NAVY NEWS WEEK 40-1

30 September 2018

Protection Vessels International: Weekly Maritime Security Report in Piracy and Security News 20/09/2018

West Africa Guinea: Armed pirates board merchant vessel at Conakry anchorage - 17 September At least four armed pirates boarded an anchored merchant vessel via the anchor chain at 0300 hrs local time at an anchorage at the Port Autonome de Conakry. The master raised the alarm, locked the accommodation and crew mustered in the citadel. The robbers opened fire at the bridge windows and gained access to accommodation before ransacking crew cabins and escaping with their personal belongings. All crew were reported as safe. PGI Analysis: Violent crime is periodically reported at Conakry port and the attack comes days after a robbery and kidnap attempt targeting a vessel at Conakry anchorage on 8 September. Criminals are often undeterred by basic security measures and vessels are advised to take additional precautions in Guinean waters. Robbers typically target a crew’s personal belongings, although cargo thefts are occasionally reported. Select Maritime News Cameroon: Navy seizes weapons, mercenaries heading to Anglophone region - 13 September The navy reportedly seized three Nigerian vessels with weapons and mercenaries on board intended to support separatists in the Anglophone regions, Jeune Afrique reported. The seizure occurred on 6-7 September. The navy seized an unspecified number of Kalashnikov-style rifles, 12-gauge shotguns and ammunition. A navy spokesperson said the mercenaries planned a “large-scale” attack on 15 September. The incident marks the first reported seizure of weapons intended for the Anglophone conflict at sea. Indonesia: Ferry accident leaves 13 people dead off the coast of Sulawesi - 15 September At least 13 people have been killed and eight remain missing after a ferry caught fire and sank off the coast of Sulawesi province, an official said. Singapore’s Strait Times newspaper reported that the boat was believed to be carrying almost 150 passengers when the blaze started. Authorities rescued 126 people from the area but search and rescue operations are ongoing for the remaining passengers. The cause of the accident was not immediately clear. The incident comes after more than 160 people died when a ferry sank in Lake Toba in western Indonesia in June. Japan: Tokyo conducts first submarine drill in South China Sea - 17 September Japan carried out its first submarine drill in the South China Sea, Japanese newspaper the Asahi Shimbun said. A submarine reportedly joined three warships in waters southwest of the China-controlled Scarborough Shoal, the newspaper said. Tensions have been high over the Scarborough Shoal since Beijing seized the shoal from Manila in 2012. China claims most of the South China Sea, which is a key trade route, despite competing claims from Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam. Mexico: Authorities seize 2,200 kg of cocaine off Mexico’s west coast - 11 September Officials from the Mexican Police and Coast Guard, in a joint operation with US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) personnel, seized 2,200 kg of cocaine from a boat off the coast of Oaxaca state. Officials arrested eight people on drug trafficking charges including four Mexican nationals, three Colombians and a Canadian. Police believe the drugs belonged to the Sinaloa Cartel. Washington considers the Sinaloa Cartel to be the primary drug trafficking organisation in the Americas. Qatar: Customs agents seize drugs from boat - 15 September Members of the Qatari customs and security services seized 5.7 kg of hashish and 400 tramadol tablets concealed in a wooden boat. The location of the seizure was not disclosed but authorities said that the vessel came from an unnamed Asian county and was bound for Ruwais port in the UAE. Authorities said that they had observed an increase in maritime seizures since local ports had begun to accept more food shipments because of the ongoing Saudi and Emirati-led boycott of Qatar. Tunisia: Coast guard intercepts Libyan boat over illegal fishing in southeast - 17 September The coast guard intercepted a Libyan fishing vessel and detained three Egyptian crew members over illegal fishing of the southeastern coast, the ministry of defence said. The vessel, which had illegally entered Tunisian territorial waters, was intercepted near the maritime border between the two countries and taken to Lektef port. Tunisia: Coast guard foils immigration attempt off Sfax - 11 September The coast guard intercepted seven would-be migrants aboard a vessel off the northeastern city of Sfax, local media reported, citing security sources. Security forces arrested all the people on board, who had been trying to reach Italian shores, and seized the vessel. Attempts to cross the Mediterranean to reach Europe are common in Tunisia, which suffers from high unemployment. Yemen: Coalition warships kill 18 civilians in Red Sea - 16 September Saudi-led coalition warships shelled a boat in the Red Sea near al-Khoka, south of Hodeidah in western Yemen, according to local media reporting on 18 September. The alleged shelling occurred on 16 September and killed at least 19 fishermen from al-Qadha village in al-Khoha according to local media. Civilian casualties in Saudi-led coalition operations have provoked widespread international criticism. Source: Protection Vessels International Ltd via www.hellenicshippingnews.com

Scorpio Tanker Ransacked by Pirates Off West Africa September 19, 2018 by gCaptain

