And separately and almost concurrently, SG conducts an exercise with Malaysia:
Singapore and Malaysia Air Forces Conclude Bilateral Search and Rescue Exercise
The Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) and the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) successfully conducted the fourth edition of the annual bilateral Search-and-Rescue Exercise (SAREX) MALSING. Held from 28 September to 1 October at Kuantan Air Base (KAB), Malaysia, this year's edition saw the inaugural participation of the RSAF's H225M helicopter in an overseas exercise. This is also the first SAREX MALSING that both services' personnel could resume in-person interactions and exchanges since the onset of COVID-19.1
The four-day exercise involved Search-and-Rescue (SAR) aircrew, ground crew and medical teams from both the RSAF and RMAF. The exercise participants planned and executed joint SAR operations off the north-western coast of Tioman, based on a simulated aerial mishap scenario. SAR teams from both air forces conducted aerial searches for survivors, and evacuated simulated casualties for immediate medical care. In addition, the RSAF and RMAF personnel discussed procedures for joint SAR operations. These activities enhanced cooperation between both air forces in areas of mutual interest, and fostered professional interaction between their personnel.
Chief of Staff – Air Staff of the RSAF, Brigadier-General (BG) Lau Boon Ping and Deputy Chief of the RMAF, Lieutenant General (LG) Dato' Indera Hj Muhamad Norazlan bin Aris co-officiated the opening ceremony of SAREX MALSING on 28 September. Speaking at the ceremony, BG Lau said, "In Search-and-Rescue operations, mere seconds could be the difference between life and death. Given Singapore and Malaysia's geographical proximity, there are opportunities for both air forces to coordinate their efforts to enhance the overall effectiveness of Search-and-Rescue operations."
This bilateral exercise underscores the warm and long-standing defence relations between Singapore and Malaysia. In addition to SAREX MALSING, the RSAF and RMAF also interact regularly across a wide range of activities, including bilateral visits and professional exchanges, as well as multilateral activities under the ambit of the Five Power Defence Arrangements.
SOS: Sg Mindef
This post has been edited by Mai189: Oct 3 2022, 01:23 PM
Malaysian Navy appeals for increased defense allocation for budget 2023
The Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) has issued rare appeals to the government for more funds to be made available under the country's 2023 national budget.
The appeals were detailed in two media releases issued by the Strategic Communications Divisions of the RMN's Western and Eastern armadas on 3 and 4 October, respectively.
“Three decades ago, the RMN proudly operated a total of 16 combatants with missile capabilities, but this number has reduced drastically today due to ageing equipment,” said the Western Armada in its 3 October media release. The armada also pointed out that the service last received a new surface combatant 25 years ago, in reference to its first Laksamana-class corvette.
A follow-on media release issued by the Eastern Armada on 4 October was more explicit in its appeal for more funds. “The Eastern Armada hopes that the government will give more consideration to the procurement and upgrade of military equipment in the national budget of 2023,” the statement reads.
“The additional funds are critical given that the RMN's assets are rapidly ageing and are now facing serious obsolescence issues. The Eastern Armada Command supports the navy's chief's call for an increase in the country's defence budget to 1.5% of the country's GDP in 2023,” the service added in reference to previous comments made by Admiral Reza Sany to the Malaysian media.
The Eastern Armada's statement went on to describe funding issues as the main challenge it continually faces when making deployment plans. “Given the changes in the security landscape, and the meddling by great powers in the South China Sea, the navy badly requires assets with combat capabilities,” the service added, without mentioning any specific countries.
Singapore and Brunei conclude six-day bilateral naval exercise
SINGAPORE, Oct 8 (The Straits Times/ANN): The Singapore and Brunei navies have concluded their flagship bilateral exercise, which involved the Republic of Singapore Air Force's (RSAF) F-16 fighter jets for the first time.
Two of the F-16s took part in air defence drills as part of Exercise Pelican, which was held from Monday to Saturday.
