As a bloke currently sailing on Perth, thank you, I absolutely loved this. Great to see us and the rest of the Anzacs getting some recognition. This class is the workhorse of the fleet. Fight and Flourish!
Cool az what we don't see is we are loosing Anzac ships some being given away for free? New Zealand are able to use those ships again alot of historicalness in this group of ships
I have served on three ANZAC class ships, HMAS WARRAMUNGA 2005-2007, HMAS PERTH 2009-2010 during the 2010 upgrade then straight onto HMAS TOOWOOMBA 2010-2011. They usually only carry around 150 crew unless they go on an overseas deployment and take flight crew and air crew with the Seahawk (who are nicknamed Birdies) as well as electronic warfare specialists (Spooks) and a couple more officers for the bridge and Ops Room, plus a Chaplain. During the deployment to the Middle East on HMAS WARRAMUNGA we carried 185 crew with 1 of them having to sleep in the FWD switchboard room on a fold up cot due to absolutely no bunks available. There are lots of small mess decks that were less than 20 crew in each which I loved as it fostered a great comradery amongst the different messes. Loved my time on them for sure.
It's awesome to see the Ships that I got to give my little bit to help construct on your channel. I just need to pick a couple of you points. HMAS Perth was Ship 10 in the 10 Ship build undertaken by the RAN and the RNZN. Her steel was cut in the early 2000's and all of Her original Combat suite was used by the Crew Training Facility offsite to the Ship Yard. You stated that She was only capable of 27 knots, I know for a fact these girls can make 36 Knots. The latest upgrades have been very successful in extending the life of the Class. You all so missed her NULKA capability. Thank you to all those who worked at Williamston Ship Yard, we produced some very high quality and enduring ships of war.
With all of the extra weight from the various upgrades the speed is now reduced to 27 knots. The 36 knots achieved I suspect was from the pre-acceptance sea trails when she was basically empty of all crew and gear.
That's interesting. Most open sources indicate a maximum sustained speed of 27 knots. The Turkish MEKO Track IIB 200TNs, with dual gas turbines, are indicated with a maximum sustained speed of 31 knots. It is not unusual, though, for navies to keep the actual performance of their warships tucked under their hats, so, 36 knots might be on the money for a short sprint. Given that these ships are heavier now than they were when they were launched, what would you say would be their flat chat sprint speed these days?
The back story is that the US had been briefed by our foreign affairs officials that our nuke free legislation was solely regarding weapons. Our Primeminister was off showing off in Oxford at the time that the issue was before select committee and the Deputy Geoffrey Palmer was trying to resolve an issue that the radical fringe of the labour party (the governing party) had created. One of those radical fringe aligned members of the labour party- one Helen Clark - was left in charge of the select committee. She inserted the bit about nuclear propulsion. The Americans caught by surprise by this threw a justifiable tantrum about it and consider us (NZ) as untrustworthy and probably compromised by a Communist sympathetic block within our government. That cancerous b*tch Helen Clark later was the UN official in charge of the UN Covid inquiry. The inquiry found that the CCP was not at fault and the pandemic was worsened by racism by other nations.
Great run down on the Anzacs, however there are a few things that you missed that help explain some of points that you made. The HMAS Perth came out of its most recent upgrade in 2021 and that was for the full Anti Ship Missle Defence Upgrade which installed Ceafar 2 in place of the SPS-49 radar, in addition to a number of other enhancements. Until these ASMD upgrades, the Anzac class were considered quite lightly armed, having only 8 Sea Sparrow missiles in total, before the addition of the quad packed ESSM. One of the reasons that further MK-41 VLS were not installed was said to be due to top weight issues following the installation of the new Ceafar mast. Also, the Harpoon placement on the front added further weight issues. As a result, further ballast was required and the ships top speed and seakeeping has apparently been impacted. It has also recently been announced that the Harpoon ASM is to be replaced by the Naval Strike Missile on the Anzacs. There's a great article written by ASPI called Rearming the Anzacs which goes into a lot of detail of Ceafar etc. One important system that you missed was the Nulka missile decoy system. It was a joint Australian and US system developed to help counter ASMs.
Nulka is actually a Australian invention and why named Aboriginal meaning.. think quick. But yea was joint developed by USA and Australia. Is in over 150 US Navy ships and saved 3 off the coast of Iran 2016
As built the first ANZAC where described as "Patrol Frigates" which was accurate as they had extremely limited war fighting capabilities. In the 2000's they received upto 32 ESSM (replacing the 8 NSSM), HARPOON, NULKA Active Missile Decoy) and an Air Weapons Magazine ( The space was previously used as a gym). At this stage I was proud to serve on them. I left in the early 2010's when they where receiving the ASMD upgrade to the Combat System and they have only improved since then with the full Phased array setup. The second MK 41 VLS was never installed because they lost the weight margin with the other upgrades.
Modern ANZACs with the CEAFAR radar are just crying out for an unmanned or lightly manned escort with spare VLS cells. Fantastic ships, just about all the sensors and capability you could ask for in a modern surface combatants short of Aegis, but lacking in magazine depth.
@@MattWeberWA interesting idea, but I wonder if such a vessel would end up being considered too much of a liability, especially if it's mother ship were to be taken out first? It sure is a difficult one to know.
Fleet Weeks in San Fran these past couple of years have been a little small, but it is still impressive seeing warships passing in-line under the bridge, plus the airshow is always a good time. And seeing the city full of sailors is always a good thing!
Very good analysis and commentary of a fine ship type. The Aussies keep their powder quite dry with regard to all of their combat systems and capabilities, which is not a bad thing. Incidentally, that Ceafar radar system is considered absolute state of the art. It was invented in Australia using Aussie technology and has even been considered by the UK and US Navy due to its excellent performance and clever ECM capabilities. One thing to remember, due to the experiences with the US Navy in those bloody sea and land battles of the Pacific War is that the Australian Navy would come to the aid of the USNavy no matter the circumstances, even if it required a suicide mission. Australians don't abandon their mates. Thanks for posting, sir!
Great, reliable class of warship. Brilliant modular design that’s accepted heavy upgrades over the years to modernise it. It no longer has mk49 radar and now has total phased array. The only problem is, they need more VLS and towed array but that’s pushing buoyancy limits. But they’re the backbone of the fleet
ANZAC class are under-appreciated, probably because it is designed for multi-mission, and as such is not so standout in any single area, but is very good in a whole lot of areas. It would be nice to have the extra 8 VLS, but unlike most other ships, the expansion to 16 is built into the design and it is a lot quicker to add another 8 if conditions warrant it, than another ship class where adding VLS means a major re-design, and a lot of time. The bigger problem with the number 8 is that there are only 8 of them, and really, there needs to be at least 12, and preferably 16. It ain't cheap, and defense budget is already going over 2%, but with an unpredictable Russia, Iran, North Korea, and China, becoming more aggressive in recent years, defense budget should grow to 4%.
@@artistjoh Yeah I hear ya. It needs it and it seems like it had the space for it but it has to be a buoyancy and weight issue. They’re pretty much maxed out with that new mast
Australians generally have a lot of pride in their military but I don't they realise how good the RAN is. It has a long history with a lot of British support from WWI with RN officers serving as officers passing on a wonderful heritage and they maintain exchanges with RN and USN. We're small, but very good.
Yeah, I think part of that is the legacy of the Collins Class sub debacle. The negative press about the Navy back then was unbelievable. Joe Public doesn't understand that it's the DMO (or whatever they're called these days) not the Navy that makes procurement decisions... Even these days you look at how the press talks about the military (calling soldiers/sailors officers incorrectly, etc.), and you realise they're have no idea how the military actually operates. The RAN is small but capable. Our own worst enemy is our own government with the ever increasing erosion of conditions while adding BS politically correct doctrine to every day military life.
Australia has a much more effective navy than people think. Both the Hobart and Anzac class ships are top of the range and as good as anything the US or Royal Navy can field and a lot better than their Russian equivalents.
@@thelimatheou Yes, in a similar fashion to the Royal Navy the Australian Defence Force didn't order the original 6 Hobarts thought necessary and ended up with too few. But combined with the Anzac Frigates the Aussies have 11 very good warships. The nuclear deterrent question works both ways if you have them you also become a target. I expect that with the obvious push to become a serious player in the Pacific alongside the US, Japan and the Philippines, Nukes may follow. That's more of a political than military decision I guess.
