Armée Australienne/Australian Defence Force (ADF)

Citation :

Australian sub sinks target ship Kilauea during RIMPAC

The former USS Kilauea is the latest ship sunk as part of the Rim of the Pacific exercises in and around the Hawaiian Islands.

The ammunition ship commissioned in 1968 went down in water nearly 15,500 feet deep 63 miles off the coast of Kauai this morning, sunk by an Australian submarine.

Australian Commodore Stuart Mayer, Combined Forces Maritime Component commander for RIMPAC, said the "HMAS Farncomb's success reminds us yet again of the invaluable role submarines play in modern warfare."

The U.S. Navy says the exercises allow crews to gain proficiency in live firing.

Two other ships were sunk during the exercises this month.

Environmental and costs concerns had prompted the Navy to observe a moratorium on using old ships for target practice.

staradvertiser

Citation :

Two Australian No.77 Squadron F/A-18 Hornet welcome Indonesian Air Force (TNI-AU) Sukhoi Su-27 & Su-30 Flanker into Darwin to participate in Exercse Pitch Black 2012.

Spoiler:

HMAS Darwin ( FFG 04 ) et HMAS Perth ( FFH 157 ) durant les exercices RIMPAC-12

Citation :

Incident à bord d’un sous-marin australien
30 juillet 2012 – 8:42
Dans le cadre de l’exercice aéronaval RIMPAC 2012, qui, organisé par l’US Navy, est l’un des plus importants du monde, un sous-marin australien de la classe Collins, le HMAS Farncomb, s’est illustré, le 24 juillet dernier, en coulant l’USNS Kilauea, un navire ravitailleurs américain retiré du service en 2008, après lui avoir envoyé une torpille Mk 48.

La Royal Australian Navy (RAN) n’a pas manqué de communiquer sur ce fait d’arme en diffusant un communiqué sur son site Internet en mettant en avant que les sous-marins de type Collins constituent « l’un des meilleurs systèmes d’armes au monde. »

Il faut dire que la marine australienne n’a pas eu, jusqu’à présent, beaucoup de chance avec ses 6 sous-marins acquis auprès de la Suède dans les années 1990. Un rapport public établi en 1999 estimait en effet que leurs performances étaient insuffisantes afin d’atteindre « le niveau requis pour les opérations militaires », en raison d’une « myriade de déficiences dans leur désign et des limitations opérationnelles conséquentes liées à la plate-forme et aux systèmes de combat ».

Pour autant, le coup au but du HMAS Farncomb n’aura pas mis fin à la « scoumoune » de la RAN étant donné que ce sous-marin a été contraint, le lendemain, de faire surface en urgence, sous les yeux des participants à RIMPAC 2012, ce qui fait plutôt mauvais effet.

La raison de cette remontée en surface en urgence, qui aurait pu être fatale en temps de guerre, est dû à la rupture d’un tuyau, ce qui a innondé partiellement un compartiment du submersible, qui naviguait alors à l’immersion périscopique en utilisant ses moteurs diesels poiur recharger ses batteries.

Cela étant, la marine australienne a minimisé cet incident en parlant de « voie d’eau mineure » à bord du HMAS Farncomb, qui avait déjà eu un problème il y a 5 ans, lors d’une mission de renseignement près de la base navale chinoise située sur l’île de Hainan, en mer de Chine méridionale, son hélice s’étant prise dans un filet de pêche.

« Dès l’incident, des procédures standards prédéfinies ont été immédiatement exécutées et la situation a été maîtrisée rapidement » a poursuvi la RAN. « Le sous-marin a fait surface dans le cadre de cette réaction normale » a-t-elle ajouté, en précisant qu’il n’y avait pas eu de blessé parmi les membres de l’équipage et qu’une enquête va être ouverte.

