THE NAVY CONTRIBUTION TO AUSTRALIAN MARITIME OPERATIONS RAN DOCTRINE 2 - 2005 THE NAVY CONTRIBUTION RAN TO AUSTRALIAN MARITIME DOCTRINE 2 - OPERATIONS 2005 © Copyright Commonwealth of Australia 2005 This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced by any process without written permission from the Department of Defence Announcement statement—may be announced to the public. Secondary release—may be released to the public. All Defence information, whether classified or not, is protected from unauthorised disclosure under the Crimes Act 1914. Defence Information may only be released in accordance with the Defence Protective Security Manual (SECMAN 4) and/or Defence Instruction (General) OPS 13-4—Release of Classified Defence Information to Other Countries, as appropriate. Requests for and inquiries about this publication should be addressed to Director, Sea Power Centre - Australia, Department of Defence, CANBERRA ACT 2600 AUSTRALIA RAN Doctrine 2 - 2005 First Edition Sponsor Developer Publisher Chief of Navy Sea Power Centre-Australia Defence Publishing Service Navy Headquarters Royal Australian Navy Department of Defence National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication entry The Navy Contribution to Australian Maritime Operations (RAN Doctrine 2 - 2005). Includes index. ISBN 0 642 29615 4. 1. Australia. Royal Australian Navy. 2. Sea-Power- Australia. 3. Australia - Military policy. I. Australia. Royal Australian Navy. Sea Power Centre - Australia. 359.00994 THE NAVY CONTRIBUTION TO AUSTRALIAN MARITIME OPERATIONS RAN DOCTRINE 2 - 2005 The Navy Contribution to Australian Maritime Operations FOREWORD The Navy Contribution to Australian Maritime Operations is written to accompany Australian Maritime Doctrine and is closely linked to that principal volume of Royal Australian Navy (RAN) doctrine. Where Australian Maritime Doctrine focuses on the strategic rationale for and components of maritime operations, the purpose of this volume is to examine in greater detail the operational capabilities, and indeed limitations, of our Navy. A key objective of this volume is to demystify maritime operations. It does not seek to provide a recipe book for meeting every conceivable maritime event, but rather to offer an accessible reference on how the RAN organises, prepares for and approaches operations in accordance with its philosophical doctrine. The most obvious linkage between the two volumes is the continued reference to the roles and tasks laid down in Australian Maritime Doctrine, but this volume also offers practical examples of the broader doctrinal principles at work in the modern RAN. Accordingly, this volume should further assist understanding of the nature of maritime power, and of the various and flexible ways in which each component of our Navy may be employed in response to government direction. This volume represents an important next step in the evolution of the RAN’s doctrinal thinking. It provides an authoritative guide to current structures, circumstances and conditions, and a basis from which future thought and development will proceed. Like Australian Maritime Doctrine this volume is a vital component of the training and education continuum of our personnel as well as those of the other Services. The Navy Contribution to Australian Maritime Operations has been written at the unclassified level. I trust that it appeals to the widest possible audience and objectively informs debate on the range of capabilities available and required for the conduct of maritime operations now and in the future. Unlike Australian Maritime Doctrine, which principally reflects the work of a small editorial group, The Navy Contribution to Australian Maritime Operations was developed from the individual efforts of many personnel serving at sea and ashore during the past three years. It is very much a book about today’s Navy, written by a range of professionals drawn from every specialisation and major organisation within the RAN. While the coordinators of successive drafts of each chapter are known, all the contributors v Foreword are too numerous to mention and it would be wrong to discriminate among them by mentioning the work of some but not others. For this reason, individual contributions are not acknowledged in this volume. Nevertheless, I am pleased to acknowledge the work of all concerned here and to commend their product to everyone interested in Australia’s national security and the Navy. C.A. Ritchie AO Vice-Admiral, RAN Chief of Navy 25 March 2005 vi The Navy Contribution to Australian Maritime Operations vii The Navy Contribution to Australian Maritime Operations CONTENTS Page 1 Introduction 1 2 The Law of the Sea and Naval Operations 13 3 RAN Structure 29 4 Command and