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Vice Adm. Viktor Patrushev, chief of operations on the General Staff of the Russian Navy, has been quoted in an Itar-TASS report as saying that the Russian Navy is ready for modernization and rearmament, provided that sufficient funds are available. "We are ready to replace the old ships, submarines, aviation [assets], and weapons with new ones," he said. "All the necessary preparations have been completed. The new-generation submarines Severodvinsk and Yuri Dolgorukii are already being built, but more resources need to be allocated to complete the projects."

Patrushev said that the Navy is ready to serve Russia with its state-of-the-art surface ships and submarines, as well as with its modern armaments, "provided the government revises the military budget for the Navy." He was replying to a question about the steps being taken by the Russian naval command in the face of what was described as a large-scale modernization and shipbuilding program launched by the U.S. Navy.

It is fair to suggest that the leadership of the U.S. Navy probably would not agree that any such "large-scale" program is underway--or is likely for the foreseeable future. The USN's shipbuilding budget has been cut significantly in recent years, as have that service's other hardware accounts. Increases are projected for the so-called "outyears" of the Pentagon's long-term budget plan. But even if the outyears are fully funded, which seems unlikely, the shipbuilding rate still would not reach the minimum level needed to maintain the U.S. Navy's active fleet at even the much reduced numbers approved by the Clinton administration.

On the other hand, the USN's current leaders, uniformed and civilian, undoubtedly would agree with another Patrushev statement--namely, that "It is not wise to allocate the same resources for the Air Force, the land forces, and the Navy. The building of a warship takes much more time and money to complete than the manufacture of a tank or an aircraft."

Patrushev said the matter is of great importance because Russia derives many benefits from the presence of its naval vessels on the high seas. Russia's influence in international affairs is based, he suggested, not only on its geographic expanse but also on the strength of its navy. Russia must reinforce its political statements with real actions, he said. He went on to say that the Russian Navy is already prepared to send its ships to the Mediterranean and the Indian Ocean, "but it needs resources and it needs bases ... [to maintain a] permanent presence" in those areas. He noted that Russia now has only two naval bases overseas--Camh Ranh in Vietnam and Tartus in Syria. Patrushev also said that, despite several years of underfunding--and the resultant shortages of food and fuel--Russian seamen are always ready to depart for their assigned areas of operation and accomplish the tasks set before them. "This readiness is not something on paper only. During the Yugoslav crisis, Russian warships were ready to sail to the Mediterranean, but no order came," he said.

Raytheon Helps Run RNZN Helicopter Trials

Raytheon Systems Company (RSC) Australia has completed the first-of-class trials (FOCT) and delivered final reports on the Kaman Seasprite SH-2F helicopters bought by the Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN). An FOCT determines the takeoff and landing limitations of aircraft operating from a ship's flight deck.

The trials were conducted to integrate the newly acquired Seasprites with HMNZS Canterbury and HMNZS Te Kaha, the first two of the RNZN's Anzac-type frigates. The four reconditioned SH-2F Seasprites are an interim procurement to tide the RNZN over until the first of five SH-2G(NZ)s is delivered by Kaman Aerospace next year.

Boeing Sells RAN Business To Raytheon Systems Australia

Boeing Australia Ltd. plans to sell its Naval Systems Division in Sydney to Raytheon Systems Company Australia by the end of this year, according to officials of the two parent companies, who said they have reached agreement "in principle" on the sale and have established a joint team to examine various issues relating to the sale and transfer of the division.

Rear Adm. Peter Briggs, head of the RAN's recently established Submarine Capability Team (SMCT) and the service's most senior submariner, stated that the RAN had not been involved in brokering the deal. "This is a purely commercial agreement between the two companies," he said--but he added that the RAN has indicated to both parties that it is "comfortable" with the agreement.

Colombia's Narco Submarines

Details have emerged of the clandestine cocaine- and heroin-carrying miniature submarines captured by the Armada Republica de Colombia (ARC) two years ago. The Colombian press has christened them "narco submarines," and five have been captured since 1997.

One appears to be a semisubmersible, crewed by only five people. It carries a commercial radar for navigation, but photographs show no sign of a periscope. The fins of its small sail are used to assist submersion and navigation while running submerged.