STI Hammersmit. Photo: MarineTraffic.com/Ria Maat

A product tanker was attacked by a group of armed pirates on Monday while at an anchorage off the coast of Guinea in West Africa. The IMB Piracy Reporting Centre reported the tanker was at anchor at the Conakry Anchorage when it was boarded by four armed robbers after midnight on September 17. During the attack, the pirates fired at the bridge windows and gained access into the accommodation. As the crew locked themselves in the ship’s citadel, the pirates ransacked the ship’s cabins and escaped with personal belongings. A navy boat later arrived to provide assistance. The tanker has been identified as the 2015-built STI Hammersmith, belonging to Scorpio Tankers. AIS ship tracking data showed the vessel arrived from Las Palmas, Spain and she remained at the Conakry Anchorage as of Wednesday. All crew were reported safe in the incident. Source: https://gcaptain.com

PLA navy vessel still stranded after running aground in Hong Kong during Typhoon Mangkhut Law enforcement source tells the Post that the Nan Jiao 86, a navy personnel transport ship, became stranded on the shore at Kau Yi Chau on Sunday The Nan Jiao 86, a PLA navy personnel transport ship, was stuck on the rocky shore of Kau Yi Chau, some 3km to the west of the western tip of Hong Kong Island. At noon on Wednesday, the Post observed some soldiers were stationed at a beach on the eastern part of the islet. Visible damage could be seen on the 42- metre vessel, which had its starboard or right side facing the sea. Part of a cabin wall had been ripped open. There were no signs of oil spillage and the extent of damage on the other side of the boat was unknown. At one point, more than 10 uniformed staff arrived at the scene on a motor boat, carrying some supplies onto the beach. Some of them also went on board to inspect the damage. The military officers did not respond to questions about a salvage operation, only asking the Post to “keep a safe distance”, although they did not prohibit photo-taking. A law enforcement source told the Post on Tuesday that the Nan Jiao 86, carrying at least eight crew members, ran aground on Sunday as Mangkhut tore into the city. No one was injured in the incident The storm was the most powerful to hit Hong Kong since records began in 1946 and at its height packed sustained winds of up to 250km/h, according to the Observatory. At its closest, Mangkhut was within 100km of the city early on Sunday afternoon. “After the No 10 typhoon signal was issued on Sunday morning, the ship’s anchor chain broke due to big waves caused by the storm,” the source said. “The waves and strong current forced it to the rocky shore on Kau Yi Chau.” At about noon on Sunday, the PLA sought help from the Hong Kong Marine Department’s vessel traffic centre. The centre then alerted local police. “The PLA asked for help to get the stranded vessel back into the water,” the source said. “But because of adverse weather, there was no police deployment.”A Security Bureau spokesman on Wednesday night said it had received a notice from the garrison about the “landing” of a military vessel at Kau Yi Chau to “take shelter” on Sunday when Mangkhut was lashing the city. The bureau said it had learned the garrison was arranging for its removal.Another source said the Nan Jiao 86 used to berth at a base on Stonecutters Island, but it was anchored off Kau Yi Chau before the arrival of the monster storm. He believed another boat or a crane would be used to pull the stranded vessel back into the water during high tide.Kau Yi Chau is an uninhabited, isolated islet located west of Victoria Harbour, between Peng Chau and Green Island in Hong Kong. The PLA could not be reached for comment. Source : South China Morning Post Additional reporting by Ng Kang-chung

Tri-nation Exercise Ibsamar starts on Monday Written by defenceWeb, Friday, 28 September 2018

Hard on the heels of the just completed Exercise Atlasur, the SA Navy next week starts work on its second international exercise of the year – Ibsamar. Between October 1 and 15 the maritime service of the SA National Defence Force (SANDF) will host the sixth edition of Exercise Ibsamar. Participants are Brazil as lead nation, India and South Africa. The exercise flows from the trilateral agreement between the three countries and was first staged 10 years ago in 2008. Included in the exercise objectives are to maintain, promote and build on previous operational and tactical co-operation between the joint forces of the participating countries and to evaluate support capabilities of the joint force over a period of high demand. The exercise also aims to develop and test joint combined planning doctrine, as well as evaluating joint and combined inter-operability to improve joint capability understanding and co- operation. In addition to putting three platforms SAS Amatola, SAS Protea and SAS Manthatisi into the exercise the SA Navy will also contribute elements of its maritime reaction squadron. They are expected to work closely with a platoon of Brazilian Special Forces embarked on the frigate BNS Barroso and Indian marines, expected to be on both the Indian Navy platforms tasked for the exercise in southern African waters. Indian Navy ships participating are the INS Kolkata, a stealth guided missile destroyer and the Talwar Class frigate, INS Tarkash. Air assets will come from Brazil (an embarked AS350 Ecureuil) and India with a Sea King maritime helicopter and an Alouette rotary-winged aircraft. South Africa is providing a 22 Squadron Super Lynx aboard Amatola as well as a C-47 TP (35 Squadron), an Oryx medium transport helicopter (also 22 Squadron) and a pair of 2 Squadron Gripens from AFB Makhado in Limpopo. South Africa, in the form of its SA Military Health Service is the lead healthcare supplier via 1 Medical Task Group while the Brazilian and Indian contingents have own medical corps representatives aboard. The first phase of the exercise is an alongside one between October 1 and 3 in Simon’s town harbour followed by a three day sea phase in and around False Bay. A second sea phase follows in False Bay and the Western Cape east coast area with an alongside phase to wrap up the exercise before conclusion on October 15. Source: http://www.defenceweb.co.za

