Page 34 - Australian Defence Magazine April 2020

34 SEA POWER HOBART CLASS
APRIL 2020 | WWW.AUSTRALIANDEFENCE.COM.AU
ABOVE: Minister for Defence Linda Reynolds was on deck for the handover ceremony.
original schedule – itself rebaselined three times - and nearly 17 years after the AWD construct was first made public in the 2000 Defence White Paper.
Significant improvements in the construction process saw Ship 2 Brisbane commissioned in October 2018, more than two years behind schedule, while delivery of NUSHIP Syd- ney was several months earlier than previously re-scheduled.
This followed a decision to modify the off-hangar storage of Mk 54 light anti-submarine torpedoes and AGM-114N Hellfire air-to-surface missiles for the ship's MH-60R naval combat helicopter as part of the construction process rather than after its completion.
Together with the Aegis combat system, the AWDs’ con- siderable weapons and sensors fitout provides capabilities well beyond the ships’ primary long-range air defence role.
PROGRAM HISTORY
Project definition of the type began shortly after publica- tion of the 2000 White Paper and included analyses of de- sign requirements, the combat system, and possible candi- dates to fill the design role.
In 2005 a three-way AWD Alliance was announced group- ing Commonwealth-owned ASC – formerly the Australian Submarine Corporation – as the principal shipbuilder; Ray- theon Australia as the mission systems integrator responsi-
Modelling and Simulation
Artificial Intelligence
Digital Platform
Virtual and Augmented Reality
Big Data
Internet of Things
Cyber Security
3D Printing
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