This was the 40th time the exercise has been held since it began in 1979.
Exercise Pelican is an annual exercise that enhances mutual cooperation, understanding and interoperability between the navies of Singapore and Brunei, the Ministry of Defence said on Saturday.
It underscores the close and long-standing defence ties between the countries, Mindef added.
During the exercise, the navies conducted a range of training activities from Thursday to Friday, including gunnery firing, air defence, manoeuvring and communication drills within international waters in the southern reaches of the South China Sea.
On Monday, Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) Fleet Commander Rear-Admiral (RADM) Sean Wat and Royal Brunei Navy (RBN) Fleet Commander Captain Khairil Haji Abdul Rahman co-officiated the opening ceremony of Exercise Pelican at Changi Naval Base, where they jointly unveiled a commemorative logo for the exercise's 40th edition.
"Both navies have derived good value from Exercise Pelican, and the exercise has remained a cornerstone of our bilateral relations," he added.
Commenting on the significance of Exercise Pelican, Captain Khairil said: "Ex Pelican to me is a living proof of RBN and RSN's relationship and remarkable friendship.
"Exercise Pelican has evolved to a complex warfare serial, in which this year for the series of Exercise Pelican will include the participation of F-16 fighters from the Republic of Singapore Air Force."
This year's exercise also involved the RSAF's Fokker-50 maritime patrol aircraft, RSN's Formidable-class frigate RSS Formidable and Victory-class missile corvette RSS Vigilance, as well as Brunei's Darussalam-class patrol vessel KDB Darussalam and Ijtihad-class fast patrol boat KDB Syafaat.
The last edition of the exercise, held in July 2020, was conducted in the Philippines Sea with no physical interaction between sailors from both navies due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Israel Successfully Tests Advanced Anti-ship Missile System The 'Gabriel 5' missile system will 'help protect Israel's strategic assets,' the military said following the test conducted by the navy
Israel successfully tested a new ship-to-ship missile system called "Gabriel 5" which was fired from a Sa'ar 6-class corvette of the Israeli Navy, the INS Oz.
According to the Israel Defense Forces, the test was conducted in order to "see how the ship can deal with different threats by using new and advanced weaponry."
The "Gabriel 5" is an advanced ship-to-ship missile system capable of reaching various targets hundreds of kilometers away. The military added that the system can "help protect Israel's strategic assets" – an apparent reference to the Karish natural gas field which has become a target of Hezbollah. The IDF added that the successful test of the system will pave the way towards installing it on all Sa'ar 6 ships for operational use.
Although Israel is optimistic it will reach a U.S.-brokered deal with Lebanon regarding the maritime dispute, the security establishment is concerned that Lebanon-based Hezbollah will attempt to target the Karish rig.
Israel has beefed up its forces around the Karish gas field over the summer, following the downing of four Hezbollah drones over the Mediterranean Sea.
One drone was shot down over Lebanon’s territorial waters in late June, and did not pose danger to Israel, according to the Israel Defense Forces. A few days later, on July 2, the IDF successfully intercepted three Hezbollah drones over the Mediterranean.
The three drones were shot down by fighter jets and the Israeli Navy's Barak interception system. The military believes that the drones were not armed, and did not pose a risk to the country or to the gas field.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Gabriel 5=Sea Serpent=Blue Spear
They are the same land attack cum anti-ship missile.
