Many of the 'show of presence' types of patrols in civilian areas could and should be assigned to police paramilitary units like the PGA instead of the military itself. Something like the Gendarme units are doing in other countries.

They are much more familiar with policing procedures and part of their duties also involve policing & internal security.

Bizarrely, most of their job here is for wild animal control. If you wanna get rid of a snake in your house, confirm either call Bomba or APM.

Malaysian Armed Forces ensure better operational interoperability with a dedicated Joint Force Headquarters



The development of the fully equipped Joint Force Headquarters (Markas Angkatan Bersama-MAB) Complex in Sungai Panching here will enable the planning, co-ordination and joint operations handling aspects to be implemented in an orderly manner.

Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF) chief General Tan Sri Zulkifli Zainal Abidin said the coherency, commitment and cooperation of the three branches of service, namely land, sea and air, were very much emphasised upon to ensure national defence would continue to be strong.

In addition, developing the capacity of the MAF was always prioritised, including in the development of the complex on a 39 ha site which was also equipped with an administrative centre, operations centre and a sophisti­cated joint warfare centre which could accommodate a large number of exercise participants.

‘’Sungai Panching was selected because of its strategic position close to major transportations, whether via air or sea and road access which can connect army camps, the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) and the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF).



‘’The complex also proves that we have the capacity to conduct in situ training with adequate and sophisticated infrastructure and facilities,’’ he said at the Sungai Panching Camp MAB Operations parade ceremony here.

Also present were RMN chief Admiral Datuk Reza Mohd Sany, RMAF chief General Tan Sri Affendi Buang and MAB chief Lieutenant General Datuk Suhaimi Mohd Zuki.

‘’I fervently hope that with the availability of the conducive administration centre, facilities and operations infrastructure, the domestic and global operations and numerous training involving bilateral, multilateral and even multinational participations can be handled more systematically and resolutely.

‘’The operations of the MAB must be capable of becoming an example and excellence benchmark not only to the three branches of service but also to outside organisa­­tions and armed forces of other nations,” he added. – Bernama

sos

This post has been edited by MilitaryMadness: Jul 11 2019, 08:38 AM

Malaysian lawmakers furious over encroachment of foreign fishermen, call for stricter measures in revised Fisheries Bill



The Harian Metro's exclusive report yesterday received the attention of MPs when they linked the issue of fishermen's invasion in the debate on the Fisheries Bill (Amendment) Bill 2019 in Dewan Rakyat, here.

The issue became the focus after Mohd Shahar Abdullah (BN-Paya Besar) lifted and presented the front page of the Harian Metro while quoting Dr Azman Ismail's debate (PH-Kuala Kedah).

Dr Azman was the first speaker of 36 delegates debating the second reading Bill of Fisheries (Amendment) Bill.

Mohd Shahar called on the ministry to clarify the issues that the Special Harian Metro exposé revealed.

He praised the exposé of this newspaper which he described as taking a risk of exposing the corruption and defending the livelihood of local fishermen.

"I woke up this morning and read Harian Metro. I highly admire the efforts of the Harian Metro Special Squad who are willing to risk their lives in this exposé.

"How can there be two ships using the same registration? All this needs to be investigated by the minister, "he said.

Shaharizukirnain Abd Kadir (PAS-Setiu) also questioned whether there was an intervention by a third party other than the related agencies on the issue of the invasion of foreign fishermen in the country's waters.

He also followed Harian Metro's report on the issue and asked the government to help provide funds for local fishermen to buy new boats.

Kemaman MP Che Alias ​​Hamid also touched on the exposé through Harian Metro's report and hoped that uncompromising action would be taken on the responsible parties.

"To what extent vessel monitoring operations will be taken as enforcement is seen to be weaker today. I want to know also what use of the latest technology to prevent encroachment, "he said.

The issue was also touched by Sik representative Ahmad Tarmizi Sulaiman, who urged the government to take immediate action to prevent local fishermen from being affected.

"What Harian Metro has reported is very serious because of plundering the livelihood of local fishermen. Please consider, Honorable Minister, "he said.

Meanwhile, Bagai Serai Member of Parliament Datuk Dr Noor Azmi Ghazali suggested that the government impose a maximum fine including firing on encroaching foreign vessels.

"Capture these thieves immediately," he said.

Meanwhile, Kuala Terengganu MP Ahmad Amzad Mohamed recommends more Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs) to be allocated to the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) to address the issue of invasion of foreign fishermen.

"I was informed that our patrol assets have unsatisfactory maintenance times. Patrol assets need to be maintained well and efficiently so that operations are not interrupted.

"In addition, I would like to get an explanation of the actual number of MMEA patrol vessels today in ready-to-serve condition to handle the current problems," he said.

