Royal Canadian Navy

[Andrea75]

Minister Ambrose announces Canadian Surface Combatant industry engagement

 

The Honourable Rona Ambrose, Minister of Public Works and Government Services and Minister for Status of Women, is pleased to announce an industry engagement session for the Canadian Surface Combatant (CSC) Project. The CSC is one of the projects of the National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy (NSPS) and is intended to provide Canada with modern replacements for the Royal Canadian Navy’s existing fleet of destroyers and frigates.

 

Posted on MERX, the Government of Canada’s electronic tendering service, from October 26 to November 7, the Letter of Interest invited industry to participate in initial discussions that will ultimately lead to decisions on the procurement strategy which will result in the delivery of CSC ships.

 

“Engaging industry at the early stages of complex procurement such as the Canadian surface combatant is part of our smart procurement approach and the new way forward,” said Minister Ambrose. “In working closely with industry, we ensure best value for Canadian taxpayers while providing the Canadian Armed Forces with the equipment and capability that they need to do the work we ask of them.”

 

“Our Government is committed to working closely with the Canadian marine industry as we build a new fleet of Canadian Coast Guard vessels and a new fleet of ships for the Royal Canadian Navy,” said the Honourable Peter MacKay, Minister of National Defence. “Our Government’s investment will create over 10 000 jobs in our communities and will stimulate the regional economy for decades to come.”

 

“Our Government is taking a measured approach to setting the course for the Canadian Surface Combatants, and consulting industry early on is a way of ensuring that we set the course correctly,” said the Honourable Bernard Valcourt, Associate Minister of National Defence, Minister of State (Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency) (La Francophonie). “These ships will ensure that, into the future, our Canadian Armed Forces can keep effectively defending Canada and North America, contributing to international peace and security, and continuing Canada’s proud tradition of defending our interests as a maritime nation.”

 

Under the NSPS, the principles of extensive industry consultations, along with the establishment of a strong governance structure and the involvement of independent third parties, were applied in a comprehensive and innovative way and contributed to the success of the strategy. These elements now serve as the pillars of smart procurement and are being applied to Canada’s major procurements.

[Andrea75]

Royal Canadian Navy Submarines: Fleet Status

 

RCN FS 12.001 - November 20, 2012

Victoria-class Achievements

The Canadian Victoria-class submarine fleet has been actively sailing since 2003 and has accumulated approximately 1083 days at sea, participating in exercises at home and overseas, patrolling our coastal areas including the Arctic and participating in international operations. Highlights of the Victoria-class achievements are as follows:

 

- Both HMC Ships Windsor and Corner Brook have participated in multiple personnel and team training activities.

- HMCS Windsor sailed from June 2005 to December 2006 and spent 146 days at sea in 2006 alone. The boat participated in a number of large US-Canadian exercises and advanced and improved special operations forces capabilities, while training with Canadian ships in essential warfare skills. Windsor participated in the first-ever parachute rendezvous at sea practiced with Canada's Patrol Pathfinders (Canadian Army paratroopers). The boat also conducted several sovereignty patrols off Canada's east coast for intelligence gathering, surveillance and reconnaissance.

- HMCS Corner Brook spent 463 days at sea between October 2006 and mid-June 2011. The boat participated in various NATO and Canada/U.S. exercises where she received high praise for her contribution as a simulated enemy to assist in the training of NATO and US surface and air forces. Corner Brook deployed to the Arctic in support of Operation NANOOK in August 2007 and again in August 2009, where she participated in a counter-narcotics exercise and conducted covert surveillance patrols in the vicinity of Baffin Island. In March 2008 and again in 2011, the boat also deployed as part of Operation CARIBBE, a US-led, multi-national effort to interdict drug trafficking in the waters of the Caribbean Basin and the Eastern Pacific.

 

Submarine Fleet Status

Canada’s submarine fleet is scheduled to achieve full operational capability in 2013; at which point Canada will have three of four submarines available for operations including a high readiness submarine available in both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. As part of the ongoing submarine operational cycle, the fourth submarine will rotate into an Extended Docking Work Period (EDWP). An EDWP is a deep maintenance period that provides the submarines’ 200-plus systems with the repairs, maintenance, and upgrades needed to enable six years of effective operation. The current status of the Victoria-class fleet is as follows:

 

HMCS Chicoutimi:

Chicoutimi is currently in an EDWP. This work is being conducted under the Victoria In-Service Support Contract (VISSC) at Victoria Shipyards Co. Ltd. in Esquimalt, B.C. The work is scheduled to be complete in time for the submarine to be available for operations in 2013.

 

HMCS Corner Brook:

In spring 2011, Corner Brook transited from CFB Halifax to CFB Esquimalt to prepare for the submarine’s VISSC EDWP, to be conducted at Victoria Shipyards Co. Ltd in Esquimalt, B.C. by Babcock Canada Inc.

On June 4, 2011, Corner Brook ran aground while conducting submerged manoeuvres during submarine officer training in the vicinity of Nootka Sound on the west coast of Vancouver Island.

On June 10, 2011, a Board of Inquiry (BOI) was convened to gain a clear understanding of the circumstances surrounding the grounding of Corner Brook. The mandate of the BOI was to investigate the cause and contributing factors that may have led to the grounding of Corner Brook, and to identify preventative measures, if any.

Additional information about the Corner Brook grounding incident and BOI is accessible here (news release) and here (BOI Executive Summary).

