The Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN) is back at RIMPAC this year. Its major ships are in the midst of significant refits and upgrades and its manpower has been capped slightly below the figure considered optimum.

In the first few days of March this year, test firings of the RAN’s new heavyweight torpedo were carried out off the Western Australian coast.

Once upon a time maritime multi-influence ranges were fixed in place, a series of sensors never to be moved yet highly sought after for information they provided on mine warfare and signature management development. Thanks to a program in DSTO, the Self-recoverable Portable InfluencE Range (SPIeR) could change the fixed nature of ranges.

Equipping RAN Anzac-class frigates to utilise the Hawklink Tactical Common Data Link on the MH-60R combat helicopters that will enter Australian service in 2014 is part of contractual discussions that should be concluded by March.

The Aegis combat system is well known for larger warships but Lockheed Martin is looking to present a stripped down version for smaller vessels in the Asia Pacific region.

Many words have been written about the size of the RAN’s forthcoming Canberra-class LHDs, but Marco Alfonso, BAE Systems’ General Manager for the LHD program, came up with some new statistics.

Daronmont Technologies is quietly achieving with some not so well known capabilities in operational EW support and TADIL training.

A paper presented by ASPI’s Mark Thomson and Andrew Davies with Deloitte Access Economics economist Henry Ergas set the cat among the pidgeons with their conclusion about the marginal value of Australian shipbuilding efforts, in an economic sense.

Although Australia decided in 2009 not to participate in the design and development phase of the Global Hawk-based Broad Area Maritime Surveillance (BAMS) program despite earlier involvement, prime contractor Northrop Grumman is confident of continuing Australian interest in the capability.

Mark Anderson, Group Marketing Director-designate of Ultra Electronics, confirmed that development of the sonar system for the Hobart class air warfare destroyers (AWD) was on schedule.

The Pacific2012 series of events, which encompassed conferences from Navy, a trade show and various related maritime symposia, once again yielded a wide array of papers, ideas and products.

The Royal Australian Navy’s new Bay-class dock landing ship has passed its first capability test after three weeks of amphibious exercises off North Queensland.

At a time of considerable attention being focused on naval sustainment issues and practices, a Class Output Management (COM) approach being implemented in the UK to support Royal Navy ships is showing real, positive results.  Such an approach could address a number of the recommendations raised in the recently published Rizzo Review, Babcock’s Bob Love (Deputy CEO) and former Director General Ships (RN) believes.

The New Zealand Defence Force’s plans to establish a Joint Amphibious Task Force have focussed its attention on the individual and collective skills and expertise it needs as well as the hardware and software: the weapons, platforms and command and control systems.

When is a boat, not a boat? When it’s a Sealegs amphibious boat, capable of being driven on land as well as in the water and launching itself with the assistance of only the driver.

While it will be 10 years or so before Sea 5000, the Future Frigate project, achieves first pass approval, work has already begun on aspects of the project including preparation for canvassing the market next year.