The Spherion sonar was built by Simrad in Norway using technology developed in coperation with Thomson-CSF and Simrad for the Norwegian navy. The Australian Navy bougt the sonar which was assembeled by Simrad in Horten Norway using both Norwgian and French parts and technology.
Current Aussie Ship Driver. SWO equivilent. Love your work. Unfortunatly they are getting old as hulls. But yes as Multi-role Frigates they still remain quite capable. But as a Navy we were not quite happy with them from the offset despite being leagues ahead of the Desteoyer Escortd they replaces and despite being not a long range AAW platfrom were seen as not as good a platform as the OHP FFGs, other than AAW they preformed on par. They recently went through AMCAP with the newer CEAFAR2 over the mid 2010s CEAFAR. We jokingly call it CEAFurther. They are mostly limited by not having strike length VLS and were hamstrung by only having 8 VLS until we got ESSM. The Replacement it taking its sweat time so we may see these old gals doing a full 30 or 40 years like the OHPs. Again awesome work.
I served on one of those old River class DEs, and I bet your CEAFurther could see a lot better than our LW02! 😂 We used to joke that we could throw spuds at incoming missiles… our Seacat, four fives and .50 cals weren’t much use for that.
Those Australian Anzac class fleet have received further upgrade called ANZAC Mid-life Capability Assurance Programme(AMCAP) since 2017, Including CEAFAR-2L phased array radar that replaced the legacy AN/SPS-49. So RAN Anzac fleet now have a larger mast top that housing three different CEA series phased arrays (L/S/X bands), which looks like a pineapple.
the LM 2500 is the CF6 jet engine that is used by DC10, early 747, A 300, and 767 aircraft. also used on the air force Lockheed Martin C-5M Super Galaxy.
More correctly it is the core section of the CF-6. The LM-2500 is what is known as a gas generator in use. The engines primary purpose in life is to creat hot air that then is blown over a free spool turbine making it spin. That free spool turbine is then connected to a gearbox and then that is connected to a generator, compressor or pump (again typical oilfield items)
Good luck training a beaver though, my beaver stopped listening to me or doing what I'd say as soon as I married her. 🫤 Stay single lads. Best advice you'll ever get.
@@richardmartin8998 Agreed. About time, really. Though the USN's build plan and build reality are two divergent things! The Constellation-class will provide an asset that can do 100% of the Navy's peacetime missions, providing an alternative to deploying expensive DDGs, and bring useful capabilities in a hot war as well.
@@richardmartin8998 Yes, they will be, at least if all goes well. If nothing else they will have a much heavier VLS armament. Speed will probably be comparable, but a little higher overall. They will also have a better RADAR suite.
@@richardmartin8998 true, but you are dealing in decades in term of timeline, the ANZAC class is coming to the end of it's life. the platform has been pushed as far as it can
I'm a born and raised American but these other countries are making some futuristic designs compared to Americas military but the us military is built tough💪
Thanks - good vid. I was part of the commissioning crew of HMAS Warramunga ANZAC frigate. Seems so long ago now... BTW, Thales is pronounced 'talles/tallis' (silent H). Big French defence contractor that does a lot in Australia.
If you come at the RAN you'd better know what you're doing. They've spent 100 years fighting, winning & sinking, literally everywhere. They know how to run a navy.
A very important capability they have is 16 ready to launch Nulka anti-ship missile decoys. That’s twice as many as what the Arleigh Burkes have, and on a ship half the size.
HMAS Perth has had the AMCAP upgrade since 2021 - the SPS-49 has been replaced by the CEAFAR2-L AESA radar. You can search RUclips for a video from Defence Australia showing this "Back in the water - HMAS Perth leaves dry dock".
Having been on board NZs Anzac Class they are quite impressive ships for their size, the NZ ones are quite different to their Australian counterparts at this point, the superstructure with all the radars being different, NZ ships lacking the ability to use Sea Hawks, no harpoon ASHMs on the bow, a 20mm CIWS above the hanger
NZ Frigates have been retrofitted with the Lockheed Martin CMS 330 combat management system, and more advanced MBDA Sea Ceptor vertical launchers in a the last few years.
@@qbi4614 NZ is a country of only 5 million people, Sydney has more. Australia heavily relies on the US for defence due to its massive Coastline and small military, nothing to be proud of either.
Yeah, the RAN had a thing for swapping out masts on these things, this ship is up to its 3rd radar/mast configuration now. These ships are extremely capable and are continually being upgraded and made better.
As a kid in school I used to sketch ANZACs, Adelaide class and Perth Class ships in the margins of my maths exercise books. These are (in my mind) the quintessential image for me when I imagine Naval combattant vessels. All with sps 49s or sps40s and complicated aerials on their triple masts. Their lines were great. Modern phased arrays are awesome but dont lend to good looking ships. I love the look of the ANZACs and ill be sad when they go, leaving us with a fleet that look like smoothed off lego blocks. For the international audience, Adelaide class was an Aussie Olivier Hazard Perry and Perth class was an Aussie Charles F Adams.
Australian here: Good honest review which I wished we'd see more off. As you might know there's a lot of public discussion right now over what our Navy is procuring. I don't have a problem with our navy upgrading at all. We live in interesting times where there are all sorts of political players doing things we'd all like that they don't. The Chinese seizing part of the Spratly islands did NOBODY any good. *I recommend everyone have a look where the Spratly's actually are on the Map. They are nowhere near the Chinese mainland and are in fact just off the coast of the Philippines.* So if you want to control what ship traffic goes through the South China Sea then having bases on the Spratly's is a good way to do it. For Australia that's a problem because all of our iron ore exports, LNG and other things that go to South Korea and Japan go through there. So its pretty imperative that Australia be able to guard commercial shipping through that region because there's not just the Chinese but its also a region where pirates (yes modern pirates) operate. Plus the shear size of Australia's maritime region is enormous. We have massive areas of the Indian Ocean and Pacific where we have lots of trade moving. So I have no problem with Australia getting new ships with longer ranges and nuclear powered subs. What I have a problem with is HOW MUCH we are paying for these systems. I am an engineer and if I tried doing projects in the industry that are costed like these I'd get sacked. - Our new Offshore Patrol Vessels are 10x the cost per boat of what they are replacing and there are serious doubts over there multi-role capabilities. The story of the Arafura-class is like the LCS in America - expensive and not well thought out. - The submarines are absurd in the costs. Not only do we simply NOT have enough people to operate Virginia class boats but there is between AU$25 and AU$41 Billion dollars PER BOAT that nobody has accounted for. - Our current Collins Diesel Electric subs cost more than 4x as much as the British pay to operate an Astute class nuclear sub. - The replacement frigate program that's just starting for the replacement of the ANZAC-class started at $20 Billion for 8 boats (AU$2.5B Each) it then jumped to AU$35 Billion for 9 and is now out to AU$45 Billion. (AU$5B each). The Hunter-class are based on the British Type 26 which costs the Royal Navy AU$1.6B each. The current costs of a US Constellation would also be AU$1.6B each. NOBODY has explained why our Navy pays so much for things. I want out Navy to be well equipped BUT I am not prepared to be ripped off getting it.
You have no clue do you.. ohh i don't know why we pay so much more then Britian or USA. Because we get paid a lot more in wages and every few years get pay rises.
Another key thing about having a MH-60 on board, the ship can get food and stuff to resupply with out needing to come to a dock (I think the US Navy calls it replenishment at sea). Also the MH-60 can do medical flights and search and rescue jobs too, so the MH-60 can help its war ship but crews of any other boat/ship in the area.
Give New Zealand Navy a chance to buy back that great ship🇳🇿🇦🇺🙏Anzac🙏🇦🇺🇳🇿 rebuilt kit which they are going to use anyway is another warrant of fitness for her
Hi great report as ever... can you do some British kit like the Type 23 frigate, Type 45 Destroyer. Or perhaps the Type 26 frigate the Apex anti-sub surface platform.
Have a couple of mates who have and some still are serving on the ANZAC class. They all love it to death. Everyone including the public are scratching their heads as to why they didn't just install the second missile block though. I mean it was right there.
I'm not sure- it's a really effective ship as it is, it has a good balance. Just look at the thing you can tell everything fits together so well. 177 souls to keep the ship operational- add too much they have to start sleeping in the lifeboats.