Ce n’est pas la première qu’un tel incident arrive à bord d’un sous-marin de la classe Collins. En 2003, le HMAS Dechaineux, à qui, lors de manoeuvres, l’an passé, l’on avait prêté des exploits qui ne pouvaient qu’être imaginaires car le bâtiment avait été immobilisé au même moment à Singapour pour réparer une panne de son système de propulsion, avait connu une mésaventure semblable, un tuyau d’eau de refroidissement s’étant rompu alors qu’il se trouvant en immersion profonde.
http://www.opex360.com/2012/07/30/incident-a-bord-dun-sous-marin-australien/
Photo : Coup au but pour le HMAS Farncomb. L’USNS Kilauea va couler 40 mn après avoir été touché par une torpille Mk. 48 (c) Royal Australian Navy

KC-135 US ravitaillant un B737 AEW&C australian durant le RIMPAC-12

Citation :

Thales selects Boeing ILS services for Hawkei prototypes development
1 August 2012
Thales Australia has selected Boeing Defence Australia (BDA) to provide integrated logistics support (ILS) services during the next phase of its Hawkei Light Protected Mobility Vehicle (PMV) prototypes development programme.

The A$3.5m ($3.68m) contract was awarded under Stage 2 of the manufactured and supported in Australia (MSA) option of the Australian Defence Forces' (ADF) LAND 121 Phase 4 programme, and involves the supply of ILS services for six Hawkei prototypes and a trailer to Thales.

Services for the 16-month prototype production and testing phase include providing development and training to operators, conducting logistics support analysis and engineering services to the Thales design team, to help enhance the vehicles' long-term availability and maintainability, lowering future support costs.

Further testing of the trailer will be carried out by the Australian Government.
Thales Australia CEO Chris Jenkins said: "The Hawkei is very much a team effort, and Boeing's involvement since the project's early days has enabled us to deliver innovative prototypes specifically designed to meet the current and future requirements of the Australian Defence Force."

BDA managing director Kim Gillis said that the company's ILS services were sought for some of the major ADF acquisition programmes, including Wedgetail Airborne Early Warning and Control and Vigilare system.

"We continue to provide operational lifecycle support for aircraft including classic Hornets, Super Hornets and the C-17 Globemaster III integrated sustainment programme," Gillis added.

Thales had signed an agreement with the Australian Department of Defence (DoD) in early July for the development and delivery of six prototype Hawkei vehicles for trials, including user assessments, as well as capability and reliability testing by the national army throughout 2013.

The first Hawkei is scheduled for delivery in late 2012, and the vehicles can be considered for meeting army's PMV light requirement of LAND 121 phase, provided the company is successful in manufacturing a suitable platform at an affordable cost.
http://www.army-technology.com/news/newsthales-selects-boeing-ils-services-hawkei-prototypes-development/

Citation :

Australia rules out US nuclear aircraft carrier base
By Agence France-Presse on Thursday, August 2nd, 2012
Australian Defence Minister Stephen Smith has rejected a proposal to base a US nuclear aircraft carrier and other warships in the country, a move that would rankle key trade partner China.

The idea of using the Australian navy’s western base, HMAS Stirling near Perth, to host an American carrier group and other fighter jets was reportedly raised in a study of US military posture in the Asia-Pacific.

Media in Australia said the Washington-based Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) report, commissioned by the US Defence Department, had been submitted to Congress.

Smith said after a speech late Wednesday that while increased US access to HMAS Stirling was possible long-term, American aircraft carriers would not be based in Australia.

“The report is an independent report to the United States government. It’s not a United States government document,” he said.

“We don’t have United States military bases in Australia and we are not proposing to. What we have talked about in terms of either increased aerial access or naval access is precisely that — greater access to our facilities.

“The strategic rationale for that is the growing importance of India and the growing importance of the Indian Ocean rim, particularly in a naval and maritime sense.”

In June, Pentagon chief Leon Panetta announced in Singapore that the United States would shift the bulk of its naval fleet to the Pacific by 2020 as part of a new strategic focus on Asia.

It followed a visit to Australia last year by US President Barack Obama, who announced an enhanced defence cooperation with Canberra which will see up to 2,500 US Marines deployed in the country.

The first troops touched down in April on a six-month rotational basis, based on the outskirts of the northern city of Darwin.

It is part of Washington’s plan to bolster its military presence in the strategically vital Asia-Pacific, amid concerns about China’s increasing assertiveness.