The full extent of the damage to Corner Brook will be assessed during her ongoing Extended Limited Maintenance Period (ELMP). This period of minimal maintenance is programmed to primarily arrest system degradation while the submarine awaits her turn in deep maintenance known as an Extended Docking Work Period (EDWP). The actual repairs to the submarine will occur during the scheduled EDWP at Victoria Shipyards Co. Ltd, which is to commence in January 2013.

Due to contractual and program management reasons relating to DND's In-Service Support Contract, only one submarine at a time is to be in deep maintenance. Corner Brook will therefore be maintained at the minimum level necessary, as she awaits her scheduled EDWP, which will occur upon completion of Chicoutimi’s EDWP.

 

HMCS Victoria:

Victoria was undocked on April 18, 2011 and began a series of in-harbour tests and trials which included training to conduct operational torpedo firings. Concurrently, the submarine’s crew conducted personnel training and exercises.

In November 2011, Victoria officially completed its VISSC EDWP at DND Fleet Maintenance Facility (FMF) Cape Breton in Esquimalt, B.C. Victoria’s EDWP was the first refit and maintenance activity of this type and intensity ever undertaken on a Victoria-class submarine. The valuable lessons learned from this first EDWP are being applied to subsequent activities. A previous dent located in Victoria’s hull was repaired during her EDWP and there are no diving restrictions on the submarine.

Following the EDWP, Victoria began the process of certifying the crew and all weapon systems with the aim of having the submarine declared fully operational. This process is called the Tiered Readiness Program (TRP).

In December 2011, Victoria proceeded to sea to conduct equipment trials and crew training during which she successfully completed the Surfaced Safety phase of her readiness certification.

In January 2012, Victoria conducted the first dive of this operational cycle as well as the submarine’s Dived Safety phase of her workups. Concurrently, the submarine conducted additional post-EDWP sea acceptance trials.

In March and April of 2012, Victoria conducted a series of successful weapon system trials, including firings of the exercise version of the MK48 Heavyweight Torpedo at Canadian Forces Maritime Experimental and Test Ranges, in Nanoose Bay, B.C. In the exercise version of the torpedo, the warhead module is replaced with electronics for gathering test data. These torpedo firings were part of the technical and operational tests of Victoria’s weapon systems.

In July 2012, Victoria torpedoed and sunk a decommissioned United States Navy ship in the weapons testing range located near the island of Kauai, Hawaii during the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise. Victoria is the first Victoria-class submarine to successfully target and sink another vessel with this torpedo.

Current planning would see Victoria being declared fully operational in 2012.

 

HMCS Windsor:

Windsor is nearing the end of an EDWP in Her Majesty's Canadian Dockyard in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Windsor was undocked on April 11, 2012. In this instance, the submarine was lowered into the water by the Synchrolift where the majority of the EDWP work had been conducted. This marks a major milestone in the work period, indicating that it is nearing completion.

The submarine has been conducting a series of tests and trials, as well as crew training. Current planning would see Windsor fully operational in 2013.

As part of testing and trials, Windsor conducted a camber dive in Halifax Harbour in November 2012. This dive is called a camber dive as it takes place in a protected, shallow area within a harbour known as a camber. This is a key milestone within the tests and trials program to verify the submarine's watertight integrity, and the functionality of communications and other key systems. Further trials activity will continue through the winter of 2013.

........

[Andrea75]

Northrop Grumman Awarded In-Service Support Contract for Royal Canadian Navy Navigation Systems

 

Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) has been selected by Canada's Department of National Defence (DND) to provide in-service support for the MK-49 inertial navigation systems and navigation data distribution systems fielded aboard surface ships and submarines of the Royal Canadian Navy.

 

The $12.1 million contract, awarded by Public Works Government Services Canada, includes material spares and software maintenance for the next five years. This is the fourth in-service support contract that Northrop Grumman has received from the DND since 2001. The company previously designed and delivered the MK-39 inertial navigation system, the SRD 331 Speed Log and related software to Canada.

 

The in-service support work will be for systems installed on 12 Halifax-class frigates, three Iroquois-class destroyers, four Victoria-class submarines and two Protecteur-class auxiliary oiler replenishment ships, in addition to three land-based systems.

 

"This contract continues our 11-year record of reliable in-service support for the Royal Canadian Navy," said Bill Hannon, vice president of Maritime Systems at Northrop Grumman. "By continually expanding the scope with each contract, we have helped reduce the DND's need to maintain spares and support services."

 

The MK-49 inertial navigation system, based on Northrop Grumman's unique ring-laser gyro technology, provides highly accurate position, attitude, velocity and heading inputs to the ships' navigation and fire-control systems to help ensure stabilized weapons initialization under all sea conditions. The navigation data distribution system integrates data inputs and outputs provided by the MK-49 INS and other navigation sensors.

[mo-mo]

www.meretmarine.com

 

La Reale marina canadese ha scelto per i nuovi rifornitori di squadra la proposta tedesca del gruppo TKMS. In pratica si tratterebbe di una versione del tipo 702 ("Berlin"). La notizia non si trova ancora però sul sito ufficiale dell'arma.

 

In più da segnalare che, da oggi, le navi da guerra canadesi, avranno una nuova bandiera specifica che sostituisce, a poppa, quella nazionale.

[mo-mo]

I nuovi rifornitori di squadra ordinati per la Reale marina canadese porteranno nomi di battaglie combattute nel 1812: le navi si chiameranno HMCS Queenston e HMCS Chateuguay.