Australia Should Buy Aircraft for its Aircraft Carriers

In "We should learn from US’s F-35 experience" (Australian Financial Review, 5 April 2014) Brian Toohey argues that Australia did not make the right choice with the F-35A stealth aircraft. The advantage of the F-35A over the F/A-18F Super Hornet, is not so clear for Australia, as Toohey suggests.

However, one area in which the F-35 has an advantage is the F-35b model, for which Australia's two Canberra Class amphibious assault ships were designed. These ships have a prominent ski-jump ramp, to launch short takeoff/vertical landing (STOVL) aircraft, the only one of which is in development is the F-35b. The support equipment for maintaining the aircraft can be trucked onto the ships in standard ISO container modules. I suggest eighteen F-35b aircraft would be sufficient to equip the two ships and provide a reserve.

Toohey also criticises government plans to build twelve large conventionally powered submarines, arguing that the F/A-18F and G aircraft would be sufficient to deal with maritime threats. However, even with air-to-air refuelling, the F/A-18 has a limited range. More effective for long range patrol will be the Boeing P-8 Poseidon, a modified 737 airliner, with the F-35's radar and 11 weapons stations capable of carrying a similar payload to the F-35, but over a much longer range.

Australia should replace its current six Collins Class submarines, but I suggest this should be with a smaller, lower cost proven design, made in Europe or Asia. The effective range of the submarines can be increased by providing support vessels (which can be Australia made, if required for political reasons).

Offshore Support Vessel For Australian Navy

The Minister for Defence, Stephen Smith announced the purchase of the 6,500 tonne Offshore Support Vessel (OSV) MSV Skandi Bergen for $130m. Alongside the HMAS Choules , recently purchased second hand from the Royal Navy, this helps fills the gap in amphibious military transport until the first of two new Canberra class Landing Helicopter Dock (LHD) ships arrive from Spain. Australia got a good deal with both Skandi Bergen and Choules, due to the downturn in the global economy.

Skandi Bergen is sister ship to the Australian Customs Service's ACV Ocean Protector and will be transferred to Customs when the new purpose built amphibious transport ships are delivered in about three years time. The offshore support vessels are built for supporting oil rigs in harsh polar waters, and so will be useful for patrolling Australia's southern ocean, but are not designed for amphibious warfare. They have a helicopter pad, but this mounted high above the bridge and cannot be used for moving heavy cargo or vehicles, just personnel. But the ships have a useful cargo deck and crane for transshipping supplies.

Media reports indicate that the Minister for Defence rejected the option of purchasing an Australian made military transport, from Incat Tasmania or Austral WA, on advice from the Navy that these were not suitable for extended periods at sea. This is a curious decision as the purpose of a transport ship is not to spend extended periods at sea, but to get cargo from one point on shore to another as quickly as possible. This is a contentious issue in the US military, with the Army acquiring its own ships as a result. The US Army and Navy have both used high speed ships from Australian suppliers, including the Fortitude class Joint High Speed Vessel (JHSV) from Austral.

Australia's Squeeze Toy Navy

One of the fun parts of a trade exhibition is picking up the giveaways. At the Pacific 2012 Maritime Defence Conference in Sydney, I collected five squeeze toy ships. These are, front to back: Collins Class submarine from the Australian Navy, unidentified submarine from L3, Anzac class frigate from Australian Navy, Canberra Class Landing Helicopter Dock Ship from BAE Systems, unidentified frigate from Australian Submarine Corporation.

Also on the stand of Australian company, Austral, was a Cars 2 Action Agents Battle Station Playset by Mattel, which is clearly modeled on their
Independence class littoral combat ship built for the US Navy (with out some of the expensive options it is the MRV 80).

Learning Amphibious Operations from Europe

Greetings from the Pacific 2012 Maritime Defence Conference in Sydney, where DSTO is hosting a stream on Technology for Amphibious Operations session. Interestingly the speakers are from Spain and the UK, as new ships have been purchased from these countries. This must be culture shock for the Australian Department of Defence and Australian Navy, who normally look to the US Navy and American industry.

It might seem a ship is just a ship and you can use it however you like. But a particular way of working is built into the design of the ships. Also the relatively small European defense forces are closer in the way they operate to Australia.

There are considerable challenges for Australia to adapt European experience, as the distances involved are much larger and they will need to learn to work with the US 7th Fleet (commanded from the USS Blue Ridge).

