Page 166 - Australian Defence Magazine October 2019

KATHERINE ZIESING AND EWEN LEVICK | CANBERRA
The scale of what the Royal Australian Navy is up to in terms of capability, recapitalisation and training is enormous. In the lead up to the Pacific trade show and Sea Power Centre conference, ADM caught up with Rear Admiral
Peter Quinn to talk about the current state of play and
how Navy is shaping up to answer the call of the
National Shipbuilding Program and related programs.
Rear Admiral Peter Quinn
Hobart class DDGs (the AWDs) and the Collins Class submarines, and all of those capabilities are performing well. We’ve had the first of our Anzacs to go through the AMCAP, the Anzac Midlife Capabil- ity Upgrade. Arunta’s now at sea testing a whole suite of new systems and technolo- gies: new CEA Technologies CEAFAR 2 radars, a new comms suite and platform and combat system upgrades; there’s a lot of new capability being added to those ships under the program.
We’re also upgrading the Collins Class at the moment; sonar, communications, and we’re continuing our rolling combat system development for the Collins in conjunction with the US as part of an ar- maments cooperation program which also covers the Mk 48 heavyweight torpedo.
So, we have the major recapitalisation underway and ramping up, but the core of our war fighting fleet for the next 15- 20 years is still going to be the Anzacs, the Collins and new DDGs. We’re continuing to invest in upgrades to keep those capa- bilities very relevant. Some of the things we’ve got coming up; we’ll be putting ESSM Block 2 into the Anzac Class and the Destroyers. We’ll continue to upgrade the Aegis Combat System in the Destroy- ers and the SAAB combat system in the Anzacs. We’ll be introducing new missile systems into the Destroyers and we’ll be replacing Harpoon. And we’re introduc- ing remote and autonomous systems into the mix across the fleet.
Our main focus is on keeping our fleet available, capable and operationally ready and I think we’re doing a pretty good job of that.
If you look at the Collins, for example, we embarked on the Coles Review a few years ago to increase the availability of that platform. For the last three years we have exceeded the international benchmarks for availability of the boats, to the point where earlier this year we had four out of six boats available to the Fleet Command- er and had three boats deployed simul- taneously to the Northern Hemisphere. That’s pretty impressive and an outstand- ing example of what can be achieved when Navy, CASG and industry work together in a true transformational partnership.
So, our current capability is going pret- ty well; very well I would say. It’s in very high demand with everything that’s hap- pening, a lot more regional engagement;
Continued on page 156
Head of Navy Capability
Head Navy Capability Head Force Integration
Head Joint Capability Management and Integration
Head Joint Capability Coordination
Director General Navy Capability, Transition and Sustainment
Commanding Officer HMAS Anzac
Director Maritime Combat Development
Commanding Officer HMAS
Sydney
Head Combat Systems Training Executive Officer HMAS
Adelaide
Principal Warfare Officer HMAS Perth
Officer In Charge Maritime Warfare Training Group
Principal Warfare Officer HMAS Newcastle
Joined Royal Australian Navy and graduated from HMAS Creswell
ADM: Navy is undergoing obviously a massive recapitalisation of platforms; how are you maintaining capability at the moment?
QUINN: Absolutely, it’s the biggest re- capitalisation since WWII. We’ve started to build the first of two of the Arafura class offshore patrol vessels (OPVs) in Ad- elaide and the production of ships 3 to 12 will commence in WA next year. We’re in contract for the Hunter class frigates, and we’re building the new frigate construc- tion yard at Osborne South (see P44 for more on the work being done by ANI at Osbourne). That yard will be up and run- ning early next year, we’ll commence pro- totyping of the Hunter late that year and then start to build the first ship in 2022.
For the Attack Class Submarine; we’re in the Strategic Partnership Agreement (SPA) with Naval Group and the design of the new submarine is proceeding well. Around 2023 we’ll commence the con- struction of the first of the Attack Class. And finally, our two new Supply class lo- gistics ships have been launched in Spain (based on the Cantabria class), with the first to be delivered to Australia in the first half of next year.
All that’s going on but, of course, but the primary Navy platforms at the moment are the Armidale and the Cape class patrol boats, the Anzac Class frigates, the new
2017
2016
2015
2014 2011
2009
2006
2003
2001 2000
1997
1996
1993
1983
FROM THE SOURCE
REAR ADMIRAL PETER QUINN
REAR ADMIRAL PETE QUINN, AM, CSC, RAN
166 | October 2019 | www.australiandefence.com.au