07 April 2013

The naval base was precisely located in Palu Bay, it is the third-deepest sea in the world. (photo : Kaskus Militer)

Indonesian Navy (TNI AL) chief of staff Adm. Marsetio opened on Friday the Palu Naval Base in Palu, Central Sulawesi, as part of an effort to secure Indonesian waters, especially in the eastern part of the country.

The naval base is located on a 13-hectare plot in Palu’s Watusampu subdistrict, Ulujadi district, of which only 2.8 hectares have been built on. 

The building, which faces Palu Bay, has been built over the past two years and cost around Rp 7 billion (US$717,000).

“The naval base location is ideal and strategic, and there is no such dock in Indonesia like the one in Palu,” Marsetio told the media after the opening ceremony.

He said the naval base was precisely located in Palu Bay and at an ideal depth. It is the third-deepest sea in the world.

It will also serve as the Navy’s submarine base, where three submarines purchased from South Korea, will be stationed. “The KRI Cakra 401 and KRI Nanggala 402 submarines have often docked here, as the sea is very deep and suitable for submarines,” said Marsetio.

Palu Bay was picked as one of TNI AL’s submarine bases because the bay is quite strategic in Indonesia. It is 10 kilometers wide and its coastline stretches for 68 kilometers while its depth reaches 400 meters. Natural protection against extreme ocean currents is also considered to be adequate and advantageous for a submarine base.

“At such a depth, large vessels, such as aircraft carriers from the United States could easily navigate through the bay,” said Marsetio.

The Palu Naval Base will in the future not only serve as a forward base, but a main naval base. Therefore, the navy will equip it with various facilities given the base’s close proximity with the Malaysian border.

“The Ambalat waters remains vulnerable, so the submarine base in Palu is most strategic to secure the region,” he added.

Meanwhile, Central Sulawesi Governor Longki Djanggola said that based on documents belonging to the Palu city administration, in terms of defense strategy, Palu Bay is centrally situated between the Indonesian border in the north and the Java Sea in the south, so submarines stationed there could cover the region effectively.

The area is also part of the second Sea Lane of Communications (ALKI) II, where large merchant ships could traverse under the UNCLOS international maritime law.

“Malaysia, the Philippines, Japan and China, which are very strategic for Indonesia from the geopolitical and geoeconomic aspects, are located north of the ALKI II. So, Palu Bay is very suitable as TNI AL’s submarine base,” said Longki.

Indonesia’s current submarines, the U-206 type KRI Cakra and KRI Nanggala, were made by German shipyard Howaldtswerke in Kiel, Germany, and were commissioned in 1981.

The three U-209 type submarines, worth some $1.07 billion, will be delivered in 2015 and 2016. Two of the submarines will be build at Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME) facilities in Busan, South Korea. The third would be completed at the state-owned shipyard PT PAL Indonesia facilities in Surabaya, East Java.

Initial reports said the submarines would weigh 1,400 tons and be 61.3 meters long. Each submarine will carry up to 40 crew members and have eight weapons tubes for torpedoes and other weapons.

(The Jakarta Post)

View the Original article

05 Februari 2013

The company will equip three Indonesian Navy's submarines with its Pegaso radar signal detection system and its Aries-S LPI. These solutions represent a significant tactical advantage as they enable submarines to identify threats while being virtually undetectable by today’s intercept receivers. (photo : Indra)

Indra has been awarded the contracts to equip three of the Indonesian Navy's Type 209 submarines with its radar signal detection system and a Low Probability of Intercept radar (LPI) system. The value of this project, awarded by the shipbuilder Daewoo, is in excess of €10M.

The electronic defence system will enable the submarines to detect and analyze any radar signals there might be in their surroundings and identify the type of vessel, submarine or aircraft they correspond to.

It is a RESM (Radar Electronic Support Measurement) system based on broadband digital reception technology. This type of processing guarantees high sensitivity for the system, even in a dense electromagnetic environment, and extremely quick analysis capabilities.

The submarines will accordingly have a considerable advantage in terms of threat identification. The Spanish Navy has chosen this same technology for its S-80 submarine, as have its German and Italian counterparts for their U212A submarines.

This solution will operate in conjunction with Indra's Aries-S Low Probability of Intercept radar (LPI). It is a high-resolution system capable of detecting small targets. The low-level signal this radar uses makes it practically undetectable, so that it can “see without being seen”.