The Turkish Meko Track IIB 200TNs (Salihreis Class) have the second 8 cell VLS installed and it would be great to have a second one on the ANZACs as well. These are tactical length VLS blocks so they are not deep enough to accommodate longer missiles like the Tomahawk, but an additional 32 ESSMs would improve their survivability in the face of an anti-ship missile attack. But, they wont get them. It comes down to weight, really ... and sea-keeping. When they installed the heavier mast for the CEAFAR radar they had to re-ballast the ship so as not to make it unstable in heavy seas and risk having it capsize. The ANZACs are capable warships for their size but earlier upgrades have used up all of their weight and space margins so they can't be further upgraded. This is one of the reasons why they are being replaced by the Hunter class frigates. Originally they were to have 2 gas turbines, like the Turkish Meko 200s which have a maximum speed of 31 knots compared with the 27 knots of the ANZACs, but they were only fitted with one to keep the cost down. The Cold War was over by then, and what Australia needed was long-range patrol frigates rather than fast surface combatants to hunt down the submarines of the Warsaw Pact.
"Everyone including the public are scratching their heads as to why they didn't just install the second missile block though. I mean it was right there." At the very least, they could have placed a veneer of a second one!
My dad was in the Falklands, HMS Fearless L10, 2 losses (HMS Sheffield and Atlantic Conveyer) and 1 severely damaged (HMS Glamorgan) by Exocet. However we lost more to conventional bombs surprisingly (HMS Coventry, HMS Ardent, HMS Antelope, RFA Sir Galahad) , hence the Type 45 having a massive concentration on Air Defense.
New big fan of the channel, found ya after the Titan incident like many others. Do you have a recommended playlist of videos for newer subscribers to watch?. Im a computer science major who dabbled in other engineering and ocean stuff fascinates me. Keep up the great channel, hope it grows.
Such sophisticated search radars and fire control radars for a ship with only medium range missiles. Still those radars and the 32 ESSM is as good as your going to get with that sized ship. It the best frigate in the world within its weight class certainly punches above its weight, pity only an 8 cell medium length Mk 41 VLS system with 32 ESSM missiles fitted but another upgrade very soon is with 8 x NSM Mk II launch boxes to replace the Harpoon II.
They're really capable- impressively engineered and I think very stylish layout. They have relatively few weaknesses. If you could have only one class of ship in your navy this would be a fine choice. These type of ships are so important in modern naval warfare as they are extremely threatening yet easily numerous. Not high value targets and can protect themselves well enough to be difficult to take out. There aren't many ships that i'd have designed the same way but this is certainly one of them. I really think they're beautiful. I'd love to see one up close one day. And indeed see if they make something equally good in the future. Warfare is changing once again after all. Maybe I should look into a little anzac scale model. Maybe paint it up nice. Fast frigates are really the rally cars / street racers of the ocean. Can you imagine steering that thing? I've decided. When i'm a billionaire i'm buying and converting one into a yacht. Who needs a mansion or private island when you have one of these? Anyone else got a ship crush?
Good review. I didn't know that Australia had previously considered Nuclear submarines. One point of difference, America only suspended NZ from the ANZUS treaty, Australia invoked the ANZUS treaty when their ally the United States was attacked on 9/11 by then prime minister John Howard, who incidentally was in Washington DC on the day, to celebrate the anniversary of the ANZUS treaty.
I know it's old news, but could you talk about the surveillance buoys? I remember hearing about Canada finding some chinese ones a few months ago in the arctic
You can be assured the radar system will be cutting edge technology. Australia have been the leaders in high frequency, skywave over-the-horizon radar tech for decades. Take the Jindalee network for example. That's the main reason Pine Gap and the CIA's presence there even exists.
Pine Gap was originally set up to monitor telemetry of ICBM tests in East Asia during the Cold War. However, its role has evolved over the years. These days it is a satellite ground station for space-based infra-red surveillance satellites that detect missile launches, signals intelligence satellites that detect military transmissions mosty over the Indian Ocean Region, satellite receivers that intercept transmissions from commercial satellites, and as a relay station for remote operators controlling UAVs like Predator drones. JORN on the other hand is a very capable long-range ionospheric over-the-horizon doppler radar system used to monitor maritime and air movements in the Australia's northern approaches. Pine Gap and JORN perform very different roles. The CEAFAR radar systems are very good but these are scalable AESA radars designed to be mounted on warships and ground vehicles. CEA was recently acquired by the Australian government.
Combat proven class. Shore bombardment capability is an Australian Navy requirement that's why it has the M45 5 inch gun. HMAS Anzac (first build of the Anzac class) used it's 5 inch gun in the Iraq war for shore bombardment along the Al Faw peninsula and other targets. HMAS ANZAC completed seven fire missions over a period of three days firing over 150 rounds. The frigate received the Meritorious Unit Citation on 27 November 2003 for her service during this deployment. For more information on these operations search "Five Inch Friday".
Not related to this video but I was looking for the Analysis video about the Hårsfjärden incident but it has been removed. I hope you reupload it some day.
I kind of feel like the comments section doesnt give the ANZACS enough credit for how small they are. They get compared to so often to Arleigh Bourkes in terms of firepower, but the ANZACS are somehting like 4000 tonns less displacement and were acquired under a very different set of geopolitical circumstances than we now find ourselves in. Australias real power projection at the time came from the Royal Australian Air Force's F111 fleet with Harpoon and an range of laser guided weaponry (Whihc have now been replaced the F35 / Super Hornet with LRASM) The ANZACS were not intended to slug it out with a peer adversary on the surface
About 30 nm = 55 km, but it depends on the target. A slow moving maritime patrol aircraft is much easier to hit than a fast moving evasive anti-ship missile. The propulsion system can only provide a limited amount of energy, and if the ESSM has to change direction to close on the target then this will deplete that energy and reduce the effective range.
The range is pretty good for a frigate but the potential for further weapons enhancement is limited because the weight and internal space limits have been reached. This is one of the reasons why they are being replaced by the Hunter class frigates. In the meantime, the Harpoons are being replaced with the more capable NSM though.
@@liefsillion2825 it seems like they are well maintained. Hopefully they will keep them or sell to someone like the Philippines. New Zealand is a huge disappointment to me. They have become arrogant and don’t contribute a dime to defense. Worse they placate China and ridicule the nations that would end up providing their defense.
My uncle Andy went down on the Perth that terrible night in the Sunda straits battle. The Perth fought back with everything she had but was overwhelmed by the massive fleet of Japanese destroyers and Heavy Cruisers of the IJN.
Thanks Great talk on our ANZAC class, would like to see one on , Brisbane class Destroy,or Melbourne class LHD.Those and Collins class sub's, with the new Supply class,give us some very cool possibilities even more if we get a few f35bs.👍🇦🇺🇬🇧🇺🇸🏴☠️🙉🙈🙊
To put an * in there. There are currently 10 total ANZAC class ships in service. 8 with the Australian Navy and 2 with the NZ Navy. NZ operates a different configuration on its ships however they are still the same base design.
lol he's a yank he would not even have a clue who the ANZAC's were, this is the same Yank clown that reckon US was going to turn Australia into a country that could fight.. Arrogant yanks are clueless and useless.
@@Sam-cn4ch they are still more or less compatable however the two countries have very different predicted threats. Australia is much more likely to be operating in tandem with US forces while the NZ fleet is more likely to be patroling friendly waters and conducting anti-submarine warfare operations (in tandem with their new*( aircraft)
Please cover the launch of thermal torpedo, "Shakti" with pump jet propulsion. This should have been a very big news for India but no one covered it. Please, please do cover it :-)
I think the RAN plans to begin removing their Anzacs from service from 2024 onwards however as of 2022, the Hunter-class frigate project was running four years behind schedule so lets say 2028-30 in water date.
Not related to this video, but figured you would be the man to ask... So if a pressure vessel can maintain 1 atmosphere differential at 2000 feet (just using round numbers) then if you increased the interior to 2 atmospheres would the theoretical depth capability double to 4000 feet? If a patrol lasts months, it would be like saturation diving with plenty of time for decompression.