He added that enforcement agencies need to be supplied with high-tech assets such as OPVs to expand enforcement activities.

"It is understood that these vessels has been a great success for example the KM Pekan in Terengganu every day have detained an average six fishing boats a day, an achievement that I am very proud of.


[B]MMEA's KM Pekan OPV

"In fact, more maintenance provisions allow them to operate from 70 to 200 nautical miles for a longer time.

"The government needs to provide motherships for the MMEA so that they can be in our waters at all times," he said.[/B]

The session also received the same reaction from other elected representatives including Datuk Dr Abd Latiff Ahmad (PH-Mersing) who recommended the proposed collaboration and discussion on this issue with all Asean countries.

Most of the representatives who discussed also supported the firm action taken to address the issue of invasion of Vietnamese fishermen.

Harian Metro in an exclusive report yesterday revealed the confession of the middleman who exposed the corruption of local boat operators that benefit encroaching Vietnamese fishermen.

MMEA wants at least four motherships to maintain control of Malaysian waters



PUTRAJAYA: Creating a floating headquarters using larger-sized ship platform is among the effective methods in the fight against the intrusion of foreign fishing boats from Vietnam in the waters of the country.

Maritime Enforcement Agency Director-General Datuk Seri Zulkifili Abu Bakar said the large-scale asset constraints caused the company to rely on KM Pekan's services to carry out operations to the boundary of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

He said if his agency had more large assets, the agency's enforcement mothership could be at sea for a longer period of up to 30 days compared to 14 to 20 days with existing assets.

So far, KM Pekan has three boats and plans are afoot to increase the amount of the assets.

"If we acquire four units of motherships we will be able to effectively manage operations on the East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak at the same time. If the ship is in excess of 100 nautical miles from the coast, surveillance can be performed optimally.

"The larger capacity of a mothership, including six boats onboard allows patrols to reach a 40 nautical mile radius and that is quite wide.

"This 110-meter-long vessel can also be equipped with an unmanned aircraft (UAV) to further enhance intelligence and surveillance from the air," he said when met at his office here yesterday.

Zulkifili said he also hoped to add two units of Maritime Surveillance Aircraft (MSA) capable of flying up to 12 hours to strengthen the agency's operations.

According to him, MMEA is currently in the process of acquiring six new Generation Patrol Boats (NGPC) and three Offshore Patrol Boats (OPV).

"Three NGPC units have been received and the remainder will follow, as well as the OPVs. If the government approves the acquisition of the mothership as our floating platform of operations, we will be more effective.

"The Large size allow this vessel to carry higher quantities of fuel, food and water. The crew assignment can also be divided into three shifts as the number of officers and members is brought in more, "he said.

The mothership concept itself is not that advanced thing to develop and build. Just a resupply ship/platform for the patrolling vessels to keep them out to sea longer without the need to return to port so often.

MMEA doesn't really require high grade military-spec equipment, so it should be within the means of local shipyards to build these kinds of ships. The design however can be either local or foreign, should not be too much or costly to develop and build, unlike TLDM ships.

Back in LIMA 19, some local groups have already put forward their designs for MMEA motherships.

Vietnamese fishermen ram KM Pekan trying to escape arrest, MMEA Dir-Gen authorizes use of force if necessary


Credit to Air Times News Network

KUALA LUMPUR: The aggressive actions Vietnamese fishermen does not break the morale of the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) and the agency will continue to defend the country's waters including using force if necessary.

MMEA Director-General Admiral Maritim Datuk Seri Zulkifili Abu Bakar said his side was never affected but enforcement duties would continue with a more proactive approach.

"We will continue our enforcement efforts, if they (Vietnamese fishermen) make another attempt, we will defend ourselves with whatever means necessary including using deadly weapons if our safety is threatened.

"This is normal, and we are not afraid of their attempts" he told Harian Metro yesterday.

He was commenting on the actions of aggressive Vietnamese fishermen ramming the MMEA's KM Pekan OPV using their boat while trying to escape enforcement.

"They are still stubbornly catching our fish, so when they see KM Pekan's presence, they are afraid and try to damage our ship to frustrate our enforcement duties.

"It's just an attempt to frighten us, but it does not work," he said.

Last Tuesday, KM Pekan's crew took four hours before they managed to intercept Vietnamese fishing boats who had rammed the vessel while trying to escape.

None right now though, what stuff we are hearing about right now is probably what the Navy and MMEA will have for the next 5-8 years. The Navy will be busy with the remaining LCS and LMS while MMEA can look forward to the 3 Damen OPVs and the remaining 3 NGPCs.