The need for bridging different approaches is best illustrated by the Canberra Class Ships. The main structure of the ship is being built in Spain and then will be transported to Australia. The "island" with the bridge of the ship, radars and other electronic systems, is being built in Australia. The island will then be placed on the ship and everyone will hope the two parts work together. In the same way the ship has to work with navy, army, air force and civilian personnel aboard and work with the US Navy.

Looking at some of the screen-shots of ICT systems used for planning amphibious operations on display at Pacific 2012, it struck me that these look very dated. The systems have a lot of text based forms and spreadsheet-like tables. These are typically presented using the X-Windows system on a graphical screen. Such a display can be hard to understand for new personnel, or those under stress (both of which are normal on an amphibious operation). The i-Pad like interface with big bold icons and a touch interface, as used on SAAB's 9LV SAT, might improve usability

Defence Technology on Display in Sydney

Greetings from the Darling Harcourt Convention Center in Sydney, where the Pacific 2012 Maritime Defence Conference. is on until 3 February. I was intending to attend the DSTO Technology for Amphibious Operations session. This is a high priority for the Australian Defence Force (ADF), as new ships are being acquired (including two new Canberra Class Landing Helicopter Dock Ships. The Australian Navy, Army and Air Force will need to learn how to work closely together (and with civilian public servants and industry). I saw how such operations are conducted, first hand at Exercise Tandem Thrust 97. The session was so popular, there was standing room only and so I looked at the exhibition.

One item which got my attention was 9LV SAT - Situational Awareness Terminal. This is sued on ships to display a map showing where friendly and other forces are. Unlike a traditional console, used sitting down on a large ship, it is designed to be used standing up in a patrol boat or a Rigid Inflatable Boat (RIB). There is a iPad-like touch screen interface for larger vessels and reconfigurable buttons for the RIB (it is hard to use a touch screen while hanging on in a small boat). Many of the text boxes on the screen have been replaced with pictograms.

Relevant to the LHD project are plans for computer aided training of the technical staff of the ship, those who will operate it and be transported on it. A "walk through" has been developed which looks like a video game, allowing personnel to familiarize themselves with the layout of the ship by "walking" through it on a screen. Simply finding your way around a ship can be difficult. There is also a simulation of the diesel engines for training maintenance staff.

It was also interesting to see the many small Australian companies which supply to the ADF and to the military of other countries. An example are the inflatable life rafts and escape slides used on modern ships. A large civilian ferry or military transport ship carries so many people that it would be infeasible to use conventional lifeboats and ladders to load them. So these ships now use inflatable slides like those used on passenger aircraft (an Australian invention) and inflatable rafts (from Liferaft Systems Australia).

F-35B STOVL Fighter for Australian Sea Control Ship

This is to suggest the Australian Government order 24 F-35B Lightning II STOVL aircraft to equip the HMAS Canberra and HMAS Adelaide. The Canberra and Adelaide are currently described as Landing Helicopter Dock (LHD) ships, operating only helicopters from the flight deck. However, the Australian government ordered the ships fitted with ski-jump ramps intended for Short Takeoff - Vertical Landing (STOVL) fixed wing aircraft. With these aircraft, the ships will then be able to carry out their primary mission, of amphibious operations. Without the protection of aircraft, the ships will be limited to operating close to the Australian coast.



The F-35B is the highest technical rusk, most expensive and lowest performance of the three F-35 variants. Currently the Australian government is considering ordering the conventional takeoff F-35A, which is less risky, cheaper and higher performance. However, the F-35B offers the ability to operate from a ship's deck and retains the stealth characteristics and a useful payload. The extra cost of the F-35B has in effect been underwritten, by the other variants and has performed well in recent shipboard trials.

Risks remain with the F-35 project. Australia could order 24 F-35Bs, sufficient for the two ships. If the F-35 turns out to be successful, then F-35As could be ordered later for land-based use. Otherwise more F/A-18Fs could be ordered for land use and just the 24 F-35Bs retained for shipboard use.

Austral Trimaran option for Australian Navy

According to Defence Technology International, one solution to the Australian military's lack of transport ships is a 102 meter trimaran sitting unused in Western Australia ("Good Deal", Bradley Perrett, DTI, April 2011). The ship was built by Austral, with a hull design similar to that of the US Navy's Freedom-class Littoral combat ships (which are made by Austral in the USA). The ship could be quickly modified to carry out a similar logistical function to the Fortitude class Joint High Speed Vessels (JHSV) which Austral is also making for the US military.