For a ship that putatively learned the lessons of the Falklands war, this ship is astoundingly ill equipped to deal with hostile missiles. Having a few Sea Sparrow is the barest minimum. To deal with even a single missile, you want 'at least' two independent anti-missile systems with two ranges of engagement. If you've just got one, if your solitary system misses, you are dead. If the enemy fires more than one missile at you, your probability of survival goes down precipitously. The ideal frigate would have a short-medium range anti-missile system like Sea Sparrow (or Rolling Airframe), a gun system like a Strales 76mm with DART to engage if the first defense fails and a CWIS gun for a last ditch defense. That's three different layers of defence EACH of which must be defeated to strike the ship. This not only makes the ship nigh invulnerable to singletons, but MUCH more resistant to saturation attacks as well. If your ship is meant to defend anything 'other' than itself, it should have a fourth longer range anti-air missile system that can engage at much longer ranges still.
The NZ version of the ANZAC is equipped with a CIWS above the hanger, but it has 12 less missles, using the Sea Ceptor system instead of the Mark 41 VLS.
It wasn't just "hard kill" anti-missile defence that was installed 🤫. Regardless as mentioned here in order to get the full 8 the RAN had to make serious reduction in capability. 1 less Mk41 VLS, no CIWS, Seasprite instead of additional Seahawks etc. Also these ships were "space for, not with" as even they fittings were dropped, so up equipping would be more costly and lengthy. The upgrade program addressed many of the issues, but buoyancy became a larger concern, so full equipment is not common.
There is no modern standard method for deciding whether a warship is a frigate or a destroyer. If one particular navy wants to call a warship a frigate it will call it a frigate even through a different navy might call the same ship a destroyer. The RAN calls the Hobart class a destroyer but calls the Hunter class a frigate even though the Hobart displaces 7000 tons at full load and the Hunter class displaces 10000 tons at full load. It would make sense to have a standardised method based on displacement, firepower and armour but this is just not the case. A similar issue divides the line between corvettes and frigates, and between destroyers and cruisers. The distinctions were clearer in the age of sail, but in modern navies it has become pretty much arbitrary.
Now i'm hearing that the replacements for the ANZAC frigates called the Hunter class (modified UK Type 26 class ship) might be further upgraded and extended than the current Hunter class. Rumours said the RAN want more multi mission VLS capability rather than extensive ASW, BAE have looked into extending the Hunters capability to hold 96 full length Mk 41 VLS tubes thus having the extra 64 VLS tubes located where the mission bay currently is. Is this a true rumour or not?
Wonder if a 2.0 or 3.0 version of the ANZAC frigates could be made possible? Yet another joint decision, with job opportunities galore across the Tasman, perhaps as a alternative to being useful for work deemed less needed than the type 26 replacement being built.
The Hunter class frigates will have much better anti-submarine warfare capability because their electric motor driven propellor shafts allow the noisy diesel engines to be isolated from the hull, and they have an active low frequency towed sonar, both of which the ANZACs do not have. However, there is a review of RAN surface combatant requirements currently underway which is expected to recommend more warships of a smaller size (3000-4000 tons) and lower cost (around $1B)... more like a Type 31, or something like the very versatile Absalon class multirole frigate with Stanflex modularity, for duty in low intensity threat environments and for waving the flag. The ANZAC class is not really survivable in a high intensity threat environment these days due a lack of a multi-layered anti-ship missile defence system. The magazine depth is insufficient to carry enough missiles. The Hunter class will have at least 4 x the magazine depth and can carry 64 ESSM + 16 SM-2 interceptors compared with the ANZAC's 32 ESSM interceptors.
AWSOME vid, I remember RAN HMAS ANZAC coming off slip, brought Navy magazine to read it spec n getting post for bedroom wall. It’s unfortunately they got them in base version not full war fighting capability. NZ version had CIWS, no CEAFAR, Seaprite helicopter n now different missiles. At time NZ had option two extra builds but turn down offer n went two smaller OPV. RAN did have SeaSprite but had operation problems, after OPV was drop RAN should brought Seahawks as they were operating fleet for Adelaide class. This save taxpayers 1 billion dollars n had ANZAC fully operational.
You will be surprised about what our Navy planned and did with these ships. They were originally designed to take the Super Seasprite helicopter despite the fact we already had the Seahawk. They wanted to retrofit Super Seasprites with more modern equipment. This failed.... The VLS is actually quad packed with ESSM's so that is 32 missiles in total. Though these ships were considered "evil" by the NZ navy due to the fact that it had a VLS system. Their reasoning was that the VLS could fire Tomahawks (which the cells are not deep enough to hold on these ships) and that Tomahawks could be fitted with nuclear warheads (despite the fact that neither navy had such missiles) and therefore wanted to cancel the program and ban the Australian ships from NZ waters. In fact coming into service they were often "fitted for but not with" so we would do simulations based on having Harpoon missiles when none were actually installed on the ships at all.
Back in the day when one of the US aircraft carriers was in Brisbane, I ended up drinking with an American helicopter maintainer - would've been 2006 or so - I said I'd buy him a beer if he promised to fix our Seasprites. His eyes went wide in absolute terror and said "HELL NO!" He also asked if there was anywhere where he could see some kangaroos, so I said I can show him part of one: I took off my belt and laid it on the bar.
As a bloke currently sailing on Perth, thank you, I absolutely loved this. Great to see us and the rest of the Anzacs getting some recognition. This class is the workhorse of the fleet. Fight and Flourish!
My brother in law served on the Perth for many years.
They're just so attractive don't you think? Save me one as a yacht one day!
Spent some time on the Perth in the 80s.good to see a ship with so many options take on the name.👍🇦🇺🇬🇧🇺🇸🏴☠️
Cool az what we don't see is we are loosing Anzac ships some being given away for free? New Zealand are able to use those ships again alot of historicalness in this group of ships
I wonder what your opinion is on the latest ship pick by the RA Navy, specifically the NOT pick of another Meko design.
I have served on three ANZAC class ships, HMAS WARRAMUNGA 2005-2007, HMAS PERTH 2009-2010 during the 2010 upgrade then straight onto HMAS TOOWOOMBA 2010-2011. They usually only carry around 150 crew unless they go on an overseas deployment and take flight crew and air crew with the Seahawk (who are nicknamed Birdies) as well as electronic warfare specialists (Spooks) and a couple more officers for the bridge and Ops Room, plus a Chaplain. During the deployment to the Middle East on HMAS WARRAMUNGA we carried 185 crew with 1 of them having to sleep in the FWD switchboard room on a fold up cot due to absolutely no bunks available. There are lots of small mess decks that were less than 20 crew in each which I loved as it fostered a great comradery amongst the different messes. Loved my time on them for sure.
It's awesome to see the Ships that I got to give my little bit to help construct on your channel. I just need to pick a couple of you points. HMAS Perth was Ship 10 in the 10 Ship build undertaken by the RAN and the RNZN. Her steel was cut in the early 2000's and all of Her original Combat suite was used by the Crew Training Facility offsite to the Ship Yard. You stated that She was only capable of 27 knots, I know for a fact these girls can make 36 Knots. The latest upgrades have been very successful in extending the life of the Class. You all so missed her NULKA capability. Thank you to all those who worked at Williamston Ship Yard, we produced some very high quality and enduring ships of war.
With all of the extra weight from the various upgrades the speed is now reduced to 27 knots. The 36 knots achieved I suspect was from the pre-acceptance sea trails when she was basically empty of all crew and gear.
@@superstorby also didn’t help when they had to add the strengthening steel along the hull fins due to cracking on ship 5
That's interesting. Most open sources indicate a maximum sustained speed of 27 knots. The Turkish MEKO Track IIB 200TNs, with dual gas turbines, are indicated with a maximum sustained speed of 31 knots. It is not unusual, though, for navies to keep the actual performance of their warships tucked under their hats, so, 36 knots might be on the money for a short sprint. Given that these ships are heavier now than they were when they were launched, what would you say would be their flat chat sprint speed these days?
The US didn’t quit ANZUS, they distanced themself from New Zealand. The Australia/US agreement has never been cancelled or paused.
💯💯
The back story is that the US had been briefed by our foreign affairs officials that our nuke free legislation was solely regarding weapons. Our Primeminister was off showing off in Oxford at the time that the issue was before select committee and the Deputy Geoffrey Palmer was trying to resolve an issue that the radical fringe of the labour party (the governing party) had created. One of those radical fringe aligned members of the labour party- one Helen Clark - was left in charge of the select committee. She inserted the bit about nuclear propulsion. The Americans caught by surprise by this threw a justifiable tantrum about it and consider us (NZ) as untrustworthy and probably compromised by a Communist sympathetic block within our government. That cancerous b*tch Helen Clark later was the UN official in charge of the UN Covid inquiry. The inquiry found that the CCP was not at fault and the pandemic was worsened by racism by other nations.
