NAVY NEWS WEEK 35-1 26 August 2018 Australian submarine HMAS Sheean returns from three-month Indo-Pacific deployment The Royal Australian Navy’s Collins-class submarine HMAS Sheean returned home to Fleet Base West after almost three months of operations in the Indo-Pacific. The navy did not reveal which exercises the submarine joined and how many port visits the crew made. The only known port visit was the one to Malaysia, which took place in July. HMAS Sheean berths alongside Diamantina Pier at Fleet Base West, Western Australia. Photo: RAN Commodore Buckley, who exercised operational control of Sheean throughout the deployment, is also a previous Commander of the Submarine Force. ―It‟s been a few years since I stood here to welcome back one of our boats, and I am delighted to be here today,‖ he said. ―HMAS Sheean performed exceptionally well in their recent theatre deployment. “The deployed presence of RAN submarines in the Indo-Pacific underpins their vital role as the national maritime strategic deterrent capability.‖ Commander Submarine Force Captain Geoff Wadley also acknowledged the importance of an effective submarine force and noted the hard work put into the submarine enterprise by both military and civilian organizations. ―It’s been a busy year for our boats, which has resulted in significant submarine activity around Australia and overseas,‖ he said. ―It‟s important and gratifying to see everyone in the submarine community, no matter what they do, contribute to providing Australia with a potent and reliable submarine capability.‖ Source: Naval Today Royal Navy sailors recognized for accomplishments under “missile threat” HMS Daring accompanying USNS Brittin. Photo: Royal Navy The crew of Royal Navy Type 45 destroyer HMS Daring will be awarded a new medal clasp for bravery shown during Bab al- Mandeb strait escort missions in 2016. Announcing the recognition, the Royal Navy said HMS Daring sailors braved the threat of missile attack to protect merchant ships in the Middle East. The new medal – named the Gulf of Aden Clasp – was approved by Her Majesty The Queen and will be introduced for those who served on board Type 45 destroyer HMS Daring during the missions. The intense mission began after an attack on a merchant vessel, the MV Swift, off the coast of Yemen in October 2016. Portsmouth-based HMS Daring was already headed to the area at the start of a nine-month deployment on maritime security operations. The destroyer and her 260-strong crew then conducted 20 patrols of the area threatened by land-based missiles and explosive boats in the hands of Houthi rebels. With the ship’s advanced surveillance radar and Sea Viper missile system, they ensured the critical choke point for world trade remained free-flowing. Defense secretary Gavin Williamson said: ―Maritime trade is the lifeblood of Britain‟s economy and the Royal Navy plays a key role in protecting important trade routes. The extraordinary achievements of HMS Daring‟s ship‟s company, under constant missile threat, is a testament to the skill and bravery of the men and women of the Navy. “Their award of the Gulf of Aden Clasp is thoroughly deserved and they should wear it with pride.‖ HMS Daring’s crew operated for 50 days under threat of attack, safeguarding 800,000 tons of merchant shipping. Each transit of the chokepoint was conducted at the highest degree of readiness. Sailors and Royal Marines who were on board at the time will be awarded the clasp, which is worn with the General Service Medal, later this year. Those who do not already possess the medal will be awarded it. Commander Phil Dennis, who was the commanding officer of HMS Daring at the time of the operation, said: ―This is wonderful recognition of the immense efforts of my team in HMS Daring during such a vital mission which ultimately helped protect Britain’s economy and safeguard world trade. ―There was a significant and viable threat from both surface and air attack at the time, but throughout that threat my team performed brilliantly, calling upon their world-class training to rise to the challenge. After passing east of the Suez Canal, Daring first escorted the Royal Navy’s Joint Expeditionary Force task group. As well as providing air defense, Daring helped protect the task group’s ships from the threat of waterborne attack, carrying Royal Navy and Royal Marines boarding parties to counter piracy, terrorists and smugglers. She later accompanied the significant amount of merchant shipping through the narrow lanes of the southern Red Sea and Bab al-Mandeb strait. Several other Royal Navy ships have since maintained patrols and maritime security duties in the region since the threat has de-escalated. Earlier this month, Daring‟s sister ship HMS Diamond was called upon to monitor the movements of two Russian warships as they passed through the English Channel. Source: Naval Today Varyag and other Pacific Fleet ships to conduct live firing exercises in Sea of Okhotsk