Wednesday, October 21, 2015

Multi-Mission Combat Ship LCS Variant

 Multi-Mission Combat Ship LCS Variant ---


A Lockheed Martin concept for variations of the Freedom-class LCS design from corvette to Frigate sized hulls. Lockheed Martin Photo
A Lockheed Martin concept for variations of the Freedom-class LCS design from corvette to Frigate sized hulls. Lockheed Martin Photo




Saudi Naval Expansion Program II (SNEP II) — the estimated $20 billon program to refresh the aging U.S.-built Saudi fleet operating in the Persian Gulf,

Unlike the Freedom Flight 0 Littoral Combat Ships, the Saudi ships do not appear to have the modular mission package ability and will be rather a more traditional multi-mission model.

ships will also field the 1980s era Boeing RGM-84 Harpoon Block II anti-ship missiles (ASM), anti-submarine warfare (ASW) sonar suites and torpedoes as well as an OTO Melara 76 mm main deck gun. (On US perry class frigate)

The ships will also be equipped with Link 16 datalinks, which could allow for greater interoperability with U.S. forces in the Middle East.  The Saudis inquired into platforms ranging from both variants of the Navy’s LCS — Freedom and Austal USA Independence-class LCS — as well as the higher end Arleigh Burke-class (DDG-51) guided missile destroyer.
  1. Saudi Arabia receives US State Department approval for the purchase of four Multi-Mission Combat Ships (destroyers) for $11.25 billion. (UPI)  four multi-mission ships are derivatives of frigate sized Independence-variant Littoral Combat Ships of the U.S. Navy uparmed with destroyer scale arms including Variable Depth Sonars, MK-41 Vertical Launch Systems and 532 tactical RIM-162 Evolved Sea Sparrow Missiles and  Harpoon Block II Missiles 
  1.  Previously had sought to buy Arleigh Burke Class Destroyers in 2011 as first Middle Eastern nation to buy the world's the world’s most powerful destroyers including SPY-1D AEGIS radars that, among many things, are capable of performing in the ballistic missile defense role which would be effective against Iranian ballistic missles. This package does not include either the  Lockheed Martin Aegis Weapon System or Raytheon RIM-161 Standard Missile 3 included in the Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System

U.S. Approves $11 Billion Saudi Buy of Lockheed Littoral Ships
Bloomberg‎ - 2 days ago... planned sale to Saudi Arabia of as many as four Littoral Combat Ships made by Lockheed ... U.S. is offering a version of the Littoral Combat Ship called the “Multi-Mission Surface Combatant” customized to Saudi requirements

Saudi Arabia Set to Buy Four Lockheed Martin Freedom-Class Variants in $11.25B Deal
USNI News‎ - 1 day ago
Pentagon approves $11bn deal for 4 Lockheed ships to Saudi Arabia — RT USA
RT.com‎ - 5 hours agoMore news for LOCKHEED LCS ship saudi

Pentagon approves $11bn deal for 4 Lockheed ships to ...
https://www.rt.com/usa/319292-saudi-lockheed-lcs-ships/
RT5 hours ago - US State Dep't approved the proposed sale to Saudi Arabia of four heavily armed versions of the littoral combat ship https://t.co/rv4wc9PUu8.

US OKs Potential $11.25B Saudi Deal for LCS Variant
www.defensenews.com/story/...saudi...lcs.../74280014/
Defense News23 hours ago - As in the Freedom class LCS, the Saudi ships will have a LockheedMartin COMBATSS-21 combat management system, which shares some ...

Saudis Said To Zero In on Lockheed LCS - Defense News
www.defensenews.com/.../saudi...lockheed...littoral-comba...
Defense NewsSaudis Said To Zero In on Lockheed LCS. By Christopher P. Cavas 11:20 a.m. EDT September 15, 2015. Littoral Combat Ship USS Fort Worth (LCS 3).

Saudi Arabia Set to Buy Four Lockheed Martin Freedom ...
news.usni.org › Budget Industry
United States Naval Institute1 day ago - Four Lockheed Martin Freedom-class ship variants are set to form the ...Unlike the Freedom Flight 0 Littoral Combat Ships, the Saudi ships do ...

Reports: Saudis Interested in Lockheed Martin Littoral ...
news.usni.org › Budget Industry
United States Naval InstituteSep 15, 2015 - Saudi Arabia is leaning toward Lockheed Martin Littoral Combat Shipvariants as a key component of its multi-billion dollar refresh of its Eastern

 will emphasize traditional anti-air warfare and will be built around two eight-cell Lockheed Martin Mk 41 vertical launch system (VLS) and an Airbus TRS-4D active electronically scanned array (AESA) air search radar. [No Aegis Standard anti-missile capability?]

The list also included 532 Raytheon RIM-162 Evolved Sea Sparrow Missiles (ESSM) which can be loaded four to a Mk 41 cell. With 16 cells per hull, the Saudi Freedoms will be able to potentially field 64 anti-air missiles per-ship.

Mark 41 Vertical Launching System - Wikipedia
WikipediaThe Mark 41 Vertical Launching System (Mk 41 VLS) is a shipborne missile canister launching system which provides a rapid-fire launch capability against ..

Refinement of the initial concept of Aegis system in the 1960s continued through the 1960s and 1970s, and the Mk 41 was conceived in 1976.[2] Originally, the system was only intended to fire the RIM-66 Standard missile, but after the United States Navy decided that all VLS had to be capable of firing the Tomahawk missile, with a consequential increase in the height of the Mk 41 to accommodate the larger missile

Mark 41
The Mk 41 is capable of firing the following missiles: RIM-66 Standard, RIM-67 Standard, RIM-161 Standard Missile 3, RIM-174 Standard ERAM, Tomahawk, RUM-139 VL-ASROC, RIM-7 Sea Sparrow, and RIM-162 ESSM.[2] The missiles are pre-loaded into "canisters", which are then loaded into the individual "cells" of the launcher.

http://news.usni.org/2015/01/09/missile-launcher-contract-gives-hints-saudi-arabias-naval-expansion

For almost seven years Saudi Arabia has been in negotiations with the U.S. to upgrade the Royal Saudi Navy’s Eastern Fleet, composed of aging American-built ships, as part of the Saudi Naval Expansion Program (SNEP II).

Ship types the U.S. could sell to the Saudis include an anti-air warfare (AAW) capable version of the Freedom or Independence-class Littoral Combat Ship or a ballistic missile defense (BMD) capable Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer (DDG-51) have been mentioned as possible contenders for the SNEP-II combatant.

 will emphasize traditional anti-air warfare and will be built around two eight-cell Lockheed Martin Mk 41 vertical launch system (VLS) and an Airbus TRS-4D active electronically scanned array (AESA) air search radar.
 

No comments:

Post a Comment