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Future Royal Australian Navy LHD HMAS Canberra One Started Her Final Sea Trials.
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 NUSHIP Canberra sails from Williamstown to commence her first set of sea trials. Picture: LSIS Helen Frank / Royal Australian Navy |
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Final contractor trials involve testing of the combat
and communication systems along with some platform systems trials.
Director of BAE Systems Maritime, Bill Saltzer, said: “This is the last major element of a very complex and comprehensive test program to prove the capabilities of the ship and its systems prior to delivery to our customer. “Getting this ship to this stage has been a collaborative effort between BAE Systems and the Defence Materiel Organisation (DMO). Our two project teams have worked closely throughout the project and now we are in the home stretch for the Canberra.” Aboard NUSHIP Canberra for the final contractor trials are BAE Systems and DMO project personnel along with a number of Royal Australian Navy (RAN) officers and sailors who will crew the ship once delivered, as well as BAE Systems subcontractors Navantia, Saab, L3 and Teekay. |
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 NUSHIP CANBERRA in Port Phillip Bay on her initial sea trials. Picture: Royal Australian Navy |
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The final trials also provide an ideal opportunity
for a number of the crew to familiarise themselves with the ship following
their training at the BAE Systems facility at Mascot, NSW, in which state-of-the-art
simulation technology was developed and utilised to achieve technical
competence in a cost-effective environment.
As well as demonstrating the ship’s capabilities, the trials will provide the team with valuable feedback regarding the effectiveness of the training program. The utilisation and extent of virtual training within LHD has been a new approach for the RAN and the feedback received from the crew so far has been very positive. Mr Saltzer said work was also progressing well on NUSHIP Canberra’s sister ship, NUSHIP Adelaide: “In shipbuilding, there are always lessons learned on the first ship of a new class that can be implemented to achieve higher levels of productivity on the following ship or ships and this is certainly the case with NUSHIP Adelaide. The second LHD is coming together rapidly and is on track to be ready to start sea trials in the second quarter of next year.” The 27,000 tonne LHDs are the largest ships ever built for the ADF and will be operated by the RAN. BAE Systems is the Prime Contractor for the project. The main subcontractors are Navantia for the platform design and hull construction in Spain, SAAB as the combat system integrator and L3 for the internal and external communications systems. |
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