The ships of the fleet’s largest group are expected to interact with the ships and aircraft of the Army and Forces in Northeastern Russia Photo: Yuri Smitiuk/TASS MOSCOW, August 20. A group of Pacific Fleet ships, which includes the Varyag missile cruiser and the Bystry destroyer, has entered the Sea of Okhotsk, in which it will carry out missile and artillery firing exercises, said the fleet’s spokesman, Captain 2nd rank Nikolai Voskresensky, on Monday. "A group of Pacific Fleet naval ships, including the Varyag missile cruiser, the Bystry destroyer and the Admiral Tributs, Admiral Vinogradov and Admiral Panteleyev large anti-submarine ships, has embarked on the performance of tasks in the Sea of Okhotsk area. The ships will carry out joint missile and artillery firing drills at training military ranges as part of scheduled tactical training," Voskresensky said. "The ships of the fleet’s largest group are expected to interact with the ships and aircraft of the Army and Forces in Northeastern Russia," the officer added. He specified that while moving from Vladivostok the ships carried out anti-submarine drills, during which they found and tracked an "enemy" submarine with the use of Ka-27 helicopters. The crews also hammered out the group’s air defense, developed joint tactical maneuvering and trained to render help to a vessel "in distress." Source: TASS Canadian frigates getting shipboard electronic countermeasures upgrades Royal Canadian Navy’s Halifax-class frigates are set to benefit from improved shipboard electronic countermeasures systems under a contract announced by the Canadian defense minister on August 17. According to defense minister Harjit S. Sajjan, the government of Canada has awarded Lockheed Martin Canada a CAD$94.2 million contract to maintain and overhaul the Reprogrammable Advance Multimode Shipboard Electronic Countermeasures System (RAMSES). The Halifax-class frigate HMCS Montreal. Photo: RCN This countermeasure upgrade contract follows a similar one, awarded in June this year, for the installation of Multi Ammunition Softkill System (MASS) automated decoys which will provide the frigates with 360° protection against anti-ship missiles. It is a firing system used to launch decoys to project vessels against anti-ship missiles guided by radio frequency, laser and infrared seekers. RAMSES is an electronic attack system that protects the modernized Halifax-class frigates against radio frequency guided missiles. It employs jamming signals to track and distract anti-ship missiles from hitting the ship. MASS is an integral part of the anti-ship missile defense suite. Through the contract, key parts of RAMSES will undergo a technology refresh. The contract also secures repair, overhaul, engineering changes, and ongoing support services. This work will ensure the system remains relevant and capable for the life of the Halifax-class frigates. ―These investments in our Royal Canadian Navy will provide our women and men in uniform with what they need for successful missions, and deliver jobs, both here in British Columbia and across Canada for years to come,‖ defense minister Harjit S. Sajjan said. Source: Naval Today Pentagon report says China’s violating international laws and preparing for war against the US by Alex Hollings · August 20, 2018 · Foreign Policy Although the breadth of American media attention has been focused on the hybrid warfare threat posed by Russia, it is widely believed that Vladimir Putin’s nation wouldn’t have the economic strength required to sustain an actual war with a nation like the United States. In fact, despite possessing a few high profile ―doomsday‖ style weapons, the threat Russia poses to American diplomatic and military dominance pales in comparison to the nation’s only real near-peer level threat: China. In an annual report provided to Congress by the Defense Department, the Pentagon outlined China’s hypocritical approach to naval activities in recent years, as well as evidence to suggest that China is already training for long-range bombing runs against America’s Pacific assets. ―Over the last three years, the PLA (People‟s Liberation Army) has rapidly expanded its overwater bomber operating areas, gaining experience in critical maritime regions and likely training for strikes against US and allied targets,‖ the document says in no uncertain terms. The report goes on to list specific instances in which Chinese bombers on training runs have diverted into new areas of the Pacific as compared to previous training operations. These new areas brought Chinese bombers closer than ever to American installations in the Pacific and serve as a powerful indicator that China is preparing for the potential need to bomb American assets in Japan and even as far away as Guam. Per the Pentagon’s analysis, the most likely short-term reason America could find itself in conflict with China is if China chooses to use force in order to reassert control over Taiwan.