Japanese Carrier Drills with British Warship Heading to Contested South China Sea September 27, 2018 by Reuters

Japanese helicopter carrier Kaga (front) Japanese destroyer Inazuma (C) and British frigate HMS Argyll take part in a joint naval drill in the Indian Ocean, September 26, 2018. Picture taken September 26, 2018. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon

By Tim Kelly ABOARD THE KAGA, Indian Ocean, Sept 27 (Reuters) – Japan’s biggest warship, the Kaga helicopter carrier, joined naval drills with Britain’s HMS Argyll in the Indian Ocean on Wednesday as the frigate headed toward the contested South China Sea and East Asia. Britain, Japan and close ally the United States have found common cause in countering growing Chinese influence in the region, to keep key sealanes linking Asia to Europe, the United States and elsewhere from falling under Beijing’s sway. “We have traditional ties with the British navy and we are both close U.S. allies and these drills are an opportunity for us to strengthen cooperation,” Kenji Sakaguchi, the Maritime Self Defence Force (MSDF) commander of the Kaga group’s four helicopters said on the hangar deck. The more frequent presence of the Royal Navy is a chance for the two navies to train more closely in the future, he added. The Argyll, Kaga and its destroyer escort the Inazuma practiced formations on calm seas in the Indian Ocean near commercial sea lanes plied by container vessels and oil tankers. Three helicopters from the Japanese carrier hovered above, monitoring the drill. The Argyll’s arrival comes after Britain’s amphibious assault ship Albion last month challenged Beijing’s territorial claims on its way to Vietnam from Japan by sailing close to Chinese bases in the Paracel islands in a freedom of navigation operation (FONOP). China dispatched a warship and helicopters to counter the British presence and warned London that similar action in the future could endanger talks for a possible trade deal Britain is seeking as it prepares to leave the European Union. In Beijing on Thursday, Defence Ministry spokesman Ren Guoqiang said China was paying close attention to Japan’s activities, and opposed countries from outside the region getting involved in the South China Sea issue. “We hope Japan does more to benefit regional peace and stability and speak and act cautiously on the South China Sea,” Ren told a monthly news briefing, when asked about the Kaga. Global hotspot China, which says its intentions are peaceful, claims most of the South China Sea, through which about $3 trillion worth of trade passes every year. Malaysia, Vietnam, the Philippines and Brunei also claim parts of the sea, which has oil and gas deposits and rich fishing grounds. Japan, which is embroiled in separate territorial dispute with China in the neighboring East China Sea, has yet to conduct a FONOP in the South China Sea. However, in a rare announcement this month, Japan’s defense ministry said one of its submarines had carried out a naval exercise in the disputed waterway with two Japanese destroyers and the Kaga, which is on a two-month deployment in the Indo-Pacific. After crossing the South China Sea, the Argyll will operate in waters around Japan, including a stint monitoring sanctions imposed on North Korea by the United Nations to force it to abandon nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles, said a British government source, who asked not to be identified because he is not authorized to talk to the media. The Argyll is the third Royal Navy ship in Asia’s waters this year, following the tour of the Albion and another frigate. “Normally we hold discussion with other countries before joint drills, but with the British there is no need to, so they are easy to work with,” said Tatsuhiko Mizuno, an operation planning officer for the Kaga group. (Reporting by Tim Kelly Additional reporting by Ben Blanchard in BEIJING; Editing by Clarence Fernandez) Source: https://gcaptain.com

SA Navy support and maintenance agreement a done deal Written by defenceWeb, Thursday, 27 September 2018 South African defence industry company Cybicom Atlas Defence (CAD) was established 15 years ago to support the SA Navy and has, after long negotiations, concluded a support agreement for the maritime service in partnership with ThyssenKrupp Marine systems (tkMS). As a primary support company to the SA Navy CAD is the technology recipient for the South African submarine combat system manufacturing data pack and software development environment (including source code), supplied by Atlas Elektronik of Bremen in Germany. CAD is 40% owned by Atlas Elektronik, in turn is now 100% owned by tkMS and provides an efficient channel for the German company to support the SA Navy via an indigenous company. tkMS delivered three Heroine Class Type 209 submarines and four Valour Class frigates to the maritime service of the SA National Defence Force and CAD announces with, after more than a year of negotiations, a framework agreement has been signed between the companies and the contract is now fully operational. The framework agreement had to pass through a rigorous compliance review and provides a local logistics channel for the SA Navy. Tin turn the logistics channel provides a local procurement conduit needed by the SA Navy to continue proper maintenance and operation of its frigates and submarines. CAD is a 60% black owned, level 2 B-BBEE contributor and has been supporting the SA Navy since 2005 with maintenance and support capabilities located at the Naval dockyard in Simon’s Town and from offices in Cape Town and Durban. Source: http://www.defenceweb.co.za