The CSIS report considers various options for increasing, decreasing or leaving US military presence in the region at its current level, Australian media said.

Another proposal in the report canvasses expanding the Marines’ presence to a full air ground taskforce that would see thousands more troops in Australia’s north, according to the Australian Financial Review.

But Smith played this down.

“There is no suggestion being made to us that Australia should receive such a large number of Marines transferred from Okinawa or from Guam,” he said.

The United States announced in April it would pull 9,000 Marines out of Japan as it seeks to ease a long-running standoff over the future of its huge military presence in one of its top Asian allies.

In his speech on Australia’s changing strategic circumstances, Smith highlighted the shift towards the Asia-Pacific as a region of global significance, particularly the Indian Ocean rim.

“The US, China and India will be the great strategic powers of our region and the international community,” he said.

“The emergence of three great strategic powers in the region will see an adjustment in the balance of power across the region and around the globe.

“A continued, indeed enhanced, United States’ presence in the Asia-Pacific is essential to peace and stability in our region,” he added.






Read more: http://www.defencetalk.com/australia-rules-out-us-nuclear-aircraft-carrier-base-44046/#ixzz22NlJXKyb

Citation :

Cost of 'Growler' Jets Blows Out to $1.7b
(Source: The Canberra Times; issued August 7, 2012)

The cost to the taxpayer of converting 12 RAAF Super Hornets into $250 million electronic warfare warriors, or ''Growlers'', has increased almost six fold from $300 million to $1.7 billion.

By the time they are expected to come on line around the end of the decade, the planes' jamming pods will be close to their use-by date.

The United States government has had to accelerate its ''next generation jammer'' program to counter problems with its own Growler fleet and the results of that research could be operational by the early 2020s.

Australian critics say Defence wants to spend top dollar for technology that dates back to 1971, was used on F-111s over Baghdad during the first Gulf War, has ''survivability issues'' in a combat environment and that America hopes to replace sooner rather than later.

Although the Australian government will not commit to Growler until next month at the earliest, it has already spent $55 million on the capability which has been strongly championed by members of the ADF senior leadership group.

Of this, $35 million was allocated in February 2009 to hardwire 12 of the 24 Super Hornets ''for but not with'' the Growler package. A further $20 million was allocated by Defence Minister Stephen Smith in March this year to fund ''long lead items''.

Joel Fitzgibbon, the then defence minister, said on February 27, 2009, that Australia's Growler project would ''require an additional investment of around $300 million''.

What he did not say was Australia wasn't planning to buy the ALQ-99 electronic warfare pods, just the systems and hardware to allow them to be fitted on an ''as required'' basis.

''Subsequently the US Defence Security Cooperation Agency advised the US Congress last May 22 of a potential sale of the Growler to Australia at an estimated cost of $1.7 billion,'' a Defence spokesman has explained. ''The initial proposal that underpinned the 2009 cost estimate would have provided a lesser capability than Defence now proposes to acquire''.

The pods would have had to be obtained from the United States Navy whenever Australia wanted them, a source said. The US would have retained absolute control over the RAAF's use of the Growler technology.

To buy the pods for 12 planes outright will cost an additional $1.4 billion, just $100 million short of the 2012-13 Australian budget surplus target.

The ALQ-99 pods have been criticised as unreliable by the US Government Accountability Office which said in 2010 the US Navy had identified ''seven major deficiencies'' and that the Director of Operational Test and Evaluation found the electronic attack suite ''degraded'' the aircraft's radar performance.

''The new plane [the Growler] is carrying aged ALQ-99 jamming pods into a future where they will be woefully inadequate,'' US analyst Loren Thompson says.

The Australian Growler project, listed in last month's revised Defence Capability Plan as Project Air 5349 Phase 3 and costing ''between $1 billion and $2 billion'', is well insulated from the current round of Defence budget cuts.

''If [the] government decides to acquire the Growler, the expenditure would be spread over a number of years, noting the modification kits and other mission and support systems would be produced later this decade,'' a Defence spokesman said.