QUOTE
In 2020, Israel's IAI and Singapore's ST Engineering started a 50/50 joint venture company called Proteus Advanced Systems to develop, produce and market a derivative of the Gabriel V called the Blue Spear missile system (Blue Spear). The missile has both sea and deep land attack capabilities with enhanced maneuverability for littoral environments. The warhead employs an active radar-homing seeker, accurate INS-based navigation capabilities, beyond-line-of-sight (BLOS) capability and a robust system which is immune to GPS disruptions and maximal accuracy target acquisition. The system is equipped with a variety of deception means to achieve its mission and cope with the different battle-field challenges. ST Engineering’s role in the Blue Spear’s development includes the design, development and production of major subsystems like the booster motor and warhead whilst IAI focuses on other parts. In 2021, IAI and Thales jointly market a variant of Gabriel V or Blue Spear called Sea Serpent to the Royal Navy to replace its ageing Harpoon missile system. At DSEI 2021, IAI revealed that Sea Serpent is developed in parallel with the Blue Spear and based on the Gabriel V missile system and/or older variants. IAI added that Sea Serpent has a low profile mode or sea skimming range of greater than 290 km .[11] This range corresponds with the overall Gabriel V's range of 200 km to 400 km, depending on flight profile.[b] Hence, the Sea Serpent or Blue Spear missile can engage targets at distances of up to 400 km.
QUOTE
It is also rumored that both Israel and Singapore already use variants of the Gabriel V which replaces their older Harpoon missiles. Blue Spear or Sea Serpent or Gabriel V allows both countries to conduct deep land, littoral and open sea surgical strikes effectively.
Interestingly, ST and IAI or Proteus has opted to use the max range of 290km (no booster) thereabout in its marketing materials - likely to keep to global Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) guidelines.
Or that as OEM missile manufacturers, they will only sell Gabriel 5/Blue Spear/Sea Serpent with a reduced range i.e. 290km (without booster) or max 300km limit (with booster (reduced fuel so that it does not breach the 300km ceiling)).
Israel Successfully Tests Advanced Anti-ship Missile System The 'Gabriel 5' missile system will 'help protect Israel's strategic assets,' the military said following the test conducted by the navy
Israel successfully tested a new ship-to-ship missile system called "Gabriel 5" which was fired from a Sa'ar 6-class corvette of the Israeli Navy, the INS Oz.
According to the Israel Defense Forces, the test was conducted in order to "see how the ship can deal with different threats by using new and advanced weaponry."
The "Gabriel 5" is an advanced ship-to-ship missile system capable of reaching various targets hundreds of kilometers away. The military added that the system can "help protect Israel's strategic assets" – an apparent reference to the Karish natural gas field which has become a target of Hezbollah. The IDF added that the successful test of the system will pave the way towards installing it on all Sa'ar 6 ships for operational use.
Although Israel is optimistic it will reach a U.S.-brokered deal with Lebanon regarding the maritime dispute, the security establishment is concerned that Lebanon-based Hezbollah will attempt to target the Karish rig.
Israel has beefed up its forces around the Karish gas field over the summer, following the downing of four Hezbollah drones over the Mediterranean Sea.
One drone was shot down over Lebanon’s territorial waters in late June, and did not pose danger to Israel, according to the Israel Defense Forces. A few days later, on July 2, the IDF successfully intercepted three Hezbollah drones over the Mediterranean.
The three drones were shot down by fighter jets and the Israeli Navy's Barak interception system. The military believes that the drones were not armed, and did not pose a risk to the country or to the gas field.
Interestingly, ST and IAI or Proteus has opted to use the max range of 290km (no booster) thereabout in its marketing materials - likely to keep to global Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) guidelines.
Or that as OEM missile manufacturers, they will only sell Gabriel 5/Blue Spear/Sea Serpent with a reduced range i.e. 290km (without booster) or max 300km limit (with booster (reduced fuel so that it does not breach the 300km ceiling)).
However, Singapore and Israel as OEM manufacturers can deploy the same missile with its max range of 400km i.e. mixed high-low profile.
The Gabriel 5/Blue Spear/Sea Serpent missile defeated Kongsberg NSM, MBDA Exocet, Boeing Harpoon, Saab RBS15 Mk4 missiles in Finland navy's competition to replace its old RBS 15 missiles.
QUOTE
According to the Finnish Navy procurement programme press statement, the main selection criteria included performance versus acquisition costs and schedule, life cycle costs, security of supply, and compatibility with existing infrastructure and defence system.
