DTN News - CANADA DEFENSE NEWS: Damage To Submarines Much Worse Than Navy Let On Last Year

DTN News - CANADA DEFENSE NEWS: Damage To Submarines Much Worse Than Navy Let On Last Year
Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources By Katie DeRosa, timescolonist.com
 (NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - February 14, 2012: Leaked photos of the Victoria-class submarine that struck bottom in Nootka Sound last year show a gaping hole in the boat's nose - damage much more severe than the Royal Canadian Navy initially let on.

The nighttime photos of HMCS Corner Brook, obtained by CBC, show a large gash shaped like an inverted triangle that pierces the rusty vessel.

The submarine ran aground on June 4, 2011, while conducting underwater manoeuvres 45 metres below the surface during advanced officer training. A navy board of inquiry found the crash was "avoidable" and that an inexperienced commanding officer, Lt. Cmdr. Paul Sutherland, had the sub more than 450 metres from its intended position.

But the navy report played down the damage, saying the boat "incurred damage to her bow and experienced minor leakage in a forward ballast tank."

Liberal Senator Colin Kenny, former head of the Senate defence committee, said he was taken aback at the level of damage.

"It was an incredible hole in the front of the boat and I was shocked at that," Kenny said in an interview Monday. "It looked about 10 or 15 feet high and maybe 10 feet wide."

The navy moved the ship from the waters of Esquimalt Harbour to the dry dock at night, and base policy prohibited CFB Esquimalt employees from taking photos of it. Media photos like the one accompanying this story captured the boat submerged in the harbour.

Kenny said naval officers have told him the hole is in the outer fibreglass shell, and does not affect the structural integrity of the submarine's crucial pressure hull.

Retired rear admiral Roger Girouard said "they are pretty ugly looking pictures, I'll grant you that." He added the torn fibreglass is similar to the plastic parts of a car that do not affect how the car runs.

HMCS Corner Brook is at the Esquimalt graving dock, awaiting repair by Victoria Shipyards.

Two submariners suffered minor bruises from the impact of the grounding, but Kenny said he's worried about the psychological repercussions for the 60 crew members after what must have been a traumatic experience.

The navy also played down the disruption in HMCS Corner Brook's training schedule. At the time of the crash, it said the boat was just three weeks away from extended maintenance period that would have it ashore until 2016.

Kenny said photos of the hole will add to the crisis in confidence Canadians feel over the submarine program, which has cost taxpayers about $900 million since the government bought four used Victoria-class vessels from Britain in 1998 for $750 million.

Not one of the four submarines is fully operational.

HMCS Windsor and HMCS Victoria are set to be certified and equipped with weapons by 2013. HMCS Chicoutimi, damaged by a fire in 2004 that killed one officer, is to be in extended maintenance until 2013 and certified a year later.

Girouard said that while it's important for Canada to have strong submarine capabilities, he can understand frustration at the growing price tag for ships sitting idle.

"For folks who aren't savvy about all the maritime issues at play right now, who already are in a place where they're not sure about the value of boats, I guess it does add to that," Girouard said.

Kenny said Canada's navy needs to ditch the battered subs and invest in new ones. Because the four boats are constantly undergoing repairs, there isn't a lot of opportunity for submariner training, Kenny said, which could lead to more serious accidents.

"Having two submarines on each coast goes a long way toward providing security for Canada. If these boats keep on having problems, we should get out of them and we should move onto something that works."

kderosa@timescolonist.com

© Copyright (c) The Victoria Times Colonist


*Link for This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources By Katie DeRosa, timescolonist.com
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DTN News: Canadian Navy Frigate Deploys On 6-Month Counter Terrorism Mission

DTN News: Canadian Navy Frigate Deploys On 6-Month Counter Terrorism Mission *Source: DTN News / Int'l Media (NSI News Source Info) HALIFAX, N.S. - October 27, 2009: Canada's latest contribution to the war on terrorism and piracy slipped out of Halifax harbour in driving rain Sunday on a six-month deployment to the Middle East. Before it left, family and friends gathered on the deck and in the helicopter bay of HMCS Fredericton for a couple of hours to bid an emotional farewell to the 245 crew members who won't be returning until next spring.HMCS Fredericton leaves Halifax on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2009. The ship and crew headed out on a six-month deployment and will join the standing NATO Maritime Group providing security operations in the Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Vaughan As Evan and Bianca Entwhistle hugged, their 20-month-old son Finn sandwiched between them, it was hard to distinguish the tears from the rain. "The sad part with this little guy is how much they change," said Bianca kissing her son on his curly red head. "He knows when Evan's gone. I don't think in the long term he'll remember this but he'll be talking by the time dad gets home." Entwhistle said he knows he signed on for the job - this is his third deployment overseas - but that didin't make it any easier. "It's the first time I'm doing a trip like this with the little guy and I'm more concerned about how it's going to run back here," he said, acknowledging the help of military support services and what he called "a great circle of friends." The Fredericton will be integrated into the standing NATO Maritime Group providing security operations in the Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean until late April. Cmdr. Steve Waddell said he had a lot to think about as captain of a navy ship about to leave on a lengthy mission. "I'm thinking about the mission ahead, the weather today, just getting the ship off the wall safely, and about my own family on board," he said. "This will be my fifth deployment to the area and every time I've gone it has been very much different . . . anything can happen so we have to be ready for anything." The Fredericton will make a few diplomatic port calls before it arrives in theatre sometime mid-November where it will spend the first couple of months on anti-piracy duty off the Horn of Africa. As he walked about shaking hands and wishing sailors well the head of the east coast navy, Rear Admiral Paul Maddison, said it was important that Canada contribute to ensuring the freedom of the seas. "What we see happening off Somalia and the risks that are growing at sea we will see growing in other parts of the world," he said. "This illicit activity puts pressure on the freedom of the sea which is so important to democratic countries like Canada because 90 per cent of the global economy floats." Maddison said he believes the effort of like-minded navies over the past year has shown results. "With the navies that have been there since the problem really spiked in 2008 we have put a significant dent in the ability of Somali pirates to operate," he said. "I am absolutely convinced that they were not as successful over the past year as they would have hoped." Several dignitaries, including New Brunswick Lt.-Gov. Graydon Nicholas, were on hand for the Fredericton's departure. They offered best wishes and safe return to the ship that carries the name of the province's capital city.