Austal wins $1.6b order for more US Navy ships Austal has received a big boost to its order book with the US Navy giving the green light for the shipbuilder to deliver two more Independence-class Littoral Combat Ships. The individual contracts, worth a total of $1.6 billion, take to 17 the number of Independence-class ships Austal has added to the Navy’s fleet. The 127m, frigate-sized vessels, originally designed in WA, will be constructed at the shipbuilder’s US base in Mobile, Alabama “This latest order from the US Navy is a tremendous endorsement of the Austal LCS platform and further evidence of the important role Austal plays in building the US Navy” Austal chief executive David Singleton said “We continue hearing positive feedback from the fleet commanders on how well our ships match their mission requirements as they operate globally.” Austal has already handed over three LCS vessels to the Navy this year, all under the Congressional cost cap of $US584 million ($808 million). Construction of the 32nd LCS for the US Navy is scheduled to begin in next year, with delivery of the 34th LCS expected to occur in mid fiscal year 2023. Austal shares were up 3¢, or 1.6 per cent, to $1.95, at 8.50am. source : The West

Fincantieri extends exit offer for Vard to Oct 15 FINCANTIERI Oil & Gas has extended the deadline on its buyout offer for shipbuilder Vard Holdings once again, by about three and a half weeks to 5.30pm on Oct 15, Vard said in a filing on the Singapore Exchange on Wednesday afternoon. Fincantieri, which is offering S$0.25 per Vard share to take the shipbuilder private, currently has effective control over a 94.73 per cent stake in Vard. It does not intend to extend the exit offer beyond 5.30pm on Oct 15, which is the final closing date.All other terms set up in the exit offer letter remain unchanged, Vard said. Vard’s shareholders approved the delisting in July. The counter last traded at S$0.25 on Wednesday morning before the exit offer extension was announced. Source : Business Times Vard Holdings is the ship builder which designed the ship on which Project Hotel is rumoured to be based.

NRP Corte Real (F 332) seen on arrival in Turku, Finland earlier this month. Photo: Risto Brzoza

High-End Exercise Valiant Shield 2018 Features Joint Strike Fighters, 15,000 Personnel

The aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) leads a formation of Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 5 ships as U.S. Air Force B-52 Stratofortress aircraft and U.S. Navy F/A-18 Hornets pass overhead for a photo exercise during Valiant Shield 2018. US Navy photo.

This post has been updated to correct the hull number of the former USS St. Louis. It’s LKA-116, not 117. The high-end biennial Valiant Shield exercise kicked off in Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands on Sunday, with some of the Navy’s and Marine Corps’ most advanced platforms participating in the weeklong event. The exercise – a high-end, U.S.-only follow-up to the large-scale multi-national Rim of the Pacific exercise every other year – features more than a dozen ships, 160 aircraft and 15,000 personnel from all four military branches. This is the seventh iteration of the exercise, which began in 2006. “We are excited to be here for exercise Valiant Shield as Guam gives us a world-class joint-training opportunity,” exercise director Rear Adm. Daniel Dwyer said in a news release. “The Marianas Island Range Complex is a premier training environment that allows the joint force a unique opportunity to come together and train side-by-side at the high end.” To support that high-end warfighting training, the exercise will feature the Marines’ new F-35B Joint Strike Fighter for the first time ever; two P-8A Poseidon maritime multi-mission aircraft squadrons; and guided-missile destroyer USS Milius (DDG- 69), the most recent ship to go through a combat system upgrade and be rotated into the forward-deployed naval forces in U.S. 7th Fleet. Participating forces will conduct missions that include maritime interdiction; defensive counter-air operations; personnel recovery; intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance; anti-submarine warfare; and command and control, U.S. Pacific Fleet spokesman Lt. Cmdr. Tim Gorman told USNI News. Valiant Shield will also include a sinking exercise (SINKEX), in which ships and aircraft will shoot at and sink decommissioned USS St. Louis (LKA-116). PACFLT did not comment on the specifics of the SINKEX, but two SINKEXs at RIMPAC in July included multiple Harpoon missile shots, as well as the U.S. Army firing a Naval Strike Missile from a Palletized Load System ashore. So far, according to captions from photos of the exercise, USS Shoup (DDG-86) has launched Tomahawk cruise missiles, and Milius and guided-missile cruiser USS Chancellorsville (CG-62) launched Standard Missile-2s. Not included in the exercise are any amphibious ships. Amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD-1) had been hosting the F-35Bs from Marine Fighter Attack Squadrons (VMFA) 121 but is currently supporting disaster relief efforts following Typhoon Mangkhut, along with dock landing ship USS Ashland (LSD-48) and Marines from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit. Naval forces participating in Valiant Shield 2018 include: USS Ronald Reagan (CVN-76) and Carrier Air Wing 5 -missile cruiser USS Chancellorsville (CG-62) -missile cruiser USS Antietam (CG-54) -missile destroyer USS Milius (DDG-69) -missile destroyer USS Shoup (DDG-86) -missile destroyer USS Benfold (DDG-65) -missile destroyer USS Decatur (DDG-73) USNS Cesar Chavez (T-AKE-14) Maritime prepositioning ship USNS 2nd Lt John P. Bobo (T-AK-3008) -speed, roll-on/roll-off ship USNS Dahl (T-AKR-312) USNS Rappahannock (T-AO-204) -on/Roll-off) Container Ship SS Curtiss (T-AVB-4) -8A Poseidons from Patrol Squadron (VP) 8 and VP-26, out of Jacksonville, Fla. -3C Orion anti-submarine and maritime patrol aircraft from VP-40 and VP-46 and EP-3E Aries II from Fleet Air Reconnaissance Squadron (VQ) 1, all under Patrol and Reconnaissance Wing 10 in Whidbey Island, Wash.; along with personnel from the air wing and Task Force 72 -60S Knighthawk helicopters from Helicopter Sea Combat (HSC) Squadron 25, the Navy’s only forward-deployed expeditionary squadron of MH-60Ss, which operates out of Andersen Air Force Base in Guam -35B Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters from Marine Fighter Attack Squadrons (VMFA) 121 -18D Hornets from VMFA (all weather) 225 -22 Ospreys from Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron (VMM) 265