Manufacturers and current users: Israel (manufacturer), Singapore (manufacturer), Finland and Estonia
Israel and Singapore likely turned down Ukraine's request to buy the Blue Spear recently as it can virtually destroy the Black Sea Fleet and inland critical infrastructure (like Tomahawk cruise missiles):
Leonardo ATR MPA and TAI Anka October 9, 2022 Marhalim Abas Malaysian Defence 0
TAI Anka UAS displayed at DSA 2022. EL?SC SHAH ALAM: Leonardo ATR MPA and TAI Anka. Senior Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein today announced that the government has selected the Leonardo ATR72 MPA and the Turkish Aerospace Industries Anka UAS to meet the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) requirements for both capabilities. Malaysian Defence posts on the MPA and MALE UAS
The selection was hinted in Malaysian Defence post on the 2023 budget which Hishammuddin hinted in his social media posts. Malaysian Defence was told that the LOI for both the MPA and MALE UAS were already issued to both companies late last month.
Hishammuddin said the Defence Ministry was in the process of finalising the Letter of Award (Surat Serah Setuju Terima) pending final agreements among all the parties.
To boost the capabilities of the Army, he said that will conclude the procurement of the 136 Type A 4X4 (armoured) vehicles and various Type B (unarmoured) vehicles worth RM2.046 billion. Malaysian Defence was told the armoured vehicles are likely be the Mildef Rentaka 4X4 unveiled at DSA 2022.
With 136 armoured 4X4s already signed for, that leaves some 100 plus 6X6 to be contracted, to replace the Condors still in service with the Armoured Corps. I was told no funding has been allocated for the 6X6 requirements so it is likely this will be deferred to the next RMK.
Hishammuddin also said some RM2.4 billion has been allocated for the maintenance and upgrade of the RMAF F/A-18D Hornet fleet. At least one F/A-18D Hornet is undergoing a depot level maintenance and upgrade at the RMAF Butterworth airbase which is expected to be completed by year end. It is unclear what kind of upgrade was being conducted, however.
Hishammuddin also said some RM140 million has been allocated to provide “head to toe” equipment for the Army following complaints from soldiers on the quality of the gear issued. He did not elaborate but under the head-to-toe scheme, a single supplier will be chosen to provide all the equipment from head gear to boots. The current Armed Forces practise is to source such gear from different suppliers. I was told small units of the military had already done this, but the most prevalent user of the head-to-toe scheme is the police’s General Operations Force.
^ Reliable and affordable plane in use by the Turkish navy, Italian coast guard and Nigerian navy. I did not realise it is rather small. This is the non ASW version. There ought to be 2 to 4 usable hardpoints which can carry torps/missiles compared to 11 for the P8 Poseidon MPA.
Credit: Naval Recognition
But when it comes to MPAs, it is less the plane but more of the systems carried. Also, weapons need not be carried by the same platform but with other shooters - a direction Msia should head into. The pinoys are buying the same platform.
I suspect that Msia middle men sharks will eat into the systems to be carried and weigh down on the project and implementation even if it is only for 2 planes.
This post has been edited by Mai189: Oct 10 2022, 12:01 PM
The MALE Anka was bought because Malaysia really needs an intelligence, surveillance and recon platform right now.
A lot of brouhaha over getting Bayraktar TB2 but pls note that these drones are very vulnerable to a state actor with good air defence and air force. Slow moving drones can only operate in a permissible environment. Otherwise, they will get shot down.
Even the Anka will struggle against a modern Shorad such as CAMM in a hot war which has 10K altitude ceiling compared to the Anka's 9k+ altitude ceiling.
The basic building block of a competent air force with good combat jets must be resolved first.
This post has been edited by Mai189: Oct 10 2022, 12:59 PM
Oct 3 2022, 01:23 PM
Quote
0.0240sec
0.30
6 queries
GZIP Disabled