Under the new arrangement, which will give Australia its own pods, there will still be constraints on their use.

''It is extremely unlikely the RAAF would be allowed to use its Growlers while there were American aircraft in the air [in the vicinity],'' we were told.

The cost blowout raises questions about transparency and value for money.

Andrew Davies, a senior analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, supports the shift from capability access to capability ownership - even if there are operational constraints. ''I think there is more of an upside than a downside,'' he said.

Carlo Kopp, of Air Power Australia, disagrees: ''There are some major survivability problems with the Growler,'' he said.

http://www.defense-aerospace.com/article-view/release/137534/cost-of-australian-growlers-grows-six_fold.html

Citation :

Cost of 'Growler' jets blows out to $1.7b


The cost to the taxpayer of converting 12 RAAF Super Hornets into $250 million electronic warfare warriors, or ''Growlers'', has increased almost six fold from $300 million to $1.7 billion.

By the time they are expected to come on line around the end of the decade, the planes' jamming pods will be close to their use-by date.

The United States government has had to accelerate its ''next generation jammer'' program to counter problems with its own Growler fleet and the results of that research could be operational by the early 2020s.

Australian critics say Defence wants to spend top dollar for technology that dates back to 1971, was used on F-111s over Baghdad during the first Gulf War, has ''survivability issues'' in a combat environment and that America hopes to replace sooner rather than later.

Although the Australian government will not commit to Growler until next month at the earliest, it has already spent $55 million on the capability which has been strongly championed by members of the ADF senior leadership group.

Of this, $35 million was allocated in February 2009 to hardwire 12 of the 24 Super Hornets ''for but not with'' the Growler package. A further $20 million was allocated by Defence Minister Stephen Smith in March this year to fund ''long lead items''.

Joel Fitzgibbon, the then defence minister, said on February 27, 2009, that Australia's Growler project would ''require an additional investment of around $300 million''.

What he did not say was Australia wasn't planning to buy the ALQ-99 electronic warfare pods, just the systems and hardware to allow them to be fitted on an ''as required'' basis.

''Subsequently the US Defence Security Cooperation Agency advised the US Congress last May 22 of a potential sale of the Growler to Australia at an estimated cost of $1.7 billion,'' a Defence spokesman has explained. ''The initial proposal that underpinned the 2009 cost estimate would have provided a lesser capability than Defence now proposes to acquire''.

The pods would have had to be obtained from the United States Navy whenever Australia wanted them, a source said. The US would have retained absolute control over the RAAF's use of the Growler technology.

To buy the pods for 12 planes outright will cost an additional $1.4 billion, just $100 million short of the 2012-13 Australian budget surplus target.

The ALQ-99 pods have been criticised as unreliable by the US Government Accountability Office which said in 2010 the US Navy had identified ''seven major deficiencies'' and that the Director of Operational Test and Evaluation found the electronic attack suite ''degraded'' the aircraft's radar performance.

''The new plane [the Growler] is carrying aged ALQ-99 jamming pods into a future where they will be woefully inadequate,'' US analyst Loren Thompson says.

The Australian Growler project, listed in last month's revised Defence Capability Plan as Project Air 5349 Phase 3 and costing ''between $1 billion and $2 billion'', is well insulated from the current round of Defence budget cuts.

''If [the] government decides to acquire the Growler, the expenditure would be spread over a number of years, noting the modification kits and other mission and support systems would be produced later this decade,'' a Defence spokesman said.

Under the new arrangement, which will give Australia its own pods, there will still be constraints on their use.

''It is extremely unlikely the RAAF would be allowed to use its Growlers while there were American aircraft in the air [in the vicinity],'' we were told.

The cost blowout raises questions about transparency and value for money.

Andrew Davies, a senior analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, supports the shift from capability access to capability ownership - even if there are operational constraints. ''I think there is more of an upside than a downside,'' he said.