-130J Hercules tankers from Marine Aerial Refueler Transport Squadron (VMGR) 152

tion Logistics Squadron (MALS) 12

2

ruction Battalion Maintenance Unit 303 Source: USNI News

Royal Navy fire warning at Spanish vessel near Gibraltar as it approaches nuclear submarine A Royal Navy vessel fired a warning flare after Spanish Guardia Civil vessel got too close to nuclear submarine HMS Talent. It is understood that HMS Talent was departing Gibraltar after having her Tomahawk missile stores replenished. Local media have reported on the incident. This is becoming increasingly common. Earlier in the month, the USS Newport News, a Los Angeles class submarine, was harassed as she visited Gibraltar. Local media reported at the time that eyewitnesses said a Spanish customs boat was intercepted by a Gibraltar Defence Police vessel after it came too close to the US submarine. The report states: “If classed as an incursion, the incident will almost certainly draw a diplomatic protest, as happens as a matter of routine with all incursions by Spanish state vessels.” Source: UK Defence Journal

Joint Maritime Search & Rescue Exercise conducted off Cape Coast

The joint maritime search and rescue exercise held off Cape Town included the SA Navy submarine SAS Manthatisi (S101). Picture: NSRI

A full scale Maritime Search and Rescue exercise was conducted yesterday (Wednesday) off the SA Cape coast. Participating in the exercise were National Sea Rescue (NSRI), Headquarters, NSRI Hout Bay, NSRI Table Bay and NSRI ASR (Airborne Sea Rescue). The joint Maritime Search and Rescue exercise was coordinated by MRCC (Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre) involving MRCC, TNPA (Transnet National Ports Authority), Telkom Maritime Radio Services, the SA Navy, the SA Air Force 22 Squadron, SA Defence Force Military Operations Centres, Western Cape (WC) Government Health EMS and NSRI. The exercise was conducted off the Cape Town coast, deep sea, and in the Granger Bay region and involved various search and rescue scenarios, patient evacuations, deploying sea rescue craft, SA Navy vessels, an SA Air Force 22 Squadron Oryx helicopter and employing rescue techniques and inter service cooperation in routine training exercises. Source: Africa Ports and Ships Maritime News U.S. Navy Orders Three More Littoral Combat Ships September 19, 2018 by gCaptain

The Lockheed Martin-built littoral combat ship USS Little Rock (LCS 9) underway during acceptatance trials in Lake Michigan during acceptance trials, August 25, 2017. U.S. Navy Photo

The U.S. Navy has awarded contracts for another three Littoral Combat Ships, bringing the total number of vessels ordered so far to 32. The new awards were issued as modifications to existing LCS contracts with Lockheed Martin and Austal USA. Austal received two of the awards while Lockheed received the third. The three LCSs are the future LCS 29, LCS 32 and LCS 34. LCS 29 will be built at Fincantieri Marinette Marine in Marinette, Wisconsin, while LCS 32 and LCS 34 will be built at Austal USA in Mobile, Alabama. “These contract awards represent an important next step in delivering critical warfighting capability to the Fleet,” said Capt. Mike Taylor, LCS program manager (PMS 501). To date, the Navy has accepted delivery of 16 LCSs. Including this week’s contract modifications, a total of 32 LCSs have been procured, with 10 ships under construction (LCS 15, 17, 19- 26) and six additional ships under contract (LCS 27-30, 32, 34). Source: https://gcaptain.com