The ship could also use interchangeable mission modules, as envisaged for the Fortitude class ships. The modules are shipping container sized and can be loaded on the ship for different tasks. There have been problems with the mission module concept, both in production delays and inflexibility. A simpler approach could be taken by the Australian military, with existing truck, container and trailer mounted equipment, simply driven onto the ship and used when needed. Some of this could be equipment used already by the Army, Navy and Air Force on land. Other equipment could be commercial off the shelf. Containerised equipment designed for mining companies and shipping container sized data centres would be particularly suitable.

Amphibious Ship for Earthquake Relief

The Royal New Zealand Navy reported that multi-role vessel (MRV) HMNZS Canterbury was alongside in Lyttelton when an earthquake struck on 22 February 2011. The ship was able to immediately begin relief operations.

Unfortunately Media reports indicate that the Australian Defence Force (ADF) has no comparable ships available to assist, with all in for repair.

This would be an ideal use for Australian designed high speed multi hull vessels. The US Maritime Administration (MARAD) used the Australian designed high speed catamaran “Huakai” to deliver aid to Haiti. The US military are acquiring up to ten similar Fortitude class Joint High Speed Vessels (JHSV) designed by West Australian based company Austal. Unfortunately the Australian Government has no plans to acquire any of these ships for the Australian Defence Force.

Landing Helicopter Dock Skip HMAS Canberra Lanuched

The hull of Landing Helicopter Dock Skip HMAS Canberra (LDH 01) has been launched in Spain, reportedly christened with a bottle of sparkling Canberra region wine. Photos from the launch show the ship's two most prominent features: the ski-jump on the bow, and the stern dock door for landing craft. The ship will be transported to Australia in 2014 for fit-out.

The ski-jump on the bow of the Canberra class ships is designed for launching fixed wing Short Take-off Vertical Landing (STOVL) aircraft. But there are no plans to acquire aircraft, such as the F-35B, for the ship. The UK government has decided to operate F-35C conventional aircraft from its Queen Elizabeth class aircraft carrier, after installing a catapult for launching and arrestor wires for retrieving aircraft. This raises the possibility of operating such aircraft from the Canberra class ships.

About 85 metres of deck is required for a steam catapult launch from a flat deck. But the electro-magnetic catapults being installed on US and UK ships could be installed the ski-jump of the Canberra class. The ski-jump, and the more controlled power of the electron-magnetic catapult, would reduce the length of deck needed.

About 100 m is required for an arrestor landing. The Canberra class ships are much narrowed than the Queen Elizabeth design and lack an angled flight deck for landing. An angled deck could be added using advanced light weight materials. This would allow use of the already acquired F-18 E/F Super Hornet aircraft.

Conventional aircraft carriers require a large number of personnel on the flight deck. This is hazardous and these crew must be accommodated, reducing space on the ship for other functions. Instead these functions could be automated or carried out remotely from within the ship.

Aircraft operations would restrict other ship functions. It would be prudent not to have the rear dock of the ship in use during aircraft landings. However, that function could be carried out by smaller ships.

Australian Military Sealift and Amphibious Options

Yesterday I wrote "Options for Amphibious Operations by Australian Defence Force", in response to media reports that the Australian Defence Force (ADF) will have limited capabilities for amphibious operations for the foreseeable future. Today I noticed that the Australian Strategic Policy Institute released "Back to the future: Australia’s interim sealift and amphibious capability" (16 February 2011) by Andrew Davies, which comes to much the same conclusions. The Australian military will need to consider interim vessels for transporting the Army , most likely based on commercial vehicle ferries. This is not quite as some cartoonists have portrayed it, with troops on a Sydney passenger ferry. There is now considerable experience in how to adapt vessels for military use, with options for heliports and weapons. The RAAF has used adapted civilian airliners as military aircraft for decades and the practice is now becoming common for navies.

The obvious option option, not raised in the media yesterday, would be the use of Austrlaian built high speed multi hull vessels. The USA is acquiring up to ten Fortitude class Joint High Speed Vessels (JHSV) designed by West Australian based company Austal. These ships lack the ability to operate heavy landing craft to deliver tanks to a beach. However, they can operate helicopters and could be adapted to operate smaller landing craft. Ships of this type from Austral and Tasmanian builder Incat are available second hand. Use of such ships would have the political benefit of supporting Australian ship builders, who would be able to quickly carry out any needed modifications for militarisation on the ships they designed and built. This work could be done in months, rather than the years needed for a new build.