Carlo Kopp, of Air Power Australia, disagrees: ''There are some major survivability problems with the Growler,'' he said.

www.canberratimes.com

a voir les conditions et circonstances du deal,je me dis qu´ils ont un faible pour se faire rouler dans la farine les aussies

Citation :

AUSTRALIE - Vers des quotas de femmes dans l'armée

SYDNEY (Australie), 22 août 2012 (AFP) - L'armée australienne doit instaurer des quotas pour l'incorporation de femmes afin de réduire les discriminations, les violences et les brimades dont elles sont victimes, préconise un rapport officiel publié mercredi après des révélations sur ces pratiques tenaces.

Elizabeth Broderick, déléguée nationale à la lutte contre les discriminations sexuelles, dénonce dans cet épais document "des obstacles pratiques, culturels, systémiques aux changements d'attitude" envers les femmes dans les Forces armées australiennes (ADF).

"Malgré les progrès observés au cours des deux décennies passées, je ne suis pas confiante qu'aujourd'hui les femmes puissent s'épanouir à tous les postes de travail entrant dans la compétence de l'ADF".

Accroître la "masse critique" de femmes ainsi que leurs perspectives d'avancement est un élément essentiel des réformes à conduire au sein des forces armées australiennes, selon elle.

Elle propose ainsi d'imposer la présence de deux femmes au minimum au sein d'une unité de 10 personnes, une proposition irréaliste s'agissant des unités combattantes, 3% seulement des femmes candidates réussissant les épreuves physiques de sélection, selon ses détracteurs.

Mme Broderick affirme avoir recueilli des témoignages "profondément perturbants" et identifié des comportements "hautement sexualisés" et pourtant habituels.

Près d'une femme sur deux et un homme sur dix déclarent avoir été l'objet de harcèlement sexuel dans l'armée, un chiffre relativement proche des tendances observées dans la vie civile.

Le ministre de la Défense, Stephen Smith, et le chef de l'armée, David Hurley, ont exprimé leur soutien de principes aux 21 recommandations de Mme Broderick, tout en soulignant les pesanteurs des structures militaires.

Les changements de mentalité "prendront du temps et demanderont des efforts soutenus de la part de toute le personnel militaire pendant des années", a déclaré David Hurley.

De multiples affaires ont fait les gros titres de la presse australienne ces dernières années concernant des agressions sexuelles, des violences, des séances brutales de bizutage, et y compris des viols.

Un rapport détaillant une série d'incidents à bord du navire militaire HMAS Success en 2009 affirmait ainsi qu'il y régnait "une culture de prédateurs" et de débauche alcoolisée, avec par exemple un prix attribué à chaque conquête sexuelle d'une collègue femme.

AFP

Citation :

A winged version of the Boeing Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) developed by the US airframer and Australia has completed windtunnel tests.

The JDAM-ER (extended-range) features a "modular, add-on wing kit", developed in Australia, that can triple the 226kg (500lb) weapon's glide range to over 64km (35nm), Boeing said in a statement.

The wings were first integrated with a JDAM in 2008, when releases were conducted using Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) F/A-18C Hornet fighter aircraft.

"By successfully transitioning this technology from prototype to production, the Australian Defence Force will be able to further reduce the risk to its personnel on operations, allowing RAAF aircrew to engage their targets from beyond the range of enemy air defences," Jason Clare, Australia's minister for defence materiel, said in a statement.

"These enhancements will increase the ability of the RAAF to strike more targets in fewer sorties."

Boeing will build and integrate the wing kits in Australia, under a contract awarded in 2011. Initial deliveries are expected in early 2015.

The weapon is likely to equip legacy F/A-18Cs. The RAAF's F/A-18F Super Hornets are equipped with the Raytheon Joint Standoff Weapon for long-range strike missions.

http://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/australian-jdam-er-wing-kit-completes-windtunnel-tests-375969

mon prochain souhait apres la LJDAM,reste a voir si ca depend de Boeing ou de l´Australie(ou des 2)

[HS]

Je suis étonné, Tubitak Sage semble avoir déjà un kit similaire, c'est comparable ?

http://www.sage.tubitak.gov.tr/sage_content_files///projeler/kgk/KGK_ing.pdf

[/HS]

C'est Boeing qui s'occupe de tout...

