The RNoN's six Skjold-class corvettes are undergoing a life-extension programme to enable them to remain in service until at least 2030. (Norwegian Armed Forces)  Danish defence and aerospace company Terma has confirmed that Royal Norwegian Navy's (RNoN's) Skjold-class corvettes will be equipped with its Scanter 6000 surveillance radar as part of the class's life-extension programme.  In a 15 June announcement the company said the radar had recently completed factory acceptance testing (FAT) for the Skjold-class upgrade programme.  “These tes...

The UK Royal Navy's Type 31 frigates are being equipped with the TACTICOS Baseline 2 combat management system. (NAVYPIX/Richard Scott)  The first Type 31 integrated combat system is on course to undergo factory acceptance testing (FAT) in the third quarter (Q3) of 2023, Thales has confirmed.  Speaking to media at Thales UK's facilities in Templecombe, UK, Julie Martin, naval senior account director, said that delivery of the first Type 31 mission system was on schedule.  “The key focus for us right now on the Type 31 is the fully integrated c...

US lawmakers raised no official objection to the decommissioning of LCS USS   Jackson  .  (Michael Fabey)  In its National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for fiscal year (FY) 2024 mark, the House Armed Services Committee (HASC) Seapower and Projection Forces Subcommittee detailed its desires during a 13 June hearing of the mark to retain most of the vessels the US Navy (USN) is seeking to decommission soon.    The USN's FY 2024 budget proposal sought to decommission 11 ships: Whidbey Island-class dock landi...

RNMB   Apollo   being passed by a Hunt-class MCM vessel during trials in December 2022 that took place as part of the Anglo-French Maritime Mine Counter Measures programme, which is delivering autonomous capability for both the Royal Navy and the Marine Nationale.  (Thales)  The UK Royal Navy's (RN's) unmanned surface vessel (USV) RNMB Apollo has completed a series of navy and industry open water assurance trials claimed by Thales to be the first UK military clearance of its kind.  The safety trials, which were de...

RNMB Apollo being passed by a Hunt-class MCM vessel during trials in December 2022 that took place as part of the Anglo-French Maritime Mine Counter Measures (MMCM) programme, which is delivering autonomous capability for both the Royal Navy and the Marine Nationale.  (Thales)    The UK Royal Navy's (RN's) unmanned surface vessel (USV) RNMB   Apollo   has completed a series of navy and industry open water assurance trials claimed by Thales to be the first UK military clearance of its kind.   The safety trials, which were d...

USS   Freedom  and USS   Independence  were both decommissioned in 2021.  (US Navy)  As the US Navy (USN) assesses some of the first overall fleet operations – and recreates operational concepts – for its littoral combat ships (LCSs), the service appears to be just as determined to quickly reduce LCS numbers as it was to introduce and augment the LCS force decades ago.  LCSs were initially designed decades ago and built to conduct antisubmarine warfare (ASW), surface warfare (SuW), and mine counter...

BAE Systems will support radars on UK Royal Navy Type 45 destroyers, such as HMS   Dauntless  .  (Derek Fox)  BAE Systems has received a GBP270 million (USD338.71 million) contract to support the radars on Royal Navy (RN) Type 23 and Type 26 frigates, Type 45 destroyers, and the Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers.  The company will upgrade, maintain, and provide in-service support for the BAE Systems Sampson multifunction radar and Advanced Radar Target Indication Situational Awareness and Navigation (ARTISAN...

The Indian Army seeks to upgrade its T-90 MBTs with 1,200–1,500 hp engines. The image shows a T-90 MBT at an Indian Army exercise in November 2022. (Janes/Kapil Kajal)  The Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD) has approved plans to procure Future Ready Combat Vehicles (FRCVs) and engines to upgrade in-service T-90 main battle tanks (MBTs).  The two projects were granted ‘Approval in Principle' (AIP) by the MoD in late May. The MoD said the programmes will proceed under the government-funded ‘Make-I' category.  The FRCV project features the acqui...

Ocius Technologies' Bluebottle USV operates in the waters of Jervis Bay during Exercise ‘Autonomous Warrior 2022' at HMAS Creswell in the Australian Capital Territory. On 9 June the Australian DoD announced that Ocius has completed the delivery of the fifth and final Bluebottle USV to the RAN. (Commonwealth of Australia)  Ocius Technologies has completed the delivery of all Bluebottle unmanned surface vessels (USVs) to the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) under a AUD4.9 million (USD3.3 million) contract secured in November 2022.  The Australian De...

Bucha  has been assigned to the river flotilla based on the Dnipro river in Kiev region.  (Ministry of Defence, Ukraine)  Ukraine has commissioned its eighth Gurza-M (Viper-M) missile-armed riverine patrol boat into service.    The new boat, named   Bucha  (P 181), has been assigned to the river flotilla based on the Dnipro river in Kiev region, which was established in 2022.   Bucha  started construction at Kuznia na Rybalskomu (previously Leninska Kuznia) shipyard in Kiev in 2019 and was launched on 3...