Control 39 5 Personnel 49 6 Maritime Logistics 63 7 Maritime Preparedness Cycle 75 8 Surface Combatants 85 9 Amphibious Manoeuvre Operations 97 10 Afloat Support 113 11 Submarines 121 12 Patrol Boats 133 13 Mine Warfare and Clearance Diving 143 14 Naval Aviation 157 15 Maritime Geospatial Information and Services 167 16 Maritime Trade Protection 179 17 Future Trends 195 Annex - Navy Unit Specifications 207 Acronyms and Abbreviations 227 Glossary 235 Index 257 ix The Navy Contribution to Australian Maritime Operations INTRODUCTION 1 • Australian Maritime Doctrine contains the RAN’s philosophical doctrine about operations in the maritime environment. • The Navy Contribution to Australian Maritime Operations builds on Australian Maritime Doctrine to detail the composition, roles, tasks and capabilities of the RAN’s major organisational elements. • Government policy and parliamentary scrutiny have both reinforced the utility of a national maritime strategy over the past five years, while the RAN’s understanding of the interrelationship between several components of its maritime doctrine has clarified in the same period. • Several conceptual developments in Australia and overseas are likely to influence Australian doctrine in the foreseeable future. THE CONTEXT OF THE NAVY CONTRIBUTION TO AUSTRALIAN MARITIME OPERATIONS The Australian Doctrine Hierarchy Australia’s strategic military doctrine, from which all other doctrine is derived, is laid down in a single publication Foundations of Australian Military Doctrine (ADDP-D). Two separate sets of doctrinal publications lie underneath this book: • Australian Defence Doctrine Publications (ADDP), which are developed under the authority of the Chief of the Defence Force (CDF) for use throughout the Australian Defence Force (ADF); and • Service publications, which are developed under the authority of the respective Service Chief. 1 Chap 1 Introduction Despite the great strides made in recent years to improve understanding through the development of agreed joint doctrine and terminology, a creative tension is always evident when the term ‘maritime’ is employed in the title of a Service-sponsored book that mostly contains single-Service matters. And the term presents some practical problems in the joint environment in which most western navies operate. In western military usage, the word ‘maritime’ is commonly used to describe the environment in which forces operate rather than to identify any particular Service that might provide forces to that environment. Maritime doctrine is therefore that component of doctrine which sustains the employment of armed forces at and from the sea. Royal Australian Navy Doctrine Most navies are provided for similar purposes; the deterrence of war, the prosecution of war should deterrence fail, and the protection and advancement of national interests in times of peace. Captain W. T. T. Pakenham, RN Naval Command and Control, 1989 While the truth of Captain Pakenham’s observation is apparent, the ways and means used by the world’s navies varies widely in their pursuit of the common ends he defined. In order to explain its purposes more clearly to a wide and public audience, the RAN has developed two publicly available books containing its strategic-level doctrine. The first, Australian Maritime Doctrine: RAN Doctrine 1 - 2000 (AMD), contains the RAN’s philosophical doctrine about operations in the maritime environment. Initially published in 2000, it explains how the RAN thinks about, prepares for, and operates in peace and conflict. Beginning with a description of our maritime environment and of maritime strategic and operational concepts, AMD sets out the RAN’s place within a joint and integrated ADF and its roles in Australia’s military strategy. AMD therefore concentrates on the broader strategic issues that can be paraphrased in the questions: What utility do armed forces have in the maritime environment, and why? The Navy Contribution to Australian Maritime Operations The book you are reading – The Navy Contribution to Australian Maritime Operations: RAN Doctrine 2 - 2005 (NCAMO) – builds on these philosophical principles to provide greater detail on the composition and role of the RAN’s major organisational elements and the capabilities each provides as a component of the developing joint, seamless ADF. Chapters 8-16 of NCAMO explore the operating environment, roles and tasks of 2 The Navy Contribution to Australian Maritime Operations each of the RAN’s major operational outputs. These chapters outline the practicalities of each major Navy task within the capabilities of the current RAN force structure, and demonstrate how individual unit and force capabilities may be employed to protect Australia’s national interests.