Citation :

Boeing will produce and integrate the JDAM-ER wing kits for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) under a contract awarded in 2011. The kits will be built in Australia, with initial deliveries expected to begin in early 2015.

http://www.defense-aerospace.com/article-view/release/138006/winged-jdam-completes-1st-round-of-tests.html

60 NM à 30 000 pieds, ça nous fait du 110 km à 9145 m d'altitude, Inanc. Il faudrait savoir à la même altitude quelle est la portée de la JDAM ER (35 NM - environ 65 km). Le Circular Error Probable (CEP) est comparable, de l'ordre de 10 m. Le mode de guidage INS/GPS est le même.

@Inanc,oui comparable,j´aime le Sage.
@Rafi,peut etre Boeing fait tout,mais je crois que c´est sur demande de l´Australie,et chez elle,co-developement

Citation :

A winged version of the Boeing Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) developed by the US airframer and Australia has completed windtunnel tests.

ils l´ont financé,donc ils auront un mot a dire

Citation :

Project Name: Joint Direct Attack Munition Enhancements Phase 1 JP 3027 - Australia
Project Status: Planning
Project Type: Parent
Project Start Quarter: Q1 2011
Project End Quarter: Q4 2015
Project Value (USD): 101.88 Million

Project Sector: Support & Maintenance
Project Background:
The aim of the project is to enhance the capabilities of the Australian Defence Forces (ADF), by providing design, development and manufacture of the joint direct attack munition enhancements (JDAM-ER) wing kit. The enhancements will increase the types of targets against which JDAM is effective, simultaneously improving operational flexibility and reducing the weapon's logistics footprint on operations.
JDAM system comprises global positioning system guidance and control fin components, attached by a harness to a MK 80 series (500 lb, 1000 lb and 2000 lb) bomb to produce a very accurate short range glide weapon.
Project Description:
Australian Department of Defence is undertaking the joint direct attack munition enhancements phase 1 JP 3027 contract. The contract is to develop the JDAM-ER wing-kit.
The CTD utilised a folding wing attachment on a 500 lb bomb body to enable an F/A-18A/B Hornet aircraft to launch the weapon at a significant range from the target. Phase 1 will adapt the CTD JDAM-ER for commercial production, conduct final aircraft certification, and acquire a number of JDAM-ER wing-kits and JDAM tail-kits.
This phase will also consider enhancing the JDAM's guidance system by incorporating a laser guidance sensor to form Laser JDAM (LJDAM). With LJDAM, the F/A-18A/B/F aircraft will be able to engage moving targets and targets where the coordinates are not able to be refined pre-mission, by directing the LJDAM to targets using airborne and land-based laser designators.
Initial materiel release (IMR) is planned for the delivery of an initial quantity of LJDAM and low collateral damage warheads, their support system and associated certification in order to permit the conduct of Operational Test and Evaluation activities. Initial operational capability (IOC) is planned to be the minimum level of capability to allow the ADF to employ LJDAM and low collateral damage warheads from the F/A-18A/B/F aircraft.
The project is in planning stage and contract is expected to be finalised by Q4 2012. The project is likely to continue until the end of Q4 2015.
Project Location: Russell Offices, Australian Capital Territory, Canberra, Australia, Oceania.

SCOPE TYPES

Project Scope:
The US$101.88 million contract involves providing design, development and manufacture of the JDAM-ER wing kit.

http://www.strategicdefenceintelligence.com/article/NSvRJGWPQTM/2011/11/17/australia_undertakes_jdam-er_wing_kit_contract/

Citation :

Royal Australian Navy's New Amphibious Ships Departs Spain by Heavy Lift Ship



Australian Minister for Defence Materiel Jason Clare yesterday announced the departure of the hull of the first of the Royal Australian Navy’s (RAN’s) new amphibious ships from Ferrol in northern Spain.

Mr Clare said the Landing Helicopter Dock (LHD) 01 hull will be transported to Melbourne, Australia, by the Heavy Lift Ship, Blue Marlin. The hull was built in the Navantia shipyard in Spain.