The US Marine Corps is focusing on developing better logistics. (Janes/Michael Fabey)  To lay the foundation for revamped US Marine Corps (USMC) expeditionary operations, USMC leadership has underscored the need to properly support dispersed forces with sufficient logistics.  In much the same way, the US Navy (USN) is developing its own somewhat similarly designed distributed lethality concept that also must provide the logistics support for those far-flung, thinly spread forces.    The USN acknowledges the importance of logistics force...

The Sea Ghost (above) can control up to four M-Searcher USVs operating in swarm. (Janes/Chinmay Kohad)  Hanwha Systems displayed its manned-unmanned teaming (MUM-T) solution for the Republic of Korea Navy (RoKN) at the MADEX 2023 exhibition in Busan, which concluded on 9 June. The concept features two types of unmanned surface vessel (USV) platforms – the Sea Ghost and the M-Searcher.  The Sea Ghost USV has a length of 12 m and a width of 3.5 m. This vessel is powered by two engines using hybrid propulsion, with two water-jets enabling a crui...

A model of the Sea Sword-5 USV by LIG Nex1 on display at MADEX 2023. (Janes/Ridzwan Rahmat)  The Republic of Korea Navy (RoKN) is now considering LIG Nex1's Sea Sword-5 as one of the vehicles that will be operated from its future command ships for unmanned systems.  The Sea Sword-5 is an 8 m unmanned surface vessel (USV) that was first unveiled by LIG Nex1 in 2022 and originally positioned for the Korea Coast Guard's maritime surveillance requirements.    However, the USV has now also received interest from naval planners as a force pro...

A model of the Surion MCH displayed at MADEX 2023. (Janes/Chinmay Kohad)  Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) and BAE Systems signed a contract agreement on 8 June to support delivery of the UK company's Archerfish Mine Neutralisation System (AMNS) for integration onto the KAI KUH-1 Surion mine-countermeasures helicopter (MCH).  The total number of AMNS units to be delivered to KAI under the agreement, which was signed at the MADEX 2023 exhibition held in Busan, is unknown. However, KAI intends to fit the MCH with four Archerfish systems and an...

A model of Hanwha Ocean's XLUUV on display at MADEX 2023. (Janes/Ridzwan Rahmat)  Hanwha Ocean has unveiled the basic design of the extra-large unmanned underwater vehicle (XLUUV) it is developing for the Republic of Korea Navy (RoKN).  The design was showcased via a scale model unveiled at the MADEX 2023 exhibition held in Busan from 7 to 9 June. It was conceived pursuant to a contract signed between Hanwha Ocean and the South Korean government in April 2023.    The contract calls for basic design and development works for an XLUUV that...

The RNoN Ula-class submarine, HNoMS  Utsira  (foreground), and Fridtjof Nansen-class frigate HNoMS  Otto Sverdrup  operate together during NATO's ‘Dynamic Mongoose' anti-submarine warfare exercise in the North Atlantic in 2020. Under the defence chief's recommendations, Norway could expand both its submarine and surface fleets.  (NATO Maritime Command Flickr feed)  Norway's Chief of Defence General Eirik Kristoffersen has called for an increase in the Royal Norwegian Navy's (RNoN's) submarine and fri...

A new US government report cites concerns about installing hypersonic missile equipment on the USS   Zumwalt  .  (Janes/Michael Fabey)  Both US Navy (USN) vessel platforms lined up for the service's first Conventional Prompt Strike (CPS) deployments face issues with scheduling and development, according to a US Government Accountability Office (GAO) report released on 8 June.    The first USN platform lined up for the CPS weapon system is the guided-missile destroyer, USS   Zumwalt  (DDG 1000)....

The DRDO and SFC have conducted the flight test of the nuclear-capable Agni Prime missile from Dr Abdul Kalam Island off the coast of Odisha, India. The above picture shows the first test launch of the missile in June 2021. (DRDO via Press Information Bureau)  India's Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Strategic Forces Command (SFC) have conducted the flight test of a new-generation ballistic missile known as Agni Prime on 7 June, the Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD) said.  According to a press release by the MoD on 8 J...

A model of HHI's latest CVX aircraft carrier design. (Janes/Mike Plunkett)  Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) displayed the latest iteration of its CVX aircraft carrier concept at the MADEX 2023 exhibition in Busan, which concludes on 9 June.  Previous versions of the CVX programme have featured short take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) designs. However, HHI's new CVX design features a catapult-assisted take-off but arrested recovery (CATOBAR) capability enabling it to operate a wide range of naval fixed-wing aircraft.    An HHI represent...

LIG Nex1's new AUV and XLUUV are being developed to meet South Korea's mine-countermeasures requirements. (Janes/Chinmay Kohad)  LIG Nex1 displayed models of a new autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) and an extra-large unmanned underwater vehicle (XLUUV) at the MADEX 2023 exhibition in Busan, South Korea.  The company told Janes that the AUV, which is under development, has a length of 2 m and a diameter of 20 cm. It has an operational depth of 200 m and weighs 60 kg.  The AUV is being developed under a KRW12 billion (USD9.1 million) contract...