Great run down on the Anzacs, however there are a few things that you missed that help explain some of points that you made. The HMAS Perth came out of its most recent upgrade in 2021 and that was for the full Anti Ship Missle Defence Upgrade which installed Ceafar 2 in place of the SPS-49 radar, in addition to a number of other enhancements.
Until these ASMD upgrades, the Anzac class were considered quite lightly armed, having only 8 Sea Sparrow missiles in total, before the addition of the quad packed ESSM. One of the reasons that further MK-41 VLS were not installed was said to be due to top weight issues following the installation of the new Ceafar mast. Also, the Harpoon placement on the front added further weight issues. As a result, further ballast was required and the ships top speed and seakeeping has apparently been impacted. It has also recently been announced that the Harpoon ASM is to be replaced by the Naval Strike Missile on the Anzacs.
There's a great article written by ASPI called Rearming the Anzacs which goes into a lot of detail of Ceafar etc.
One important system that you missed was the Nulka missile decoy system. It was a joint Australian and US system developed to help counter ASMs.
Nulka is actually a Australian invention and why named Aboriginal meaning.. think quick.
But yea was joint developed by USA and Australia.
Is in over 150 US Navy ships and saved 3 off the coast of Iran 2016
As a resident of Perth, WA thanks for the in depth brief on our titular ship!
As built the first ANZAC where described as "Patrol Frigates" which was accurate as they had extremely limited war fighting capabilities.
In the 2000's they received upto 32 ESSM (replacing the 8 NSSM), HARPOON, NULKA Active Missile Decoy) and an Air Weapons Magazine ( The space was previously used as a gym). At this stage I was proud to serve on them.
I left in the early 2010's when they where receiving the ASMD upgrade to the Combat System and they have only improved since then with the full Phased array setup.
The second MK 41 VLS was never installed because they lost the weight margin with the other upgrades.
Modern ANZACs with the CEAFAR radar are just crying out for an unmanned or lightly manned escort with spare VLS cells. Fantastic ships, just about all the sensors and capability you could ask for in a modern surface combatants short of Aegis, but lacking in magazine depth.
@@MattWeberWA interesting idea, but I wonder if such a vessel would end up being considered too much of a liability, especially if it's mother ship were to be taken out first? It sure is a difficult one to know.
I remember first learning the term "fitted for, but not with" when the ANZACs were being built. Seems like they're mostly "fitted with" now 👍
I got the opportunity to work on both NZ's ANZAC's while working as a laborer, cool ships been waiting for you to do a ship brief on them.
@subbrief yes! I'd love a brief on the NZ Navy!
Fleet Weeks in San Fran these past couple of years have been a little small, but it is still impressive seeing warships passing in-line under the bridge, plus the airshow is always a good time. And seeing the city full of sailors is always a good thing!
city full of sailors is always good?......you mean for the red light district?😂
Very good analysis and commentary of a fine ship type.
The Aussies keep their powder quite dry with regard to all of their combat systems and capabilities, which is not a bad thing.
Incidentally, that Ceafar radar system is considered absolute state of the art. It was invented in Australia using Aussie technology and has even been considered by the UK and US Navy due to its excellent performance and clever ECM capabilities.
One thing to remember, due to the experiences with the US Navy in those bloody sea and land battles of the Pacific War is that the Australian Navy would come to the aid of the USNavy no matter the circumstances, even if it required a suicide mission. Australians don't abandon their mates.
Thanks for posting, sir!
Thank you for a very detailed and precise review. The RAN is small but highly capable, and has a proud tradition.
Great, reliable class of warship. Brilliant modular design that’s accepted heavy upgrades over the years to modernise it. It no longer has mk49 radar and now has total phased array. The only problem is, they need more VLS and towed array but that’s pushing buoyancy limits. But they’re the backbone of the fleet
Will be nice when they add the NSM from next year, hopefully hey could add the extra 8 VLS.
i always thought that the ANZAC class frigate was kinda under armed in the SAM.
ANZAC class are under-appreciated, probably because it is designed for multi-mission, and as such is not so standout in any single area, but is very good in a whole lot of areas. It would be nice to have the extra 8 VLS, but unlike most other ships, the expansion to 16 is built into the design and it is a lot quicker to add another 8 if conditions warrant it, than another ship class where adding VLS means a major re-design, and a lot of time.
The bigger problem with the number 8 is that there are only 8 of them, and really, there needs to be at least 12, and preferably 16. It ain't cheap, and defense budget is already going over 2%, but with an unpredictable Russia, Iran, North Korea, and China, becoming more aggressive in recent years, defense budget should grow to 4%.
@@artistjoh Yeah I hear ya. It needs it and it seems like it had the space for it but it has to be a buoyancy and weight issue. They’re pretty much maxed out with that new mast
@@badgerattoadhall I thought so to.
Australians generally have a lot of pride in their military but I don't they realise how good the RAN is. It has a long history with a lot of British support from WWI with RN officers serving as officers passing on a wonderful heritage and they maintain exchanges with RN and USN. We're small, but very good.
Yeah, I think part of that is the legacy of the Collins Class sub debacle. The negative press about the Navy back then was unbelievable. Joe Public doesn't understand that it's the DMO (or whatever they're called these days) not the Navy that makes procurement decisions...
Even these days you look at how the press talks about the military (calling soldiers/sailors officers incorrectly, etc.), and you realise they're have no idea how the military actually operates.
The RAN is small but capable. Our own worst enemy is our own government with the ever increasing erosion of conditions while adding BS politically correct doctrine to every day military life.
Also the friendliest of the adf go Navy!
Australia has a much more effective navy than people think. Both the Hobart and Anzac class ships are top of the range and as good as anything the US or Royal Navy can field and a lot better than their Russian equivalents.
@@chrisparnham Only 3 though...good equipment, but in a war of attrition, we run out quick. Nukes needed for effective deterrent.
@@thelimatheou Yes, in a similar fashion to the Royal Navy the Australian Defence Force didn't order the original 6 Hobarts thought necessary and ended up with too few. But combined with the Anzac Frigates the Aussies have 11 very good warships. The nuclear deterrent question works both ways if you have them you also become a target. I expect that with the obvious push to become a serious player in the Pacific alongside the US, Japan and the Philippines, Nukes may follow. That's more of a political than military decision I guess.
Glad to hear that Australia has some good equipment fit for purpose.
The Spherion sonar was built by Simrad in Norway using technology developed in coperation with Thomson-CSF and Simrad for the Norwegian navy. The Australian Navy bougt the sonar which was assembeled by Simrad in Horten Norway using both Norwgian and French parts and technology.
would be interested to see you do a short talk on the RNZN variant.
Current Aussie Ship Driver. SWO equivilent.
Love your work.
Unfortunatly they are getting old as hulls. But yes as Multi-role Frigates they still remain quite capable.
But as a Navy we were not quite happy with them from the offset despite being leagues ahead of the Desteoyer Escortd they replaces and despite being not a long range AAW platfrom were seen as not as good a platform as the OHP FFGs, other than AAW they preformed on par.
They recently went through AMCAP with the newer CEAFAR2 over the mid 2010s CEAFAR. We jokingly call it CEAFurther.
They are mostly limited by not having strike length VLS and were hamstrung by only having 8 VLS until we got ESSM.
The Replacement it taking its sweat time so we may see these old gals doing a full 30 or 40 years like the OHPs.
Again awesome work.
I served on one of those old River class DEs, and I bet your CEAFurther could see a lot better than our LW02! 😂 We used to joke that we could throw spuds at incoming missiles… our Seacat, four fives and .50 cals weren’t much use for that.
Those Australian Anzac class fleet have received further upgrade called ANZAC Mid-life Capability Assurance Programme(AMCAP) since 2017, Including CEAFAR-2L phased array radar that replaced the legacy AN/SPS-49. So RAN Anzac fleet now have a larger mast top that housing three different CEA series phased arrays (L/S/X bands), which looks like a pineapple.
Great work. Thank you for your content.
Glad you enjoy it!
Being a landlover i still love this channel.
Thanks for the coverage on our navy ships. I learnt so much from this video
the LM 2500 is the CF6 jet engine that is used by DC10, early 747, A 300, and 767 aircraft. also used on the air force Lockheed Martin C-5M Super Galaxy.