“The trip is expected to take approximately seven weeks depending on weather conditions,” Mr Clare said.

The Canberra Class LHDs are bigger than Australia’s last aircraft carrier HMAS Melbourne. When completed they will be more than 230 metres long, 27.5 metres high and weigh around 27,500 tonnes.

Mr Clare said each ship can carry a combined arms battle group of more than 1100 personnel, 100 armoured vehicles and 12 helicopters and features a 40-bed hospital.

“On arrival in Australian waters the ship will transit to Port Phillip Bay, Melbourne and then on to the Williamstown dockyard for consolidation of the superstructure and installation of the combat and communications and navigation systems. This will be followed by sea trials,” he said.

The vessel is scheduled to be delivered to the RAN in early 2014.

The hull of LHD 02 was launched on 4 July from the Navantia shipyard in a ceremony attended by the Chief of Navy, Vice Admiral Ray Griggs. When complete, LHD 02 will be commissioned as HMAS Adelaide.

defpro.com

Images of the LHD 01 loading and departure can be found at: http://images.defence.gov.au/12130483.

Citation :

Engine fire aboard Collins submarine

Defence has admitted one of its Collins submarines experienced a small fire at sea earlier this month.

The fire on September 15 occurred as the unnamed vessel cruised back to its port on the surface.

Fuel from one of the submarine's two diesel engines leaked onto some pipe insulating material which started smouldering, igniting a small fire.

"The engine was immediately shut down in accordance with normal procedures," defence said in a "hot issues brief" posted on its website.

The small fire was quickly extinguished with a portable appliance. There were no injuries.

The boat continued its voyage back to port with engineers conducting a technical inspection to determine what happened.

Australia's six Collins submarines have experienced a range of problems which has limited their availability for operations.

news.ninemsn.com

Citation :

DEFENCE giant Rheinmetall will chase Australian training contracts linked to the Land 121 military vehicles from its new simulation offices opening in Adelaide.
Rheinmetall Simulation Australia also has its sights on potential defence training work at the Cultana training range and Woomera, according to its new managing director Adrian Smith.
"Rheinmetall is a very serious player, it's the biggest supplier of land simulation in the whole of Europe and technically, is probably the best product," Mr Smith said.The new Adelaide-based company is a wholly owned subsidiary of the German defence and automotive company Rheinmetall AG that has an annual turnover of about $5 billion.Rheinmetall MAN Military Vehicles Australia is negotiating a contract to supply military vehicles to the Australian Army through the Land 121 contract."The big thing about Rheinmetall, unlike some of the other suppliers (to the defence industry) is they have said we are going to build things in Australia and build capability in Australia," Mr Smith said.Mr Smith, who is chairman of Simulation Australia and former chief executive and co-founder of Sydac simulation company, intends working hard to grow the new business.Since his appointment this month, he already has four staff on board, is negotiating to lease a CBD Adelaide office and was "discussing some acquisitions" to grow to 24 staff by early next year.South Australian Treasurer Jack Snelling, who was visiting the German-based parent company when Mr Smith's appointment was announced, said the company was also a contender for the upcoming Australian Land 400 Land Combat Vehicle System program.
If successful, it was likely to establish an Australian facility to produce and possibly assemble the vehicles.
Mr Smith said the simulation branch would also chase a training contract for troops using the new vehicles.
Mr Snelling said it "was a coup" that the company wanted to also "grow their business in our state" through its simulation technology.
Mr Smith said Defence SA and Mr Snelling had been lobbying the company to set up in Adelaide for some time.
Mr Smith is no stranger to building new companies in the local simulation space after co-founding Adelaide-based Sydac in 1988.
He left Sydac for seven years in the early '90s to gain experience, then returned to grow the company that specialises in rail simulation.
Sydac was sold to German rail giant Knorr-Bremse in 2009, with Mr Smith staying on as chief executive for the past three years.
He said leaving was about new challenges and Rheinmetall had "some fantastic technology.
"We have plans for acquisitions and we have some pretty aggressive growth plans," he said.
Rheinmetall Defence's business unit Training and Simulation President Ulrich Sasse said the company chose Adelaide to establish simulation operations to serve Australian forces because of its "vibrant defence industry" and availability of skilled engineers
http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/business/sa-business-journal/defence-giant-launches-simulation-systems-contract-offensive/story-e6fredel-1226479441559

Citation :

JSF Delay to Cause Cost Blow-Out


(Source: The Australian; published Sept. 27, 2012)



A Government decision to delay by two years the acquisition of 12 F-35 Joint Strike Fighters (JSF) will mean a big hike in maintenance costs for the RAAF's ageing fleet of classic F/A-18A/B Hornet strike aircraft.

