HMAS Supply Welcomed to Fleet

HMAS Supply (II) was welcomed into Royal Australian Navy service on April 10 during a commissioning ceremony at Fleet Base East in Sydney.The first of two new Supply-class auxiliary oiler replenishment ships, Supply is a welcome boost to the fleet’s operational support capability.

Commanding Officer Captain Ben Hissink said the 173 crew members were proud to serve on such a strategically important new platform.“We celebrated the commissioning of a critical support capability that will help extend the endurance of our task groups and Navy’s ability to protect all Australians,” Captain Hissink said.“We follow in the footsteps of Supply (I) that fuelled our seafarers with good oil in good spirit, but now we do so again with additional logistics and combat capabilities.”

Supply and her incoming sister ship, NUSHIP Stalwart, will carry fuel, water, food, parts and dry cargo for the replenishment of Australian and regional partner ships while under way at sea, and to aid in humanitarian and disaster relief when called upon.They also have a combat management system, advancing capability over the previous support ships, HMA Ships Success and Sirius.Supply’s youngest crew member Seaman Claire Lissimore, who cut the commissioning cake with Captain Hissink, said she was excited to serve in Navy’s most contemporary ship.“I feel proud to have been an active part of the ceremony and to be posted to a first-of-class ship,” Seaman Lissimore said. 

“Experiencing the commissioning process with a progressive crew has been very exciting, especially coming straight out of a small town high school to join the Navy and subsequently Supply just last year.”At the ceremony, Captain Hissink said the valiant effort of the crew to bring together Navy and Australian histories had progressed a culture of confidence that would ensure they effectively met the needs of those they serve. “This commissioning day signifies a joining of history and our vision of ‘one ship many stories’,” Captain Hissink said.“Connecting Supply (I)’s legacy with the stories and history of our First Nation's people has prepared our crew to take on our duties as drifting protectors – providing for and protecting our families, our community and our nation.

“As we face our first-of-class sea trials we take these histories on: the Navy traditions that ground us, and the community and protection ideals instilled through our ship’s Indigenous artwork and main passageway, The Bundian Way.“These two legacies, combined with the power of our new capabilities, strengthens us in all we do and creates a bright future to move together into.”

Now commissioned, Supply will begin the next phase of first-of-class sea trials and integration into the fleet. 

 

North Korea’s new target ship

https://www.armscontrolwonk.com/archive/1211465/a-boat-only-a-missile-could-love/

 

Now that we are all looking at Sinpo for signs of further activity involving the TULP (Towed Underwater Launch Platform) and the collocated floating drydock at the semi-refurbished construction hall, I wanted to bring your attention to an interesting vessel I have been following for a few months.  Its purpose is not entirely understood and it has been moving between at least three different naval bases on North Korea’s east coast since September 2020. While this is a bit speculative, I think we might be looking at a target ship for future cruise missile testing.The ship has been moving around over the past year.  The earliest I pinned the ship on satellite imagery was between September and October 2020 at the Chaho Naval base just north of Sinpo.  It was near this location where Kim Jong Un observed an SLBM test in April 2016, and at the naval base where he received the submariners after the test. Sometime before November 20th, 2020, the ship moved to the Yoho-ri Naval Base. Then it stayed until it was caught in a Planet Labs SkySat image on December 22nd being brought to the shipyard at Mayang-do, opposite the Sinpo South Naval Shipyard. Tarao Goo has identified the construction location at Chongjin, where the vessel was modified sometime after May 1st 2020.

Taiwan has achieved a major breakthrough in developing its own Vertical Launching System (VLS) for arming naval warships

Biden administration set to approve F-35 sale to UAE

  U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration has told Congress it is proceeding with more than $23 billion in weapons sales to the United Arab Emirates, including advanced F-35 aircraft, armed drones and other equipment, congressional aides said on Tuesday.A State Department spokesperson said the administration would move forward with the proposed sales to the UAE, “even as we continue reviewing details and consulting with Emirati officials” related to the use of the weapons.

The Democratic president’s administration had paused the deals agreed to by former Republican President Donald Trump in order to review them. The sales to the Gulf nation were finalized right before Trump left office.The Trump administration told Congress in November it had approved the U.S. sale to the UAE as a side deal to the Abraham Accords, a U.S.-brokered agreement in September in which the UAE agreed to normalize relations with Israel.

In the last months of the Trump administration, Israel reached deals with the UAE, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco as part of the accords.

Tu-160 practice mid-air refueling for Victory Day parade

RAAF - Dancing with Hornets

RAN Conducted Combat System Exercise in Southern California

 HMAS Sydney conducted a passage exercise with USS John Finn in the waters off the coast of Southern California in early April.Sydney has deployed to San Diego to conduct combat system sea qualifications trials on its Aegis weapons system with the US Navy.

Conducting live fire missile events will provide the data required for Navy senior leadership to assess Sydney for final operational capability, allowing all three of Australia's guided missile destroyers to be operationally deployed.Sydney arrived in Pearl Harbor on March 25 for a logistics port visit to replenish fuel and supplies, and provide her crew with respite ahead of transiting to the Southern California Exercise Area. 

John Finn was deployed as an integral part of a US carrier strike group in the north-east Indian Ocean before joining Sydney.The exercise improved interoperability between the two navies and enhanced the ability to plan, communicate and conduct complex maritime operations efficiently and effectively.

F-35B Vertical Landing Practice • MCAS Yuma