With this project, Indra has managed to close a major deal to become a technological supplier for the Korean company Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME), one of the world's largest shipbuilders. At the same time, it has strengthened its commercial position in Indonesia and in the Asia-Pacific region, where it has had a stable presence for more than 15 years, operating from offices in China, India, the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia and Australia.

(Indra)

View the Original article

21 Februari 2012

Rocketsan T122mm Sakarya (photo : Asian Defence)

Turkey loses bid for Indonesia submarines

Indonesia picks up a South Korean offer for three U209 model submarines instead of a Turkish-German joint offer. Still, the two countries may bid for a tender for the more developed U214 models, Jakarta says.

Indonesia has informed a German-Turkish partnership that South Korea has won Jakarta’s competition for U209 submarines and that the duo should instead focus on the sale of more-developed U214 subs to the Southeast Asian giant, a senior Turkish official has said.

The message was conveyed during the visit of Adm. Agus Suhartono, the chief of staff of Indonesia’s military forces, to Turkey last week, the Turkish official said this weekend.

Turkey, led by the Undersecretariat for Defense Industries, SSM, and Germany, led by ThyssenKrupp’s shipyard, HDW, entered the Indonesian Navy’s competition of more than $1 billion after it came to an end, effectively ensuring Seoul’s victory.

South Korea’s Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering announced on Dec. 22 that it had won the Indonesian deal $1.1 billion for three submarines.

As for Turkey, a $2 billion submarine deal with HDW for the joint manufacture of six U214 platforms formally took effect in July, the German company said. Turkish procurement officials also confirmed the information. “As a longstanding partner and supplier to the Turkish Navy, ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems can now begin executing the order. The order will contribute to securing employment at [ThyssenKrupp’s] HDW in Kiel, as well as at many subcontractors in Germany and Turkey, for the next 10 years,” it said.

A major loan deal between German banks and the Turkish Treasury rescued the multibillion-dollar submarine contract between the Turkish state and Howaldswerke Deutsche Werft (HDW) on the last day of 2010, Turkish procurement officials said earlier.

“We will try to work hard to meet the requirements for the second competition [for the U214 deal],” said the Turkish procurement official.The Indonesian side also offered a number of consolations to the Turkish side.

The Indonesians will come up with a $100 million Turkish proposal to make military radios produced by Aselsan, the procurement official said.

The Indonesians separately plan to propose a facility to produce Roketsan-made missiles after they sign a contract with the company.

Jakarta will also produce FNSS-made 8x8 vehicles.

Turkey and Indonesia are two of the largest Muslim countries and are keen to develop their defense industries and ties.

View the Original article

27 Oktober 2011

If Indonesia chooses Turkey’s bid, SSM will build two submarines at the Gölcük naval shipyard with an HDW license. (photo : Hurriyet)

Turkish procurement officials have denied a South Korean claim that the Korean Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine has defeated a joint bid by Germany and Turkey to sell submarines to the Indonesian Navy.

‘’We are constantly in touch with Indonesian authorities. Together with Germany, we will soon submit an offer outlining our final offer with very favorable conditions. Indonesia is waiting for that,’’ a procurement official told the Hürriyet Daily News recently on condition of anonymity.

‘’In addition, Germany’s Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft [HDW] is our full partner and is the builder of the HDW-class 209 submarines that Indonesia wants to buy. We don’t know how the South Koreans may overcome this license problem, because HDW is working with us,’’ the official said. ‘’For us, the competition is continuing.’’

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Engineering said earlier this month that it aimed to seal a $1.1 billion agreement with the Indonesian government by November to build three submarines. The South Korean shipbuilder said in a statement that this would mark the first exports of submarines from the country.

“We have launched talks to sign a submarine contract with Indonesia’s Defense Ministry,’’ Daewoo said in a statement.

A team of Turkish and German companies and Turkey’s procurement office are also jointly seeking a contract to sell two HDW-class 209 diesel submarines to Indonesia worth about $1 billion in an offer with sweeteners against the South Korean rivals.

French and Russian companies dropped out of the bidding for the Indonesian Nay deal earlier, allowing South Korea’s Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine to emerge as the leading candidate. Daewoo was expected to bid together with HDW, but it later decided to bid on its own.

Facing the threat of being left out of the deal, HDW, a subsidiary of ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems, approached the Undersecretariat for Defense Industries (SSM), Turkey’s defense procurement agency.

Together with Turkey, HDW also is manufacturing six modern U-214 diesel submarines for the Turkish Navy. In partnership with HDW, Turkey earlier built 14 U-209 submarines, which Indonesia now wants to buy.