More correctly it is the core section of the CF-6.
The LM-2500 is what is known as a gas generator in use. The engines primary purpose in life is to creat hot air that then is blown over a free spool turbine making it spin.
That free spool turbine is then connected to a gearbox and then that is connected to a generator, compressor or pump (again typical oilfield items)
Thanks for the review Aaron
The best defense against pirates are trained beavers 🦫 that eat their peg legs and leaves them crippled and spinning on the deck!
Man you should see the giant termite mounds in the outback!
Taller than you!
Good luck training a beaver though, my beaver stopped listening to me or doing what I'd say as soon as I married her. 🫤
Stay single lads. Best advice you'll ever get.
Make this man an admiral immediately
Sounds a very Canadian solution. Australians prefer to use termites, and then use echidnas to control the termites.
@@richardmartin8998 but what controls the echidna's and their 4... well... you know...
The Halifax class frigate would be an interesting breakdown
As an Aussie, I am very proud of this ship, and love your thoughts. Thank you 😊
Can you imagine how versatile the USN fleet would be if we had invested in ships like the Anzac instead of LCS?
Well, at long last we *are* investing in such a ship, the new Constellation-class frigates will be easily comparable to these ships.
@@Sanderfordsuperior actually.
@@richardmartin8998 Agreed. About time, really. Though the USN's build plan and build reality are two divergent things! The Constellation-class will provide an asset that can do 100% of the Navy's peacetime missions, providing an alternative to deploying expensive DDGs, and bring useful capabilities in a hot war as well.
@@richardmartin8998 Yes, they will be, at least if all goes well. If nothing else they will have a much heavier VLS armament. Speed will probably be comparable, but a little higher overall. They will also have a better RADAR suite.
@@richardmartin8998 true, but you are dealing in decades in term of timeline, the ANZAC class is coming to the end of it's life. the platform has been pushed as far as it can
No fluff, no B.S, you just get straight down to business as usual. Another excellent video.
Many Thanks.
- a proud NZ citizen.
Looks like an updated Perry class with a Knox class mack! Love it!
I'm a born and raised American but these other countries are making some futuristic designs compared to Americas military but the us military is built tough💪
Patiently waiting for a new submarine brief. I've been watching them for years and they are never to long. Absolutely love the content
May never be able to join the navy but I’ll always find videos like this fascinating thanks to those who have or are serving stay safe
One of the few military programs that Australia embarked on that we didn't get ripped off for.
Really enjoy your presentations, thank you!
Glad you like them!
Thanks - good vid. I was part of the commissioning crew of HMAS Warramunga ANZAC frigate. Seems so long ago now...
BTW, Thales is pronounced 'talles/tallis' (silent H). Big French defence contractor that does a lot in Australia.
I was commissioning crew as well in 2001 and also served in HMAS Anzac in 2004-2006. Great memories.
Great looking ship!
Very interesting indeed. Thanks.
Very welcome
If you come at the RAN you'd better know what you're doing. They've spent 100 years fighting, winning & sinking, literally everywhere. They know how to run a navy.
A very important capability they have is 16 ready to launch Nulka anti-ship missile decoys.
That’s twice as many as what the Arleigh Burkes have, and on a ship half the size.
Cheers for the brief.
HMAS Perth has had the AMCAP upgrade since 2021 - the SPS-49 has been replaced by the CEAFAR2-L AESA radar. You can search RUclips for a video from Defence Australia showing this "Back in the water - HMAS Perth leaves dry dock".
Having been on board NZs Anzac Class they are quite impressive ships for their size, the NZ ones are quite different to their Australian counterparts at this point, the superstructure with all the radars being different, NZ ships lacking the ability to use Sea Hawks, no harpoon ASHMs on the bow, a 20mm CIWS above the hanger
NZ Frigates have been retrofitted with the Lockheed Martin CMS 330 combat management system, and more advanced MBDA Sea Ceptor vertical launchers in a the last few years.
@@Battleneter and they have 2 with no replacement plan, NZ is embarrassing, no airforce, two old ships and a guy with a stick as the army
@@qbi4614 NZ is a country of only 5 million people, Sydney has more. Australia heavily relies on the US for defence due to its massive Coastline and small military, nothing to be proud of either.
Thank you from Perth city for showing our named sake ship. love the channel btw
Great review.
Yeah, the RAN had a thing for swapping out masts on these things, this ship is up to its 3rd radar/mast configuration now. These ships are extremely capable and are continually being upgraded and made better.
I live in Perth. The best city in the country. Obviously HMAS Perth is the best ship in the navy.
As a kid in school I used to sketch ANZACs, Adelaide class and Perth Class ships in the margins of my maths exercise books. These are (in my mind) the quintessential image for me when I imagine Naval combattant vessels. All with sps 49s or sps40s and complicated aerials on their triple masts. Their lines were great. Modern phased arrays are awesome but dont lend to good looking ships. I love the look of the ANZACs and ill be sad when they go, leaving us with a fleet that look like smoothed off lego blocks.
For the international audience, Adelaide class was an Aussie Olivier Hazard Perry and Perth class was an Aussie Charles F Adams.
A short brief free of controversy is a good thing for the ship.
Great video 🙂
Australian here:
Good honest review which I wished we'd see more off.
As you might know there's a lot of public discussion right now over what our Navy is procuring. I don't have a problem with our navy upgrading at all. We live in interesting times where there are all sorts of political players doing things we'd all like that they don't.
The Chinese seizing part of the Spratly islands did NOBODY any good. *I recommend everyone have a look where the Spratly's actually are on the Map. They are nowhere near the Chinese mainland and are in fact just off the coast of the Philippines.* So if you want to control what ship traffic goes through the South China Sea then having bases on the Spratly's is a good way to do it. For Australia that's a problem because all of our iron ore exports, LNG and other things that go to South Korea and Japan go through there.
So its pretty imperative that Australia be able to guard commercial shipping through that region because there's not just the Chinese but its also a region where pirates (yes modern pirates) operate. Plus the shear size of Australia's maritime region is enormous. We have massive areas of the Indian Ocean and Pacific where we have lots of trade moving. So I have no problem with Australia getting new ships with longer ranges and nuclear powered subs.
What I have a problem with is HOW MUCH we are paying for these systems. I am an engineer and if I tried doing projects in the industry that are costed like these I'd get sacked.
- Our new Offshore Patrol Vessels are 10x the cost per boat of what they are replacing and there are serious doubts over there multi-role capabilities. The story of the Arafura-class is like the LCS in America - expensive and not well thought out.
- The submarines are absurd in the costs. Not only do we simply NOT have enough people to operate Virginia class boats but there is between AU$25 and AU$41 Billion dollars PER BOAT that nobody has accounted for.
- Our current Collins Diesel Electric subs cost more than 4x as much as the British pay to operate an Astute class nuclear sub.
- The replacement frigate program that's just starting for the replacement of the ANZAC-class started at $20 Billion for 8 boats (AU$2.5B Each) it then jumped to AU$35 Billion for 9 and is now out to AU$45 Billion. (AU$5B each). The Hunter-class are based on the British Type 26 which costs the Royal Navy AU$1.6B each. The current costs of a US Constellation would also be AU$1.6B each.
NOBODY has explained why our Navy pays so much for things.
I want out Navy to be well equipped BUT I am not prepared to be ripped off getting it.
You have no clue do you.. ohh i don't know why we pay so much more then Britian or USA.
Because we get paid a lot more in wages and every few years get pay rises.
Another key thing about having a MH-60 on board, the ship can get food and stuff to resupply with out needing to come to a dock (I think the US Navy calls it replenishment at sea). Also the MH-60 can do medical flights and search and rescue jobs too, so the MH-60 can help its war ship but crews of any other boat/ship in the area.
Lest we forget :) Digger from down under, thanks for the upload champ !
You bet!
Onya son
Give New Zealand Navy a chance to buy back that great ship🇳🇿🇦🇺🙏Anzac🙏🇦🇺🇳🇿 rebuilt kit which they are going to use anyway is another warrant of fitness for her
God bless America for building such beauties
its not american. it was a German company (blohm & voss) project called the MEKO200 which customers can put what weapons and sensors they want.
Built in Australia 🇦🇺
Hi great report as ever... can you do some British kit like the Type 23 frigate, Type 45 Destroyer. Or perhaps the Type 26 frigate the Apex anti-sub surface platform.
