Launched between 1988-1995, and commissioned between 1992-1996, Canada’s 12 City Class (now Halifax Class) frigates currently form the high end of its naval capabilities. The Canadian Navy has declined drastically from its post-WWII status as the world’s 4th largest navy, and the Halifax Class itself is finding that its open-ocean design is not suited to cope with modern littoral threats and improving anti-ship missiles. Replacement vessels are still many years away, which means that the 4,750t frigates will need to be modernized within the limits of their design if they are to remain effective.

Canada’s government has decided to fund that modernization, much as Australia and New Zealand are modernizing the Halifax Class’ ANZAC Frigate contemporaries. Refits are scheduled to begin with HMCS Halifax in 2010, and that ship is scheduled to re-enter service about 18 months later in 2012. By 2017, all 12 frigates are scheduled to be upgraded as part of a C$ 3.1 billion (about $2.9 billion) program.

This DID article explains the scope of the upgrades, notes the current systems, and covers the contracts and developments involved…

Upgrading The Halifax Class

Upgrades will be conducted through Canada’s FELEX (Frigate Life Extension) program. FELEX will manage all work elements in the modernization progra, to varying degrees, as the project’s overall Design Integration Authority. The FELEX program is responsible for the ship level design integration including any unique/specific engineering changes required. It is also responsible for effective risk mitigation via scope management, design integration engineering, integrated risk management across all elements of the HCM, schedule coordination, and implementation/installation management.

Some projects will be conducted wholly within FELEX, while others will be stand-alone projects that receive independent funding. Still others will be rolled into the ships’ maintenance efforts. Integral FELEX Projects include:

• Internal Communications System Upgrade. This is also being done to a number of American ships, who are replacing their copper wiring and installing fiber optics and gigabit ethernet to go with their network and SATCOM hardware upgrades. The ships’ current Communications Control and Monitoring System (CCMS) was supplied by SED Systems of Saskatoon, with a message processing system from Lockheed Martin Electronic Systems Canada.

• Harpoon Missile System Upgrade. Halifax Class ships currently carry 8 BGM-84 Block IC anti-ship missiles each. Boeing’s Harpoon Block II adds GPS guidance, much better near-shore capability, and land attack options.

• Electronic Warfare System upgrade – Electronic Support Measures. Currently the SLQ-501 Canews (Canadian Electronic Warfare System), and SLQ-505 radar jammer.

Semi-independent (sovereignty-association?) projects include:

• HMCCS – Halifax Modernized Command and Control System. The ships currently use the SHINPADS integrated processing and display system supplied by Lockheed Martin Canada, each using about 15 AN/UYK-501 workstations manufactured by General Dynamics Canada. They will be replaced with Saab’s 9LV system, a popular combat system used around the world in classes ranging from Sweden’s ultra-modern Visby corvettes to Australia’s forthcoming Canberra Class LHD amphibious landing ships.

• Halifax Class Radar Upgrades. The current set includes 2 Thales Nederland SPG-503 (STIR 1.8) fire control radars, Raytheons SPS-49v5 long-range active air search radar operating at C and D bands, Saab Microwave Systems HC150 Sea Giraffe medium-range air and surface search radar operating at G and H bands.

• IRIUS – Long-range infrared search and track system. Important for near-shore surveillance, and ships operating under low-emissions restrictions. IRST on ships is specially useful against small surface targets, low flying aircraft, and anti-ship missiles. Its TV images are especially useful for threat classification. DRS Canada and Thales Nederland won with their Sirius system; see April 21/06 entry.

• ESSM – Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile. The frigates currently carry 16 RIM-7 Sea Sparrow missiles, which cannot cope with modern threats. Raytheon’s RIM-162 ESSM is an entirely new missile that has become the new NATO standard, with substantially better maneuverability and capability against low-flying targets.

• IFF Mode S/5. Identification Friend-or-Foe technology is not foolproof, but if it fails, the results can be tragic. IFF Mode 5 offers new algorithms that improve performance, encryption, range, and civil compatibility. It also adds “lethal interrogation” as a must-respond last chance, and the ability to see individual aircraft even when they’re close together. The further addition of IFF Mode S assigns a discrete ‘squawk’ which is unique to each aircraft.

Maintenance projects will include:

• Replacement of the ships’ Integrated Machinery Control System.

• Unspecified modifications to the Saab Bofors 57mm naval gun. The most modern 57mm guns offer substantially better capabilities against targets like helicopters, small boats and UAVs, and can even be used in a last-ditch defensive role against anti-ship missiles.

• Replacement of the BAE Systems Shield mk2 missile decoy launchers, which fire chaff to 2km and infrared rockets to 169m in distraction, confusion and centroid seduction modes. In 1997, Canada ordered Nulka hovering decoy systems from BAE Australia, to equip its 4 aged Tribal/Iroquois Class destroyers. Nulka is also used by Australian and US Navy ships.

• Replacement of the current Kelvin Hughes Type 1007 I-band navigation radar.

• A pair of important projects aren’t conducted by Canada’s Navy, but the Navy will have to make sure they can work with the Halifax Class ships. The new CH-148/H-92 Maritime Helicopter will replace the existing CH-124 Sea King Fleet, and a new Military Satellite Communication System will offer greatly improved bandwidth and performance.

Respected defense journalist David Pugliese of the Ottawa Citizen notes that:

“Most of the industry folks that I have talked to acknowledge that this [18 months per ship, complete by 2017] is a tight and aggressive schedule considering the amount of work that needs to be done.”

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Link: http://www.defenseindustrydaily.com[....]nadas-Halifax-Class-Frigates-05062/

Cordiales Saludos!!!