The use of semisubmersibles for drug trafficking is reminiscent of the use of similar low-visibility craft to insert North Korean special forces into South Korea. The ARC has at least one swimmer-delivery vehicle of its own for clandestine activities against the drug cartels.

Newest RN SSNs Report Impressive Progress

Work on the design of the Royal Navy's next-generation nuclear-powered attack submarines (SSNs), the Astute class, is well advanced. The prime contractor's Preliminary Design Review (PDR) and the first major Life-cycle Review (LR), now completed, are major milestones in the $3.2 billion program. Moreover, construction of significant equipment items--including the gearbox and elements of the nuclear plant for the lead boat--already has begun.

The project manager for the Astute class says that the successful PDR and LR have given a major boost to the building team's confidence. Both reviews were held by the prime contractors, Marconi Astute-Class Limited (MACL). The contract includes incentives, for both MACL and the Defence Ministry, to pursue cost reductions.

With a submerged displacement of 7,000 tons the Astute-class boats will be considerably bigger than those of the current Trafalgar class (5,200 tons). Although previous Royal Navy SSN designs were kept as small as possible as a way of controlling costs, the extensive use of modularity in the Astute design drives the ship's size upwards. However, the increase in size makes fabrication and outfitting simpler and therefore cheaper. Changes in some machinery compartments, the provision of more weapon launch tubes, and a greater reload capacity also have contributed to the growth in size.

The armament of the future SSNs will be six launch tubes and 40 or more weapons, including a mix of Spearfish heavyweight torpedoes, UGM-84C Sub Harpoon antiship missiles, and Tomahawk land-attack cruise missiles. There has been no public report of vertical-launch tubes for the Tomahawks, but it seems likely that encapsulated tube-launched weapons will no longer be available by the time the first SSN of the Astute class is ready for fleet operations.

Naval Nuclear Angle To Indo-Pakistan Dispute

The recent dispute between India and Pakistan over Kashmir and Jammu saw very little overt naval activity, but if the crisis had escalated to all-out war there would have been a clear risk of a nuclear exchange between the two rivals. Both of their navies have nuclear capabilities--a fact that is often ignored in the West.

The Indian Navy carried out a "tactical realignment" in the Arabian Sea early in June, and Adm. Sushil Kumar, the Chief of the Naval Staff, said publicly that the Navy is "well-equipped to survive any nuclear exchange." His statement apparently was in response to Pakistan's announcement that it intends to arm its ships with nuclear weapons.

Both sides have recently shown their willingness to test nuclear devices, so there is little doubt about their capabilities. A claim that the new Pakistan Navy submarines of the Khalid class carry encapsulated SM-39 Exocet missiles reconfigured with tactical nuclear warheads can be dismissed as extremely unlikely, but some details of the Indian naval nuclear program are known.

India is developing the Dhanush submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM), based on the liquid-fueled Prithvi 1, in service with the Army, and the Prithvi 2, destined for the Air Force. India tested a 12KT Pu-239 fission device last year, apparently the "weaponized" version of the original device tested in 1974, and also tested a 0.2KT device, prompting speculation that the Indian Navy's Sea Harrier STOVL (short takeoff/vertical landing) strike aircraft are armed with free-fall nuclear bombs. It also suggests that a nuclear depth charge is feasible.

For their part, the Pakistanis are unlikely to have the technological capability to produce a miniaturized nuclear warhead for their SM-39 Exocets, but they may very well have bombs for their F-16 airplanes.

Rollout of German Navy's Super Lynx Helicopter

The Deutsche Marine's first new-built Mk 88A Super Lynx light helicopter has been rolled out by Westland at its Yeovil factory in Somerset, United Kingdom. GKN Westland is working under a separate contract with Eurocopter Deutschland to upgrade the existing 17 Mk 88 Lynxes to the Super Lynx standard.

The new equipment in the Mk 88A includes Marconi's Seaspray 3000 radar and Multirole Turret (MRT), Rolls-Royce Gem 42 engines, and Matra BAe Sea Skua light antiship missiles.

The upgraded helicopters will operate from the Bremen-class (Type 122) and Brandenburg-class (Type 123) frigates, and eventually from the Sachsen-class (Type 124) air-defense frigates. 

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