Congress to buy 3 more LCS than the Navy needs, but gut funding for sensors that make them valuable By: David B. Larter September 18 WASHINGTON — Congress loves buying littoral combat ships, but when it comes to the packages of sensors and systems that make the ships useful, lawmakers have been less enthusiastic. In the 2019 Defense Department funding bill that just left the conference committee, lawmakers have funded a 33rd, 34th and 35th littoral combat ship, three more than the 32- ship requirement set by the Navy. But when it comes to the mission modules destined to make each ship either a mine sweeper, submarine hunter or small surface combatant, that funding has been slashed. Appropriators cut all funding in 2019 for the anti-submarine warfare package, a variable-depth sonar and a multifunction towed array system that the Navy was aiming to have declared operational next year, citing only that the funding was “ahead of need." The National Defense Authorization Act had authorized about $7.4 million, still well below the $57.3 million requested by the Navy, citing delays in testing various components.

The LCS Tulsa underway for acceptance trials in the Gulf of Mexico. The sensor packages destined for the littoral combat ships are caught in a cycle of budget cuts and delays. (Austal USA)

Appropriators are also poised to half the requested funding for the surface warfare package and cut nearly $25.25 million from the minesweeping package, which equates to about a 21 percent cut from the requested and authorized $124.1 million. Nor are this year’s cuts the only time appropriators have gone after the mission modules. A review of appropriations bills dating back to fiscal 2015 shows that appropriators have cut funding for mission modules every single year, and in 2018 took big hacks out of each funding line associated with the modules. The annual cutting spree has created a baffling cycle of inanity wherein Congress, unhappy with the development of the modules falling behind schedule, will cut funding and cause development to fall further behind schedule, according to a source familiar with the details of the impact of the cuts who spoke on background. All this while Congress continues to pump money into building ships without any of the mission packages having achieved what’s known as initial operating capability, meaning the equipment is ready to deploy in some capacity. (The surface warfare version has IOC-ed some initial capabilities but is adding a Longbow Hellfire missile system that will be delayed with cuts, the source said.) That means that with 15 of the currently funded 32 ships already delivered to the fleet, not one of them can deploy with a fully capable package of sensors for which the ship was built in the first place — a situation that doesn’t have a clear end state while the programs are caught in a sucking vortex of cuts and delays. “This is a prime example of program issues causing congressional cuts which lead to further delays, then more cuts in a vicious cycle," said Thomas Callender, a retired submarine officer and analyst with The Heritage Foundation. The Navy has been pursuing a strategy of buying 32 littoral combat ships and then 20 more lethal frigates now in development. Surface warfare boss Vice Adm. Richard Brown told Defense News in August that both the surface warfare package and the anti-submarine warfare package were on track to be ready in 2019, but that future is now in doubt, Callender said. “The appropriators' FY19 cuts of zeroing out ASW module and cuts to the MCM [mine countermeasures] module will likely delay IOC and operational testing,” Callender said. But the appropriators shouldn’t take all the heat, he added. The development of the different modules have hit technical issues and are all drastically behind schedule. The minesweeping package, for example, was initially supposed to deliver in 2008, but now isn’t slated to IOC until 2020, a date that will be further in doubt if Congress passes the appropriations bill as it left committee, sources agreed. “The technical development issues and subsequent delays with several modules, especially the ASW and MCM mission packages, contributed to congressional angst and some of these cuts,” Callender said. “Many of these cuts, including the cuts recommended from the House Armed Services Committee and Senate Armed Services Committee for FY19 were reductions in the number of initial modules purchased until they have successfully completed operational testing.” Both authorizers on the House and Senate Armed Services committees and the Appropriations committees have taken hacks at the funding to the modules, but ultimately the National Defense Authorization Act from the services committees is more of a guide for appropriators than a set of handcuffs. Appropriators can fund what they want to fund. A statement from the office of Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., said the committee works with the Navy on these programs and funds what is ready to be funded. “The Committee has worked with the Department of the Navy to understand the mission system test requirements — which have often changed due to variety of reasons — and focused on funding those requirements that are ready for production,” said Blair Taylor, Shelby’s communications director. Merry-go-round Part of the reason the program is vulnerable to these cuts in a way that, for example, the Arleigh Burke destroyers are not to the same extent is because of the program’s structure. The ships were to be purchased separately and designed to be highly versatile, switching out in a matter of days when pierside from anti-surface systems to countermine systems to anti- submarine systems as the missions changed. But a reorganization of the program in 2016 ordered by Chief of Naval Operations Adm. John Richardson and led by then-head of the Naval Surface Force Pacific Adm. Thomas Rowden changed each of the ships to single-mission ships, with the first few ships slated to be surface warfare variants. But the warfare packages are still being developed under separate programs, leaving them as low-hanging fruit for cuts. “The separation of the mission modules from specific LCS hull procurement does leave them more vulnerable to these type of programmatic cuts,” Callender said. The whole issue is taking on increasing urgency as LCS builders Fincantieri in Marinette, Wisconsin, and Austal USA in Mobile, Alabama, begin pushing ships to the fleet by the handful each year. As of August, the Navy had 15 LCS vessels delivered, with 29 awarded and 11 in various stages of construction. But as the development modules has devolved into a merry-go-round, where cuts beget delays that beget more cuts, the fix in which this puts the Navy becomes more real by the day. The fleet needs the capabilities the LCS modules are supposed to deliver. For example, the Navy is slated to decommission its last Avenger-class minesweeper in the 2020s. This means the minesweeping package really can’t suffer too many more delays without greatly increasing the threat posed to the Navy by cheap marine mines, leaving the fleet with only ad hoc solutions for combating them until the minesweeping package can be fielded in numbers. And while there are other ships in the fleet such as the DDGs that can do anti-submarine and anti-surface missions, it’s the minesweeping package that has Bryan McGrath, a retired destroyer skipper and consultant with The FerryBridge Group, worried. “I’m concerned that there aren’t enough MCM modules coming along fast enough, and I am concerned that there aren’t enough LCS in the current plan (four on each coast) dedicated to the MCM mission,” he said. “I’d like to see the LCS plan re-evaluated and more of them devoted exclusively to MCM.” Source: https://www.defensenews.com