DTN News: Saab Awarded Contract By Lockheed Martin to Upgrade Radar For Canadian Navy Halifax Class Frigates

DTN News: Saab Awarded Contract By Lockheed Martin to Upgrade Radar For Canadian Navy Halifax Class Frigates

(NSI News Source Info) STOCKHOLM, Sweden - June 2, 2009: The defence and security company Saab has signed a contract worth approximately SEK 180 Million with Lockheed Martin Canada, to upgrade the 2D radar, Sea Giraffe 150 HC for the modernization of the Canadian Navy’s Halifax Class frigates. Deliveries are planned for 2010-2017. Saint John Shipbuilding Ltd is the prime contractor for the Halifax Class frigate or Canadian Patrol Frigate programme. Nine of the 12 ships were constructed at the Saint John shipyards in Saint John, New Brunswick and three ships at Marine Industries Shipyards in Sorel. The multi-purpose frigates were commissioned between 1992 and 1997. Halifax Class frigates, HMCS Regina and Fredericton, have been conducting maritime interdiction operations in the Persian Gulf in support of the international campaign against terrorism. Saab has been a radar provider to the Canadian Navy since the early nineties. The contract received is an upgrade and modification of the existing Sea Giraffe 150 HC, and will secure a high level of operational availability as well as new and improved functions of the radar for years to come. The radar upgrade is part of a larger Combat Systems Integration contract, awarded to Lockheed Martin Canada in 2008, that will ultimately provide a new command and control system, radars, tactical data links, electronic support measures and other warfare capabilities for the Canadian Navy’s Halifax-class frigates. ”We are very pleased that Lockheed Martin Canada and the Canadian Navy have selected Saab’s radar for this modernization program”, says Lennart Joelsson, Business Unit Manager, Saab Microwave Systems. The fully owned Saab company, Saab Microwave Canada Ltd, based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, also will provide support services for the Canadian Navy, as well as support for future products from Saab in Canada. Saab serves the global market with world-leading products, services and solutions ranging from military defence to civil security. Saab has operations and employees on all continents and constantly develops, adopts and improves new technology to meet customers’ changing needs.

DTN News: Nulka Secures 11th Successive Production Order From Australian Government

DTN News: Nulka Secures 11th Successive Production Order From Australian Government

(NSI News Source Info) MELBOURNE, Australia – June 2, 2009: The Australian Government has awarded BAE Systems another contract to produce additional Nulka anti-missile decoy rounds. The contract, valued at AUD $48.2 million, will see BAE Systems Australia produce additional Nulka rounds for use by the Australian, United States and Canadian Navies. BAE Systems is the prime contractor responsible for design, development and integration of the Nulka system. Two US sub-contractors, Lockheed Martin and Aerojet, manufacture the electronic warfare payload and the rocket motor respectively. Simon Forrest, BAE Systems Program Manager, confirmed that this latest and 11th successive annual order would see production extended to 2012. “To date approximately 860 Nulka rounds have been produced for the Australian, United States and Canadian Navies. The Nulka system has now been installed on more than 125 surface combat ships, with deployment on further ship classes planned,” Mr Forrest said. Nulka is a rocket propelled active decoy designed to lure anti-ship missiles away from their intended target. Originally conceived in Australia, and developed under a joint Australian and United States program, it provides warships with a highly effective all-weather defence against anti-ship missiles, bringing together hovering rocket, autonomous system and electronic technologies. About BAE Systems: BAE Systems is the premier global defence, security and aerospace company delivering a full range of products and services for air, land and naval forces, as well as advanced electronics, security, information technology solutions and customer support services. With approximately 105,000 employees worldwide, BAE Systems' sales exceeded £18.5 billion (US $34.4 billion) in 2008.