Have a couple of mates who have and some still are serving on the ANZAC class. They all love it to death. Everyone including the public are scratching their heads as to why they didn't just install the second missile block though. I mean it was right there.
More then likely buoyancy or stability issues you can’t just shove more stuff onto a ship.
I'm not sure- it's a really effective ship as it is, it has a good balance. Just look at the thing you can tell everything fits together so well. 177 souls to keep the ship operational- add too much they have to start sleeping in the lifeboats.
@@jameson1239 Aus defence loves the "jack of all trades, master of none" approach on quite a lot of our assets.
The Turkish Meko Track IIB 200TNs (Salihreis Class) have the second 8 cell VLS installed and it would be great to have a second one on the ANZACs as well. These are tactical length VLS blocks so they are not deep enough to accommodate longer missiles like the Tomahawk, but an additional 32 ESSMs would improve their survivability in the face of an anti-ship missile attack. But, they wont get them. It comes down to weight, really ... and sea-keeping. When they installed the heavier mast for the CEAFAR radar they had to re-ballast the ship so as not to make it unstable in heavy seas and risk having it capsize.
The ANZACs are capable warships for their size but earlier upgrades have used up all of their weight and space margins so they can't be further upgraded. This is one of the reasons why they are being replaced by the Hunter class frigates.
Originally they were to have 2 gas turbines, like the Turkish Meko 200s which have a maximum speed of 31 knots compared with the 27 knots of the ANZACs, but they were only fitted with one to keep the cost down. The Cold War was over by then, and what Australia needed was long-range patrol frigates rather than fast surface combatants to hunt down the submarines of the Warsaw Pact.
"Everyone including the public are scratching their heads as to why they didn't just install the second missile block though. I mean it was right there."
At the very least, they could have placed a veneer of a second one!
My dad was in the Falklands, HMS Fearless L10, 2 losses (HMS Sheffield and Atlantic Conveyer) and 1 severely damaged (HMS Glamorgan) by Exocet. However we lost more to conventional bombs surprisingly (HMS Coventry, HMS Ardent, HMS Antelope, RFA Sir Galahad) , hence the Type 45 having a massive concentration on Air Defense.
New big fan of the channel, found ya after the Titan incident like many others. Do you have a recommended playlist of videos for newer subscribers to watch?. Im a computer science major who dabbled in other engineering and ocean stuff fascinates me. Keep up the great channel, hope it grows.
Such sophisticated search radars and fire control radars for a ship with only medium range missiles. Still those radars and the 32 ESSM is as good as your going to get with that sized ship.
It the best frigate in the world within its weight class certainly punches above its weight, pity only an 8 cell medium length Mk 41 VLS system with 32 ESSM missiles fitted but another upgrade very soon is with 8 x NSM Mk II launch boxes to replace the Harpoon II.
River Class was originally an anti sub frigate, then modified to Destroyer escort for our Daring class Destroyer. We never called em Destroyers.
They're really capable- impressively engineered and I think very stylish layout. They have relatively few weaknesses. If you could have only one class of ship in your navy this would be a fine choice. These type of ships are so important in modern naval warfare as they are extremely threatening yet easily numerous. Not high value targets and can protect themselves well enough to be difficult to take out.
There aren't many ships that i'd have designed the same way but this is certainly one of them.
I really think they're beautiful. I'd love to see one up close one day.
And indeed see if they make something equally good in the future. Warfare is changing once again after all.
Maybe I should look into a little anzac scale model. Maybe paint it up nice.
Fast frigates are really the rally cars / street racers of the ocean. Can you imagine steering that thing?
I've decided. When i'm a billionaire i'm buying and converting one into a yacht. Who needs a mansion or private island when you have one of these?
Anyone else got a ship crush?
Good review. I didn't know that Australia had previously considered Nuclear submarines. One point of difference, America only suspended NZ from the ANZUS treaty, Australia invoked the ANZUS treaty when their ally the United States was attacked on 9/11 by then prime minister John Howard, who incidentally was in Washington DC on the day, to celebrate the anniversary of the ANZUS treaty.
I know it's old news, but could you talk about the surveillance buoys? I remember hearing about Canada finding some chinese ones a few months ago in the arctic
You can be assured the radar system will be cutting edge technology. Australia have been the leaders in high frequency, skywave over-the-horizon radar tech for decades. Take the Jindalee network for example. That's the main reason Pine Gap and the CIA's presence there even exists.
Pine Gap was originally set up to monitor telemetry of ICBM tests in East Asia during the Cold War. However, its role has evolved over the years. These days it is a satellite ground station for space-based infra-red surveillance satellites that detect missile launches, signals intelligence satellites that detect military transmissions mosty over the Indian Ocean Region, satellite receivers that intercept transmissions from commercial satellites, and as a relay station for remote operators controlling UAVs like Predator drones. JORN on the other hand is a very capable long-range ionospheric over-the-horizon doppler radar system used to monitor maritime and air movements in the Australia's northern approaches. Pine Gap and JORN perform very different roles. The CEAFAR radar systems are very good but these are scalable AESA radars designed to be mounted on warships and ground vehicles. CEA was recently acquired by the Australian government.
New Zealand got their ships upgraded in a Vancouver shipyard. Same one that does support for the RCN’s Pacific fleet.
Combat proven class. Shore bombardment capability is an Australian Navy requirement that's why it has the M45 5 inch gun. HMAS Anzac (first build of the Anzac class) used it's 5 inch gun in the Iraq war for shore bombardment along the Al Faw peninsula and other targets. HMAS ANZAC completed seven fire missions over a period of three days firing over 150 rounds. The frigate received the Meritorious Unit Citation on 27 November 2003 for her service during this deployment. For more information on these operations search "Five Inch Friday".
Not related to this video but I was looking for the Analysis video about the Hårsfjärden incident but it has been removed. I hope you reupload it some day.
Woohoo Perth represent!
Sorry, I couldn't help myself ;)
I kind of feel like the comments section doesnt give the ANZACS enough credit for how small they are. They get compared to so often to Arleigh Bourkes in terms of firepower, but the ANZACS are somehting like 4000 tonns less displacement and were acquired under a very different set of geopolitical circumstances than we now find ourselves in. Australias real power projection at the time came from the Royal Australian Air Force's F111 fleet with Harpoon and an range of laser guided weaponry (Whihc have now been replaced the F35 / Super Hornet with LRASM) The ANZACS were not intended to slug it out with a peer adversary on the surface
The River class were actually destroyer escorts
Man, i love those ESSM missiles!
I wonder what the actual max range is, they state MORE than 50km.
About 30 nm = 55 km, but it depends on the target. A slow moving maritime patrol aircraft is much easier to hit than a fast moving evasive anti-ship missile. The propulsion system can only provide a limited amount of energy, and if the ESSM has to change direction to close on the target then this will deplete that energy and reduce the effective range.
I definitely like seeing how some of our tax money is being spent. Thank you for your lectures, these are incredibly helpful!
You're very welcome!
While it's possible that ANZAC may last into the 50s, it is not likely as the first of the repalcement class (Hunter class) has begun.
Think my mate is going to be working on those helicopters when he finishes his training.
Sounds like a great frigate. Would like a few more missiles and range.
The range is pretty good for a frigate but the potential for further weapons enhancement is limited because the weight and internal space limits have been reached. This is one of the reasons why they are being replaced by the Hunter class frigates. In the meantime, the Harpoons are being replaced with the more capable NSM though.
@@liefsillion2825 it seems like they are well maintained. Hopefully they will keep them or sell to someone like the Philippines.
New Zealand is a huge disappointment to me. They have become arrogant and don’t contribute a dime to defense. Worse they placate China and ridicule the nations that would end up providing their defense.
I hope you do a Hunter Class review one day :)
Have you done a video on the Swimmer|SEAL Delivery Vehicle?
A storied name. Opportunity there to discuss the Aus & US connection with Perth and Huston standing together against the Imperial Japanese navy.
My uncle Andy went down on the Perth that terrible night in the Sunda straits battle. The Perth fought back with everything she had but was overwhelmed by the massive fleet of Japanese destroyers and Heavy Cruisers of the IJN.
I wish I could visit a fleet review coast city. Would love to see half the worlds navy ships. Better than attending the Olympics or a Worlds Fair
It is amazing how well diesels and turbines can be used to propel ships in a seamless way. Yet for many of the U.S. LCSs it was not to be.