View the Original article

2011-02-16 (China Military News cited from PLAdaily) -- An AC-DC integrated dual-winding generator system with fully independent intellectual property right that is able to simultaneously provide high-quality AC and DC power supply for new-type submarines won the first prize of the 2010 National Scientific and Technological Progress Award.

 PLA Navy Type 039 Conventional Submarine
This presents the fruit of the research led by Ma Weiming, academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE) and professor of the Naval University of Engineering of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA), signifying a major breakthrough in the AC-DC integrated technology pioneered by China.
The generator developed by the research team headed by Ma Weiming through more than ten years’ efforts boasts edge-cutting technological properties. Compared with the two generating units respectively providing AC and DC, the new generator is 40% smaller and lighter, and reduces engineering cost by 40%.
At present, the generator has been mass produced and installed in troop units. The first generator of this type that has been working for quite a few years proves to be stable and reliable since no technical glitch ever occurred, making outstanding contributions to bringing out the tactical and technical performances of the PLA new-type submarines.
It is learned that the generator enjoys bright prospects of being widely used in ships, aircraft, mobile communications, oil rigs and many other independent systems that need AC and DC simultaneously.
View the original article here

For a very long time, mankind has been interested in building devices that would move underwater. A legend says that, Alexander the Great dived into the Mediterranean Sea with a diving bell he had had built. Great genius Leonardo da Vinci, too, has designed underwater ships.
However the most useful results were obtained in the 19th century when the science and technical progress enabled inventors with sophisticated designs. These designs were more successful than their predecessors.
In 1885, a 33-year-old English engineer, named George William Garret, designed the first torpedo-firing submarine that was suitable for naval warfare. This submarine was named as Nordenfelt #1 after the owner of the yard where she was built.
In August 1885 the trials for this submarine were held in Landskrone in Sweden. The Ottoman naval officer attending these trials wrote in his report, after exchanging thoughts with other nations' officers, that the submarine was not suitable for naval operation in her current state.

\

Later the Greek government bought this first Nordenfelt submarine for 9,000 pounds. Sultan Abdülhamid, who was afraid of the tensions between Greece and the Ottoman Empire, ordered the Naval Ministry to buy two submarines from Nordenfelt, 11,000 pounds each, capable of firing 3 torpedoes. The submarines were to be delivered in 2.5 months.
According to the contract signed on 26 August 1886, the submarines were to be built in England in 2.5 months. Later, they were to be taken apart, put into cradles and to be shipped to Istanbul. The final assembly of the submarines was to be done in Taskizak shipyard on the Golden Horn.
Although the manufacturing of the submarines in England ran according to the contract, there were some problems during the transport of the parts to Istanbul and during the final assembly in Taskizak shipyard. Mr. G.W. Garret had to travel many times to Istanbul in order to supervise the progress.
The first submarine was launched on 6 September 1886. Her first trial was done on 5 February 1887. As the results of the trials were not satisfying, this submarine, named after the ruling Ottoman Sultan as ABDÜLHAMID, returned to the shipyard. The second submarine ABDÜLMECID was launched on 4 August 1887.
After a series of trials held in Golden Horn and Bosphorus, the two submarines sailed on 13 January 1888 by their own steam to the Bay of Izmit. The submarines made a maximum of 10 miles during this voyage. All efforts to dive them or to steam them submerged failed repeatedly. But the submarines were able to fire torpedoes to target ships successfully. Thus the Ottoman Navy became the first Navy to fire a torpedo to a target from a submarine.
After these trials, both submarines returned to the Naval Yard at Golden Horn. They were left to rust.
Until 1910 there were no other serious efforts the in Ottoman Navy about operating submarines. In 1910, naval officers were sent to various European countries to investigate about the use of submarines. Two submarines were ordered to France in 1914, but the French Navy kept them as the First World War had begun.
During the war, various groups of naval officers were sent to Germany to attend the submariner courses held by the German Navy. However as the Ottoman Navy did not possess any submarines at that time their knowledge was not used.
On 17 September 1917, during the height of the Gallipoli Campaign, the French submarine TURQUOISE managed to get through the defences into the Sea of Marmara. On her passage back to her base, she ran aground at Aksaz in Dardanelles. Sighted by the Turkish defence, she come under fire. TURQUOISE was hit by the conning tower as she accidentally surfaced. Unable to dive, she was captured and towed to Istanbul. She was commissioned into the Ottoman Navy as MÜSTECIP ONBASI named after the soldier whose shot hit the submarine. Her only use during the war however was to charge the batteries of the German submarines.
View the original article here