Defense Materiel Organization News

Damen Lays Keel for Swedish Navy Tugs

Damen Shipyards Group hosted a keel laying ceremony for a series of four customized Stan Tug 1706 ICE vessels under construction for the Swedish Navy at Albwardy Damen in the UAE to be delivered from 2023.Swedish Defense materiel organization FMV Director Naval Division Patric Hjorth performed the keel laying ceremony, which started with three coins placed in a stainless steel plate: a Swedish Crown, a Dutch Rijksdaalder and an Emirates Dirham. The plate with the coins was then…

Electrical Mid-life Upgrades for Portuguese M-Frigates

The Defense Materiel Organization (DMO), part of the Dutch Ministry of Defense, has contracted Alewijnse Marine to participate in the mid-life upgrade of N.R.P. Bartolomeu Dias (F333) and N.R.P. Don Francisco de Almeida (F334). Originally built for the Royal Netherlands Navy (RNLN) in the early 1990s, the two Multipurpose (M) frigates were sold to the Portuguese Navy in 2006.Alewijnse has been contracted for the design, construction, assembly and commissioning of the multi-function consoles…

Fast Small Ship Simulator

Bouncing over the waves at a speed of 43 knots, the director of the Defense Materiel Organization (DMO) Vice Admiral Arie Jan de Waard, and MARIN’s director Bas Buchner, made the first test voyage on the moving ‘Fast Small Ship Simulator.’ This FSSS is built by MARIN and SME partners, Cruden and TreeC, as part of a CODEMO project to stimulate the development of a prototype. Vice Admiral De Waard felt the test was very realistic and said: “You feel as if you are involved in a complex operation at sea.

Australian Navy Commissions HMAS Adelaide

GE Marine reports that its LM2500 gas turbines now power the Royal Australian Navy’s HMAS Adelaide which was commissioned in late 2015. Alongside sister HMAS Canberra, these 230-meter-long Landing Helicopter Dock (LHD) ships are the largest vessels ever built for the RAN. According to the RAN, HMAS Adelaide was designed with the shallowest possible draft and can deploy an embarked force of more than 1,000 personnel and their equipment, landing ashore via landing craft or helicopters.

“FS3” Motion-based Simulator for Dutch Navy

A two-year project is underway which will lead to the development of a Fast Small Ship Simulator. Driving a small, fast navy boat in heavy seas can be a real challenge. Effects of broaching, surfing, capsizing risk, slamming and planing put severe demands on the crew and the boat handling. It requires a well developed  skill-set to safely navigate  under various operational  circumstances. With these challenges in mind, a two-year project has just started  to develop a dedicated  training tool, which is currently known as the Fast Small Ship Simulator (FSSS) or FS3.

GE Contracted to Service Australian Navy Frigates

GE has signed an in-service support contract with the Australian Defense Materiel Organization’s Maritime Cross-Platform Systems Program Office. Under the contract, GE will provide maintenance and logistic support services for the Royal Australian Navy’s (RAN) GE LM2500 aeroderivative marine gas turbines that power Adelaide- and ANZAC-class frigates. GE will be backed by GE Marine and Air New Zealand Gas Turbines for this multi-year contract. In addition to repair and overhaul of the RAN’s 16 LM2500s and associated accessories…

Australia’s Newbuild LHD Enroute Homeport

Australia’s first Landing Helicopter Dock (LHD) ship, NUSHIP Canberra has been farewelled from Melbourne as she departs for Sydney. NUSHIP Canberra departed BAE Systems Williamstown shipyard en route to her Sydney homeport. Defense Materiel Organization (DMO) Chief Executive Officer Warren King said this milestone represents the excellent collaboration between the DMO and BAE Systems Australia, as preparations now begin for NUSHIP Canberra’s handover to the Royal Australian Navy. “The voyage from Melbourne to Sydney will mark a milestone for the DMO by delivering the first ship of this kind to the Royal Australian Navy,” King said. The…

Australia, US Order Anti-ship Missile Decoys

Design of the next generation of anti-ship missile decoys is set to commence following the signing of two contracts between the Australian Defense Force and BAE Systems Australia Pty Ltd. Defense Materiel Organization Chief Executive Officer Warren King said the contracts represented continued investment in the jointly developed Australian—United States Nulka capability. “These contracts support both the acquisition of Nulka decoys and the engineering design of the next generation of shipboard Nulka launch systems for the Royal Australian Navy,” he said.

Nuship Canberra Embarks on Final Sea Trials

Nuship Canberra, the first of two Landing Helicopter Dock (LHD) ships being built for the Australian Defense Force, has sailed on her final contractor sea trials before delivery to the Australian Government. The ship departed Williamstown shipyard on August 12 as planned with the trials taking place in both Port Phillip Bay and off the southern coast of New South Wales before returning to Williamstown around the end of August. Final contractor trials involve testing of the combat and communication systems along with some platform systems trials.

Australia’s HMAS Arunta Returns to Sea

A milestone has been achieved in the Anti-Ship Missile Defense (ASMD) Upgrade Program with HMAS Arunta setting sail for her sea acceptance trials this week. Chief Executive Officer, Defense Materiel Organization (DMO) Warren King and the Chief of Navy Vice Admiral Ray Griggs, AO, CSC, RAN, together congratulated all those involved in the program. King said the ASMD Project will deliver a capability providing an improved level of self defense against modern anti-ship missiles for the Royal Australian Navy’s ANZAC Class frigates.

Australia Awards Contract to Support Frigates

Chief Executive Officer of the Defense Materiel Organization (DMO), Warren King, announced that a multimillion dollar contract had been signed with Thales Australia for in-service support on four Royal Australian Navy (RAN) ships. Mr. King said the $46 million contract provides support to the Adelaide Class Guided Missile Frigate’s (FFG) Combat Systems and offers increased job security to the 48 staff within Thales that have been engaged under the interim contract. “This contract will ensure the FFG Class Combat System, which is among the most capable in the world, is effectively sustained until the RAN transitions to the new Air Warfare Destroyers,” Mr. King said. Mr.

Dutch Navy Contracts Imtech for Submarine Upkeep

Imtech Marine signed a contract to be involved in the execution of the capability upkeep program Walrus-class submarines (IP-W) of the Royal Netherlands Navy. The Dutch Defense Materiel Organization granted Imtech Marine Netherlands the assignment to carry out the mechanical, engineering and electrical upgrade works on board the submarines. The assignment will be carried out at the Naval base in Den Helder and will run from 2013 until 2020. IP-W includes a large number of modifications, such as disassembly, assembly and installation of a variety of equipment and systems.