"Extending the (Hornet) fleet's planned withdrawal date beyond 2020 may require the fleet to undergo an expanded and hence more costly, safety-by-inspection regime, structural modifications program and capability upgrades," the Australian National Audit Office warned in a report released today.

The fleet audit warned that annual spending to sustain the 71 aircraft, the first of which entered service in the late 1980s, has risen from $118 to $170 million a year.

Corrosion repairs to the Hornet's airframe had also increased significantly, from $721,000 in 2007 to $1.36 billion in 2011, the ANAO said.

Worryingly for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), the ANAO raised safety concerns about keeping the ageing Hornet fleet flying. It recommended: "the need for a moderate reduction in the rate at which F/A-18A/B aircraft are accumulating structural fatigue."

A separate report into the Joint Strike Fighter program noted recent initiatives to improve performance are starting to show results.

RAAF wants to buy 100 of the stealthy fifth generation F-35 multi-role strike aircraft at a cost of $13.21 billion, the ANAO said.

The first two F-35 aircraft are scheduled for delivery by 2014 but in May the Government announced a two-year delay in acquiring the next 12 JSFs of an original batch of 14 aircraft.


(EDITOR’S NOTE: Australia’s ANAO is the fifth national audit agency to rig alarm bells about the delays, technical risks and increasing costs of the JSF program, after similar agencies in Canada, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States.
It is, however, the first to take as detailed a look at the effect that these same delays, technical risks and increasing costs will have on the operational capabilities and budget of the country’s air force.
The second report also details for the first time serious technical issues, such as corrosion and structural fatigue, that the RAAF is experiencing with its original fleet of F-18A/B Hornets.)
http://www.defense-aerospace.com/article-view/release/138819/aussie-auditor-warns-of-cost-of-jsf-delays%2C-f_18-upgrades.html

Citation :

Australian Army deploys Giraffe radars in Afghanistan
28 September 2012

The Australian Army has deployed two newly received Counter Rocket Artillery and Mortar (C-RAM) Giraffe AMB radars to support its soldiers in Afghanistan, the country's defence materiel minister Jason Clare has revealed.

Clare said that the new radars were currently operational with Australian Defence Forces (ADF) at the multinational base Tarin Kot in Uruzgan Province, Afghanistan.

"The Giraffe radars provide our troops with early detection of attacks from enemy rockets, artillery and mortars, protecting Australian and ISAF forces," Clare said.

"This early warning system has been a proven force protection capability for our troops, giving them vital seconds of advanced warning so they can take shelter."

Australia had awarded a five-year $86.2m contract to Saab for production and delivery of three Giraffe radars along with field sustainment support services to the army as part of the final stage of the ADF's LAND 19 phase 7A acquisition project in 2010.

Until now, the country has been operating leased radars for successfully detecting and providing early warning against insurgent fire attacks at Tarin Kot since 28 December 2010.

The third and final Giraffe radar under contract is scheduled for delivery to the army in January 2013 and is expected to be used as an Australia-based training support system.

Giraffe AMB is a two- or three-dimensional G/H-band multi-role surveillance system, designed to enhance the protection of the Australian and other International Security Assistance Forces (ISAF) troops by providing early warnings for incoming rockets, artillery and mortar threats.

Integrated on a single ground all-terrain vehicle, the radar facilitates rapid deployment and high mobility and is also capable of conducting operations even in intense clutter and jamming environments.
http://www.army-technology.com/news/newsaustralian-army-deploys-giraffe-radars-afghanistan