SHAH ALAM: It appears that the SLEP for RMN’s 23 Frigate Squadron – KD Lekiu and KD Jebat – is expected to commence soon.
There is yet to be an official announcement about the project but the publication of tenders for the procurement of some systems for both ships is a clear indication that the programme will be carried out most probably next year.
The funding is expected to come from the RMK11 allocation.I had written about the Lekiu-class SLEP previously unfortunately those are part of the posts that went missing following the server failure.
The tenders for the systems for the 23 Frigate Squardon was published on June 5. It is available at the Kementerian Pertahanan website.
I believed the items sought by the tender are those meant for the SLEP. As the ships were built in late 90s, it is expected most of the items are already obsolete or need to be replaced simply because it will be to expensive to maintain for the next twenty years.
Among the items tendered are the Ship Data Distribution System (SSDS), Electro Optical Tracking System (EOTS), Electronic Support Measure (ESM) and a solid state navigation radar.
Another item being sought for the squadron is a degaussing system. (A steel-hulled ship is like a huge floating magnet with a large magnetic field surrounding it. As the ship moves through the water, this field also moves and adds to or subtracts from the Earth’s magnetic field. Because of its distortion effects on the Earth’s magnetic field, the ship can act as a trigger device for magnetic sensitive ordnance or devices which are designed to detect these distortions. The degaussing system is installed aboard ship to reduce the ship’s effect on the Earth’s magnetic field. In order to accomplish this, the change in the Earth’s field about the ship’s hull is “canceled” by controlling the electric current flowing through degaussing coils wound in specific locations within the hull. This, in turn, reduces the possibility of detection by these magnetic sensitive ordnance or devices”.
Both Lekiu and Jebat currently are fitted with a thermal imager, the BAE Type V 3001 while the navigation radars are the Thales I-band navigation radar. The ESM listed for both ships are the BAE Mentor A while the ECM is the Thales Scimitar.
I am told that surface search radar (Sea Giraffe) and air search radar (Thales DA-08) will not be replaced together with the Nautis F combat system. These systems are expected to undergo upgrades instead of being replaced with new ones.
Also there is no word yet whether the ship will be fitted a VDS to complement the current sonar, the Thales Spherion TSM 2633 LF sonar.
As for the weapon systems, it is likely that the guns (Bofors 57mm and MSI 30mm guns) will undergo refurbishment during the SLEP. There is no word yet whether the missiles (Exocet MM40 Block 2 and Seawolf) and torpedoes (A244S) will be replaced with completely new ones or a repeat order will be placed.
Perhaps the RMN will sought to put the same missiles on the Lekiu and Jebat as those on the LCS. Work on the first ship to undergo the SLEP (most likely Lekiu) is expected to start at the Boustead Naval Shipyard in 2016. When exactly is beyond me.
Hopefully with most of the systems being sourced well ahead of the ships being sent to the drydock, neither Lekiu or Jebat will undergo the same fate of KD Kasturi (again the post is missing!) which had undergone a lengthy SLEP.
As for the SLEP for the Laksamana class corvettes, I am told that the funding for the project under RMK11 was approved. However I have yet to find out the scope of the SLEP. I guess we have to wait a little bit longer.
The upgrades for the Kedah-class, I am told will not be funded during RMK11. It was reported earlier this year that RMN had hopes to upgrade the Kedah class for ASW and ASUW and fitted them with missiles and torpedoes.
Apart from tender for the 23 Frigate Squadron, there were also other tenders for RMN ships published in the ministry’s etender page. A tender was published to get a solid state navigation radar for the Multi Purpose Command and Support Ships, KD Seri Indera Sakti and KD Mahawangsa
.
A tender for an eletro optical director system (EODS)for RMN’s FAC was also published. As the site visit was conducted at Kuantan and Kota Kinabalu (Teluk Sepanggar) I assumed that the project will involved the FACs based there only.
The ministry is also looking to install an S-band surveillance radar for the Gugusan Semarang Peninjau which comes under the RMN. The base is located in the South China Sea.
— Malaysian Defence
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View Comments (40)
The trackers are long overdue for replacement and have been experiencing ''issues'' in recent years, mainly due to the fact that both are no longer in production. Sea Siren will also have to be replaced; ideally by the Terma SKWS that went on the Kasturi class; it also doubles as a chaff/flare launcher. Almost a decade ago there was talk of the RMN looking into the possibility of adding a towed array but apparently there were certain technical issues involved.
There is a degaussing facility in Lumut. It was originally delivered by a German company and upgraded by a Brit company years ago.
Interesting to hear about the requirement for a radar in the Spratlys. We already have radars there [Kelvin Hughes I believe]; our main means of detecting intruders in our EEZ.
Marhalim,
Back in January 2014, KD Jebat had a fairly significant collision. Was she repaired or is she laid up in the yard pending this SLEP to work out?
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She was repaired. If I remembered correctly she was involved in the SAR for the crash Air Asia flight
Is Seawolf still in production?
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Nope
Come on.... Malaysian country had pull a lotx3 of investor. Even the richest company from foreign nation(Like US and Japan) can invest to Malaysia. Don't tell me that Malaysian government don't have any lots of money. If that case, how they can pay the IMF from RM 744 billion(2014) to RM 16.4 billion(2015) now? What a greedy mind they are.
Its high time to have our most capable ships upgraded. Lumut had a degaussing facilty but it was out for some time. Whether it is functional again i am not sure. Taking the ferry to pangkor the ferry passes through the range in fact. The range is marked by four post embedded in the sea bed. The wires for the current to pass through could not be seen
Basically when a metal ship passes through the magnetic field of the earth, the ship is magnetised n this will set off sea mines that detect the magnetic field of a ship. So be degaussing the magnetic influence of tbe ship is put back to a range that is difficult to detect. But.this must be done again after a certain distance of sailling to keep the ships demagnetised
It has been reporyed that the royal thai navy is considering the purchase of 3 submarines from china for us1.3 billion. It is reported that the weapon system, endurance n capabilty of these chinese sub is superior to western types as compared by the thais
Just curious, can the launchers for Seawolf be adapted for ESSM, should it be decided to go for missiles change? Or have to go forVL-Mica like the TNI Bung Tomo-class? Doesn't seem wise to go for more (2nd-hand/refurbished?) Seawolf to arm ships intended for another two decades of active service.
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Most likely it will VL-MICA
Looks like the Kedah-class doesn't get it's upgrades... again.
BTW, did Kasturi really undergo for another SLEP again?
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Kasturi only completed her SLEP in 2014
At last, "fitted for and with" will be the new terms for Kedah-class NGPV, hopefully in the near future.
Wait a minute, KD lekiu using exocet block 3 already?
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My mistake, its M40 Block 2