While there has much been said about automation of US warships to reduce crews required, this work as gone ahead much faster and much more effectively with civilian ferries. During the Sydney Olympics I had a tour of an Incat ferry and talked to the CEO Robert Clifford. It was a little unnerving when he left me on the bridge alone for a few minutes. The ship was tied up at the wharf, but even so there were an array of computer display panels monitoring the ships functions in front of me (as a former HQADF staff member I guess I could be trusted with this). The ship went to sea a few days later for a demonstration for US military, who were so impressed they ordered several (the Austrlaian military were less impressed, preferring to buy rusty US made ships).

Andrew Davies full report is available as a 423 kbyte PDF download.

For any meaningfully-sized operation overseas, the bulk of ADF personnel and materiel would necessarily be moved by sea. Airlift remains the fastest way to move small numbers of troops or small volumes of equipment, but only movement by sea allows for large quantities to be moved efficiently. The government should soon be faced with some choices about the interim provision of sealift and/or amphibious capability for the RAN. This paper examines the options.

From: Back to the future: Australia’s interim sealift and amphibious capability, Andrew Davies, Australian Strategic Policy Institute, 16 February 2011

Options for Amphibious Operations by Australian Defence Force

Media reports indicate that the Australian Defence Force (ADF) will have limited capabilities for amphibious operations for the foreseeable future. The Landing Platform Amphibious ship HMAS Manoora (L 52) will be retired during 2011. Sister ship HMAS Kanimbla (L 51) requires repair until mid 2012, but may be retired early. Landing Ship Heavy (LSH) HMAS Tobruk (L 50) is in for longer repairs than anticipated.

Kanimbla was to be replaced in 2014, by the Canberra class amphibious warfare ship HMAS Canberra. But Canberra may not be delivered on schedule. Also the Canberra class ships are much larger and so less able to do some of the tasks undertaken by the smaller ships.

One option under consideration by the Australian government is to acquire the UK's landing ship dock RFA Largs Bay (L3006), which is being retired due to UK defence budget cuts. Largs Bay is larger (and more capable) than Kanimbla and would complement the Canberra class ships.

Another option being considered is sharing New Zealand's HMNZS Canterbury multi-role vessel (MRV). Canterbury is smaller than Kaninbla and less capable of providing for heavy amphibious operations, but is more suited to low intensity operations (and much cheaper to operate). The closest comparable Australian ship is the southern ocean patrol vessel ACV Ocean Protector.

One option not raised in the media so far would be the use of Austrlaian built high speed multi hull vessels.

The USA is acquiring up to ten Fortitude class Joint High Speed Vessels (JHSV) designed by West Australian based company Austal. The RAN has previously operated a similar (but smaller) ship HMAS Jervis Bay (AKR 45) to support operations in East Timor. These ships lack the ability to operate heavy landing craft to deliver tanks to a beach. However, they can operate helicopters and could be adapted to operate smaller landing craft. They also can deliver tanks and heavy equipment to a port with no shore infrastructure required. This was demonstrated when the US Maritime Administration (MARAD) used the Australian designed high speed catamaran “Huakai” to deliver aid to Haiti. Use of such ships would allow a level of commonality in operations with the USA and would also have th political benefit of supporting Australian ship builders.

Design Set for Canberra Class Landing Helicopter Dock Ships

According to "Shape of things to come: Spain's new projection ship readies for sea" (By Nick Brown in Janes, 9 September 2009), the design of the Canberra class LHD ships for the Australian Navy has been finalised. The ships will have the same overall structure as the Spanish Juan Carlos I, they are derived from, but with different electronics and fitout. The ships will have an Australian specific bridge layout. The communications and combat management systems will be similar to the Anzac frigates. The hulls for the Australian ships are being made in Spain, but will be fitted out in Melbourne with a locally made "island".

The Australian ships will retain the transport capabilities of the Spanish one, including the ability to carry 144 ISO 20 foot containers. As an example, the ship could carry a modularised five story building, similar in to the 5 story 70 apartment building currently being assembled at the ANU in Canberra from shipping containers.