Thanks Great talk on our ANZAC class, would like to see one on , Brisbane class Destroy,or Melbourne class LHD.Those and Collins class sub's, with the new Supply class,give us some very cool possibilities even more if we get a few f35bs.👍🇦🇺🇬🇧🇺🇸🏴☠️🙉🙈🙊
To put an * in there.
There are currently 10 total ANZAC class ships in service. 8 with the Australian Navy and 2 with the NZ Navy. NZ operates a different configuration on its ships however they are still the same base design.
It’s a shame we didn’t work to maintain commonality. Common systems and weapons in conflict will be crucial for AU/NZ.
lol he's a yank he would not even have a clue who the ANZAC's were, this is the same Yank clown that reckon US was going to turn Australia into a country that could fight.. Arrogant yanks are clueless and useless.
@@Sam-cn4ch they are still more or less compatable however the two countries have very different predicted threats.
Australia is much more likely to be operating in tandem with US forces while the NZ fleet is more likely to be patroling friendly waters and conducting anti-submarine warfare operations (in tandem with their new*( aircraft)
Please cover the launch of thermal torpedo, "Shakti" with pump jet propulsion.
This should have been a very big news for India but no one covered it.
Please, please do cover it :-)
Dr. Alexander Clarke might have lots of good ideas for you all on the topic of commonwealth navy vessels.
Good video, but you missed the second upgrade.
next time! Will have to do a sequel, Return of the Second Upgrade.
Aaron I have a request, would you consider doing a sub brief on the Type 31/Inspiration-class by chance?
Hearing you say my little cities name so many times is a little weird 😂
I think the RAN plans to begin removing their Anzacs from service from 2024 onwards however as of 2022, the Hunter-class frigate project was running four years behind schedule so lets say 2028-30 in water date.
To be clear the US did not withdraw from the ANZUS treaty, they essentially suspended the provisions protecting NZ.
good point.
Not related to this video, but figured you would be the man to ask...
So if a pressure vessel can maintain 1 atmosphere differential at 2000 feet (just using round numbers) then if you increased the interior to 2 atmospheres would the theoretical depth capability double to 4000 feet?
If a patrol lasts months, it would be like saturation diving with plenty of time for decompression.
I was part of Perths commissioning crew. Hated every minute 😂
Side note. They always had Seahawks just not the romeo
Pretty sure they upgraded from 8 cells during the mid life upgrade didnt they?
I know the navy is currently in the planning stages for the next frigate program.
For a ship that putatively learned the lessons of the Falklands war, this ship is astoundingly ill equipped to deal with hostile missiles. Having a few Sea Sparrow is the barest minimum. To deal with even a single missile, you want 'at least' two independent anti-missile systems with two ranges of engagement. If you've just got one, if your solitary system misses, you are dead. If the enemy fires more than one missile at you, your probability of survival goes down precipitously.
The ideal frigate would have a short-medium range anti-missile system like Sea Sparrow (or Rolling Airframe), a gun system like a Strales 76mm with DART to engage if the first defense fails and a CWIS gun for a last ditch defense. That's three different layers of defence EACH of which must be defeated to strike the ship. This not only makes the ship nigh invulnerable to singletons, but MUCH more resistant to saturation attacks as well.
If your ship is meant to defend anything 'other' than itself, it should have a fourth longer range anti-air missile system that can engage at much longer ranges still.
The NZ version of the ANZAC is equipped with a CIWS above the hanger, but it has 12 less missles, using the Sea Ceptor system instead of the Mark 41 VLS.
It wasn't just "hard kill" anti-missile defence that was installed 🤫.
Regardless as mentioned here in order to get the full 8 the RAN had to make serious reduction in capability. 1 less Mk41 VLS, no CIWS, Seasprite instead of additional Seahawks etc. Also these ships were "space for, not with" as even they fittings were dropped, so up equipping would be more costly and lengthy.
The upgrade program addressed many of the issues, but buoyancy became a larger concern, so full equipment is not common.
Aaron, when does a ship become a Frigate and not a Destroyer? Is is weight (tonnage?), missions? Arms? Thank you and really enjoy your briefings.
it's mostly tonnage, weapons, and endurance.
But sometimes Destroyers are called frigates due to political reasons.
There is no modern standard method for deciding whether a warship is a frigate or a destroyer. If one particular navy wants to call a warship a frigate it will call it a frigate even through a different navy might call the same ship a destroyer. The RAN calls the Hobart class a destroyer but calls the Hunter class a frigate even though the Hobart displaces 7000 tons at full load and the Hunter class displaces 10000 tons at full load. It would make sense to have a standardised method based on displacement, firepower and armour but this is just not the case. A similar issue divides the line between corvettes and frigates, and between destroyers and cruisers. The distinctions were clearer in the age of sail, but in modern navies it has become pretty much arbitrary.
Now i'm hearing that the replacements for the ANZAC frigates called the Hunter class (modified UK Type 26 class ship) might be further upgraded and extended than the current Hunter class.
Rumours said the RAN want more multi mission VLS capability rather than extensive ASW, BAE have looked into extending the Hunters capability to hold 96 full length Mk 41 VLS tubes thus having the extra 64 VLS tubes located where the mission bay currently is.
Is this a true rumour or not?
Wrong, there were 10 built, including 2 for New Zealand..They were based on a German hull design.
And they took have just come back from upgrade, including sea ceptor.
Wonder if a 2.0 or 3.0 version of the ANZAC frigates could be made possible? Yet another joint decision, with job opportunities galore across the Tasman, perhaps as a alternative to being useful for work deemed less needed than the type 26 replacement being built.
The Hunter class frigates will have much better anti-submarine warfare capability because their electric motor driven propellor shafts allow the noisy diesel engines to be isolated from the hull, and they have an active low frequency towed sonar, both of which the ANZACs do not have. However, there is a review of RAN surface combatant requirements currently underway which is expected to recommend more warships of a smaller size (3000-4000 tons) and lower cost (around $1B)... more like a Type 31, or something like the very versatile Absalon class multirole frigate with Stanflex modularity, for duty in low intensity threat environments and for waving the flag. The ANZAC class is not really survivable in a high intensity threat environment these days due a lack of a multi-layered anti-ship missile defence system. The magazine depth is insufficient to carry enough missiles. The Hunter class will have at least 4 x the magazine depth and can carry 64 ESSM + 16 SM-2 interceptors compared with the ANZAC's 32 ESSM interceptors.
AWSOME vid, I remember RAN HMAS ANZAC coming off slip, brought Navy magazine to read it spec n getting post for bedroom wall. It’s unfortunately they got them in base version not full war fighting capability.
NZ version had CIWS, no CEAFAR, Seaprite helicopter n now different missiles. At time NZ had option two extra builds but turn down offer n went two smaller OPV.
RAN did have SeaSprite but had operation problems, after OPV was drop RAN should brought Seahawks as they were operating fleet for Adelaide class. This save taxpayers 1 billion dollars n had ANZAC fully operational.
You will be surprised about what our Navy planned and did with these ships. They were originally designed to take the Super Seasprite helicopter despite the fact we already had the Seahawk. They wanted to retrofit Super Seasprites with more modern equipment. This failed.... The VLS is actually quad packed with ESSM's so that is 32 missiles in total. Though these ships were considered "evil" by the NZ navy due to the fact that it had a VLS system. Their reasoning was that the VLS could fire Tomahawks (which the cells are not deep enough to hold on these ships) and that Tomahawks could be fitted with nuclear warheads (despite the fact that neither navy had such missiles) and therefore wanted to cancel the program and ban the Australian ships from NZ waters. In fact coming into service they were often "fitted for but not with" so we would do simulations based on having Harpoon missiles when none were actually installed on the ships at all.
What every country needs: a pacifist navy - probably even worse these days 😂
Back in the day when one of the US aircraft carriers was in Brisbane, I ended up drinking with an American helicopter maintainer - would've been 2006 or so - I said I'd buy him a beer if he promised to fix our Seasprites. His eyes went wide in absolute terror and said "HELL NO!"
He also asked if there was anywhere where he could see some kangaroos, so I said I can show him part of one: I took off my belt and laid it on the bar.
We fly Seasprites off our Anzacs. IIRC when you gave up we bought a few of yours.
VLS Evil stuff was bullship........... they just didn't want to pay for a NAVY so they got a coast guard.