Wreck of Captain Cook's HMS Endeavour 'discovered' off US coast Marine archaeologists believe they have found the wreckage of the famous ship off Newport, Rhode Island Michael McGowan Wed 19 Sep 2018 06.57 BST Last modified on Thu 20 Sep 2018 15.16 BST

A full-scale replica of Captain Cook’s ship the Endeavour. Marine archaeologists believe they have found the wreckage of the ship near Newport, Rhode Island, US. Photograph: Chris Terrill/BBC

The possible discovery of HMS Endeavour off the east coast of the US has been hailed as a “hugely significant moment” in Australian history, but researchers have warned they are yet to “definitively” confirm whether the wreck has been located. On Wednesday Fairfax Media reported archaeologists from the Rhode Island Marine Archaeology Project, or Rimap, had pinpointed the final resting place of the famous vessel in which Captain James Cook reached Australia in 1770. The ship was later used by the Royal Navy in the American war of independence and was eventually scuttled with a dozen other vessels off Newport, Rhode Island in 1778. Kathy Abbass, the director of the project, reportedly told Fairfax that “we can say we think we know which one it is”. The director of the Australian National Maritime Museum, Kevin Sumption, confirmed to the Guardian that a “promising site” had been located, though he said it had yet to be confirmed as the final resting place of the Endeavour. He said divers in the US were currently working to confirm whether one of five shipwrecks is the Endeavour by gathering samples from the location. “It’s not definitive that this is Endeavour,” he said. “We’re carefully gathering very specific samples of timber and we’re going to conduct forensic analysis to see what we have. Most of the ships that were scuttled in Newport in August 1778 were built of American or Indian timbers [but] the Endeavour was built in the north of England of predominantly oak. “With some good detective work we can sample the timbers of this promising site [and] then we might have evidence that this ship is at least British in origin.” Cook departed Plymouth in August 1768, and in April 1770 the Endeavour became the first European ship to reach the east coast of Australia when Cook arrived at what is now known as Botany Bay. The ship was renamed the Lord Sandwich 2 and in its later life was used by the British as a prison for Americans captured during the war of independence. It was scuttled in 1778 along with 12 other ships to act as a blockade in the lead up to the battle of Rhode Island. Sumption said divers believed the wreck may be the missing Endeavour because of the dimensions of the timber samples found at the bottom of the harbour. “Basically what we know is the size of the Endeavour hull [and] a ship of that type uses certain dimensions of timber,” he said. “We’ve found samples that look like they may be consistent with a ship of that size.” If the timber samples turned out to be British in origin, the researchers would seek approval from local authorities in the US to dig around the wreckage to seek further evidence. The search for the Endeavour is a joint project between RIMAP and the Australian National Maritime Museum. On its website Rimap published a statement saying they had “identified a possible site in Newport Harbour that might be the Lord Sandwich ex Endeavour” but that it required “detailed work … to prove it”. The Rhode Island state government also claimed official ownership of the fleet of shipwrecks in 1999, and while Sumption said it would be “hugely significant” to find the Endeavour, it would be “very, very unlikely” the wreck would be in a condition to travel to Australia. “What we can see on the seabed in Rhode Island is that all the 13 wrecks look somewhat similar, they really are a jumbled collection of timbers and stone ballast,” he said. “It’s very unlikely that significant parts of the vessel are intact, so the chances are that all you really have are samples of timber and if we’re very lucky maybe materials which relate to its last use as a prison ship.” The Australia National Museum is planning an exhibition to mark the 250th anniversary of Cook’s arrival in Australia in 2020. Ian Coates, the director of the exhibition, said it was an “amazingly timely discovery”. “We have a tendency to think the story stops when the Endeavour leaves Australian waters, but to think about what it did back in England in 1771 and on to the east coast of the US, it’s fascinating.” He said he held out hope some part of the wreckage could make it to Australian shores again. “In a museum you’re aware of the power of objects to take people back to the moment when these things are used or created,” he said. “To have something like the Endeavour as part of the story of the Cook voyage would be amazing.” Source: https://www.theguardian.com

