Australia's Hobart Class AEGIS DDG

This thread is about the Hobart class AEGIS DDG class currently being built by Australia. They are being built to provide world-class anti-air, ainti-submarine, and anti-surface war capabilities for the RAN, and particularly to escort the Australian Canberra Class LPH vessels also currently underconstruction.

Here are the specs and description of the vessel from my AEGIS Vessels of the World web site:

Originally Posted by AEGIS VESSELS OF THE WORLD

Hobart Class AEGIS Destroyer
July 6, 2012

Designation: DDG
Length: 483 ft (147 m)
Beam: 61 ft (18.6 m)
Draft: 18 ft (5.2 m0
Full Load Displacement: 7,000 tons
Propulsion (CODOG):
- 2 x GE 7LM2500-SA-MLG38 turbines
- 2 x Cat Bravo 16V engines
- 2 x shafts
Performance:
- Top Speed: 28+ knots
- Range: 5,000+ nautical miles at 18 knots
Crew: 202 (includes 16 airwing)
Accommodation: 234
Sensors/Electronics:
- Aegis Weapon System Baseline 7.1
- AN/SPY-1D(V) Phased Array Radar
- AN/SPQ-9B X-band pulse doppler horizon search radar
- Link 11 and 16 tactical uplinks
- ASTIS MCE SATCOM
- Inmarsat
- Raytheon Mark 99 fire-control System
- 2500 electro-optical director
- VAMPIR IR search and track system
- Toplite stabilised target acquisition sights
- 2 x CW radars for missile direction
- 2 x L-3 X-band navigation radars
Counter Measures (ECM):
- EDO Recon & Surveillance Systems ES-3701 ESM radar
- MBS-567A communications ESM system
- Avalon multipurpose digital receiver
- Jenkins Defence Systems low-band receiver
- 4 x NULKA Active Missile Decoy launchers
- 4 x 6 radio freq, infrared, & acoustic decoy launchers
Sonar:
- Multistatic Variable Depth Sonar System
- Hull-mounted sonar
- Quad directional active-passive array
- High-powered towed sonar arrray
Armament:
- 48 Cell Mk 41 Vertical Launch System (ESSM, SM2)
- 1 x Mk 45 5” 62 Calibre Gun
- 2 x 4 Advanced HARPOON missiles
- 1 x 20mm Phalanx CIWS
- 2 x 30mm Bushmaster-Typhoon auto-cannons
Aviation:
- 1 x Hanger for
- 1 x S-70 Seahawk & UAV Helos
Boats:
- 2 x Rigid Hull Inflatable Boats

Ships in Class[/u]:

HMAS Hobart (D-42)
HMAS Brisbane (D-43)
HMAS Sydney (D-44)

DESCRIPTION:
The Hobart class AEGIS destroyers are a class of three air warfare destroyers (AWDs) for the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). Planning for a class to replace the Adelaide class frigates and restore the a world-class anti-air capability, as well as strong multi-mission capabilities in ASW and ASuW, began by 2000 under acquisition project SEA 4000. Although the designation "Air Warfare Destroyer" implies ships dedicated to the defence of a naval force or assets ashore from aircraft and missile attack, as stated, the planned Australian destroyers will also be able to operate in anti-surface, anti-submarine, and naval gunfire support roles.

The first ship, HMAS Hobart D-42, will enter service in December 2014. HMAS Brisbane D-43 is due in March 2016, and HMAS Sydney D-43 by June 2017.

Each destroyer will have a length of 483 ft, a maximum beam of 61 ft, and a draught of 18 ft. At launch, the ships will have a full-load displacement of 7,000 tons.

The standard ship's company is 186-strong, plus 16 air-wing personnel to operate and maintain the ship's helicopter. However, there is a total accommodation aboard for 31 officers and 203 sailors total, or a total of 234.

Planning/Construction:
Planning for the Australian Air Warfare Destroyer continued through the mid-2000s. The American Aegis combat system was selected as the intended combat system and ASC as the primary shipbuilder in 2005. In late 2005, the AWD Alliance was formed as a consortium of the Defence Material Organisation, ASC, and Raytheon. Between 2005 and 2007, Gibbs & Cox's Evolved Arleigh Burke class destroyer and Navantia's Álvaro de Bazán class frigate competed for selection as the AWD design. Although the Arleigh Burke design was larger and more capable, the Álvaro de Bazán design was selected in June 2007 as it was an existing design that would be cheaper and quicker to build. Three ships were ordered; the contract included an option to order a fourth destroyer, which has not been exercised to date.

Each ship will be assembled at ASC's facility in Osborne, South Australia from 31 pre-fabricated "blocks" built at ASC and two other sites. NQEA Australia and the Forgacs Group were selected in May 2009 to construct the additional modules, but within two months, the modules assigned to NQEA were reallocated to BAE Systems Australia. The first block completed by BAE was distorted and incompatible with other sections: disagreements over the cause of the error and growing delays in the project led the AWD Alliance to redistribute the modules again, with some to be built by Navantia.

Weapons and Aircraft:
Each ship's main weapon is a 48-cell Mark 41 Vertical Launch System. The cells are capable of firing the RIM-66 Standard 2 anti-aircraft missile or the quad-packed RIM-162 Evolved Sea Sparrow point-defence missile. The Force 2030 white paper indicates that the Hobart's Mark 41 launchers are likely to be equipped to accomoodate the standard 6 anti-aircraft missile and the Tomahawk cruise missile at a later date.

The missiles are supplemented by two four-canister launchers for Harpoon anti-ship missiles, and a BAE Systems Mark 45 Mod 4, 5-inch gun with a 62-calibre barrel. The 5-inch gun has a maximum range of 14.7 miles with normal projectiles, but will be capable of firing extended range munitions in support of land forces. Two Babcock Mark 32 Mod 9 two-tube torpedo launchers will be carried, and used to fire Eurotorp MU90 torpedoes for close-in ASW operations. For close-in defence, the ships will carry an aft-facing Phalanx 20mm CIWS system, plus two M242 Bushmaster autocannons in Typhoon mounts sited on the bridge wings.

The Hobarts will each initially carry a single S-70B-2 Seahawk helicopter. The helicopter will be replaced by the MH-60 Romeo version of the Seahawk once it enters RAN service. Two rigid-hulled inflatable boats are also carried.

Read full article here

This thread should be used for all issues regarding the Hobart class. Their construction, outfitting, trials and testing, and their deployment and service as time goes on.

Their are a lot of RAN fans out their, and the HMAS Hobart is going to be a class of vessels they can be justifiably proud of to go along with their Canberra LPH vessles which might just end up getting fixed-wing Naval Aviation back into use in the RAN.

They will need powerful AAW and mulit-mission combatants to protect them and the Hobart Class (derived from the Spanish Bazan Class - but with more powerful engines, the larger AEGIS, and more displacement) will fit that bill.