16 helicopters, four landing craft, 13 battle tanks, around 100 other vehicles and a 450-strong force. It has facilities for a full command staff and is equipped with a 69-bed hospital.

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Naval Force of Pakistan test-fires several surface-to-air missiles

The Pakistan Navy today successfully test-fired several surface-to-air missiles to assess its air defence capabilities, officials said.

Three surface-to-air missile tests were carried out in Sonmiani area of Sindh province, a navy spokesman said, adding all missiles hit their targets precisely.

Naval chief Admiral Noman Bashir and Air Defence Commander Vice Admiral Tayyab Ali Dogar witnessed the drill.

“The successful testing will add to the defence capability of the Pakistan Navy,” Mr. Bashir said.

A combination of surface-to-air missiles was tested, the navy said in a statement.

The “fire and forget” missiles are equipped with highly sensitive infrared homing heads that can intercept high speed aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicles.

These weapons give the navy the flexibility to operate with various missiles and strengthen the ground-based air defence, the statement said.

The area of responsibility of the navy’s Air Defence Battalion stretches from Sir Creek in the east to Jiwani in the west, it added.

Officials said the induction of modern weapons and equipment will augment the navy’s ground-based air defence capabilities against hi-tech aircraft and missiles.

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US Navy introduces smoking ban on submarines

WASHINGTON (AFP): Giving up smoking may be a New Year's resolution for some, but all US sailors will now have to follow suit, as the US Navy moves to ban its crews from smoking aboard submarines.

In a country where fights against Big Tobacco are common, troops deprived of fresh air and natural light for months were surprisingly allowed to smoke in submerged submarines. But no more, after a Pentagon study found the risks of second-hand smoke were severe in those highly confined spaces

Submarine Forces Commander Vice Admiral John Donnelly ordered the ban aboard 73 US subs, citing health concerns.

"Our sailors are our most important asset to accomplishing our missions," he said in announcing the measure in April.

"Recent testing has proven that, despite our atmosphere purification technology, there are unacceptable levels of second-hand smoke in the atmosphere of a submerged submarine.

The only way to eliminate risk to our non-smoking sailors is to stop smoking aboard our submarines."

About 40 per cent of the 13,000 US submarine sailors smoke, double the US national average.

The order comes 16 years after a ban on smoking in military buildings and installations, as well as aboard US Navy ships. Sailors are, however, allowed to smoke on the decks of surface ships.

US submarine sailors are also bracing for another major change with women being allowed to serve aboard submarines for the first time starting late next year or in early 2012.

British submarine sailors are allowed to smoke on board, while the French have banned the practice except on decks when the submarine is out of the water. Related tags .....