Here's 1 Way to Replace Navy Aircraft Carriers September 19, 2018 Could this work? by T. X. Hammes There is an ongoing debate about the continued viability of the aircraft carrier. Proponents point to the fact the carrier provides a range of capabilities essential for power projection and sea control that, without basing rights, cannot be provided in any other way. Opponents note that several nations have drones and cruise missiles that vastly outrange the short-legged carrier air wing. They also note that China has developed a ballistic missile specifically to kill carriers. A particular concern is that a carrier and air wing alone cost $20 billion and 5,000 Americans live aboard. This is an enormous investment of eggs is a possibly fragile basket. So perhaps it’s time to think of a different way of providing the capabilities. Suggesting the use of amphibious big decks is not a different way – it’s just a very similar but much less capable basket. Instead, we need to consider how we could provide the same capabilities by merging old technologies with new to provide similar capability at a fraction of the cost in treasure and people. The old technologies are container ships and containers. The new are drones, cruise missiles, and advanced manufacturing. Starting with the new, currently flying drones can provide long-range strike, surveillance, communications relay, and electronic warfare. Many are vertical takeoff and landing. Kratos Corporation has built an autonomous drone (QX222) with a combat radius of 1500 miles – three times the current unrefueled range of the carrier air wing. It is stealth configured but not stealth coated. It can achieve speeds up to .85 Mach and carry a 500-pound payload internally. Most importantly, it is autonomous and can launch and recovery vertically. Because it cost only $2M, it could potentially be sent on one-way missions. Drones can be augmented by cruise missiles. As long ago as 2010 , the Russians were offering four of their Club-K (Kaliber) cruise missiles in a standard 40-foot container . Estimates of sale price vary from $10M to $20M per loaded container. The land attack version has a range of 1500 miles and a 1000 pound warhead. Recently, an online ship brokerage listed a 3-year- old, 44,000 dead-weight tonnage container ship for $12 million dollars. This is the size of a LHA and can carry thousands of containers. It requires a crew of 12. Used standard 40-foot shipping containers are selling for about $3,500 dollars today. Thinking differently, we could envision any container ship – from inter-coastal to ocean-going as a potential aircraft carrier. It could carry from a couple dozen to thousands of cruise missiles as well as hundreds of autonomous drones ranging from short to long range and both reusable and expendable. And, of course, the containers could also be land based — with nearly unlimited basing and hide sites. While container ships would lack self-defense systems, they would be no more vulnerable than the current Littoral Combat Ships. The DoD Director of Operational Test and Evaluation noted the LCS is unlikely to continue fighting after a single hit. In fact, a container ship weighing 40,000 tons will be more survivable than a 3,500 ton LCS. And of course, replacing a carrier lost in combat will take several years while container ships can be bought on the market. Finally, advanced manufacturing (robotics, artificial intelligence, and high-speed 3D printing) has the potential to make such drones and cruise missiles much less expensive and available in the thousands or even tens of thousands. The potential cost savings are exceptional. A Ford carrier costs $15 billion . A container ship in the low tens of millions. An F-35 costs $140 M. Kratos QX222 about $2M each . But the real savings are in lifetime personnel costs. You don’t need the over 5,000 sailors to man the carrier and its air wing. Nor do you need the training pipelines for those people. You don’t pay lifetime medical and retirement costs for those who earn retirement. If we stop buying carriers after the JFK, the United States will still have seven carriers through 2050. If we shift funds to container ship carriers, we can vastly increase the numbers of platforms and weapons while cutting personnel and procurement costs drastically. And while carriers represent a fifty-year commitment and billions in decommissioning costs, container ships can be retired easily if necessary. In a time of rapid technological change, should we be making fifty-year bets? Dr. T. X. Hammes served 30 years in the Marine Corps at all operational levels to include command of an infantry battalion and the Chemical Biological Incident Response Force. He earned his PhD in History at Oxford University and is the author of The Sling and the Stone . Source: https://nationalinterest.org