Beyond that probably the Navy will be looking at the MRSS and the MMEA will be planning for their 'mothership' program.

The MMEA is desperately short of funding though right now. They are expecting MMEA to be the country's peacetime navy but are allocated only a fraction of the funds of the actual navy.


This post has been edited by MilitaryMadness: Jul 17 2019, 09:35 AM

Home minister: We will buy additional assets for the MMEA only if there is a special need



The Ministry of Home Affairs has informed the government is willing to increase the assets and ships of the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) only if there is a special need to combat the issue of invasion of foreign fishermen.

Its minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said his agency found that the mobilization of assets and ships by other enforcement and security agencies was seen to be effective enough to address the issue of the intrusion in the meantime.

"The need for bigger assets and big ships is there but I do not think in the near future.

"For the time being, the eradication of foreign encroachment by foreign security agencies and enforcement agencies is quite effective," he said when met after the United Nation's (UN) United Leader's Council's Supreme Leader's Council Meeting in Putrajaya yesterday.

He said Ops Naga, which was launched in April, is still in operation with four ministries and seven enforcement and security agencies.

In April, the Cabinet approved the establishment of a special task force with four ministries and seven agencies and security to address the issue of invasion of Vietnamese fishermen in the waters of the country.

The special task force is headed by the Ministry of Home Affairs (KDN) besides participating by the Ministry of Agriculture and Agro-Based Industry (MOA); Ministry of Defense and Foreign Ministry.

Meanwhile, seven enforcement and security agencies involved are the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA); Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM); Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN); Fishery Department; Malaysian Fisheries Development Authority (LKIM); The Immigration Department and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).

sos

A bit of correction. After further searching , it seems that all 6 of the NGPC is already in service now. They are:

- KM Bagan Datuk (4541)
- KM Tok Bali (4544)
- KM Sri Aman (4542)
- KM Kinabalu (4545)
- KM Kota Belud (4543)
- KM Lahad Datu (4546)

In case of patrol/observation plane, a lot of coast guards even use small single or twin-engine aircrafts and employ mark 1 eyeball also good enough. Malaysia also have relatively small maritime airspace, so not that long a range is required.

What is important is having an eye in the sky.


New Zealand Coast Guard Cessna 182R

Even single-engine light aircraft can already fly faster, higher and further than any helicopter.

Besides pilot and copilot, 2 guys in the passenger seats with high-powered binoculars (one watching starboard and one watching port) can see around very far already. When install electro-optical gear, the observers can see even much further.

The Navy does perhaps, but coast guard probably don't need such advanced plane like P-8.

A coast guard air unit is hardly what can be called 'maritime air forces'.

You don't need advanced radar and sensors, anti-submarine equipment and any heavy armaments at all. Navy guys need that tech and firepower because their enemies are also powerful. Enforcing fishery/maritime law and chasing lightly-armed pirates & kidnappers hardly need something like a Harpoon anti-ship missile or dozens of sonoboys that cost $3000 USD each.

You can basically buy a few commercial single or twin-engine light planes, paint it in APMM colors, put 2 guys with binoculars in the cabin and you have a basic patrol/visual observation aircraft already. You can get one in the market for as low as RM 1 million only for single engine planes. Maintenance is also easy since its all based on commercial plane.

Many coast guards do use those kinds of light aircrafts as patrol/observation platforms, usually smaller countries with limited budgets though like New Zealand, The Philippines and some others.

Anyway if you can afford better planes with better equipment by all means get those as they van do the job better, but I guess beggars can't be such choosers.

The single-engine planes may have to use onboard observers, although you can probably install basic electro-optical gear on larger twin-engine aircraft. Then you can get a much larger area that you can observe.

That kind if money is no object can la....

We're talking about cash-strapped options here. IMHO any eye in the sky is better than no eye at all.

It seems that the NZ coast guard is actually not a full government body, just a civilian-run government-linked organization with no enforcement powers. All of their assets are sourced either from donations or sponsorships. All their duties are apparently restricted to maritime safety and SAR only.

I admit boats do have more utility though, but I stand by my view that air units, however basic can act as good force multiplier for those coast guards with low funds.

Defence Ministry opens tender for the purchase of Fast Interceptor Crafts (FIC) and helicopters for the TLDM



The Defence Ministry has issued on July 19, open tenders for the purchase of fast interceptor crafts (FIC) and maritime helicopters for the TLDM. As usual only potential bidders will have access to the requirements and other stuff as the ministry do not publish the bid documents publicly as per usual practice.

Hopefully, the 2020 budget will allocate the funds for the maritime helicopters and FIC and their contracts duly signed by early next year with deliveries taking place in 2022.

sos