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Bernard

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New L-CAT Amphibious Craft Being Offered
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October 20, 2016 (Photo Credit: Christopher P. Cavas / Staff)
PARIS – Virtually all large navies operate landing craft big enough to carry a single main battle tank between ships and the shore, yet small enough to fit aboard large amphibious ships. The craft are useful in any number of situations where navies want to move people, equipment and vehicles and connect between places where no shore infrastructure might exist. And most of the smaller craft are restricted in size and capability by the need to fit aboard the larger ships.

“We discovered many smaller navies want those amphibious capabilities even if they don’t have a mother ship,” Philippe Neri, commercial director of the French firm CNIM, said Thursday at the Euronaval exposition just outside Paris. “Many of those navies can’t afford a big ship like an LPD.

“I realized we were missing half the market.”

In naval terms, smaller landing craft are referred to as “ship to shore connectors.” CNIM set about designing a “shore to shore connector,” larger than the ship-to-shore vessels but retaining the qualities that make them handy.

CNIM already produces an innovative landing craft called the L-CAT, a 30-meter by 12.6-meter catamaran that can raise or lower its payload deck – lowering it to allow vehicles and people to move directly on to a beach or pier, raising it to become a high-speed craft more nimble than nearly every other landing vessel. Four of the vessels are in service with the French Navy, and two more were delivered this year to Egypt.

Designers expanded on the L-CAT ship-to-shore design to create an L-CAT shore-to-shore design with a bigger hull able to accommodate more personnel and provide improved seakeeping.

“We increased the range without decreasing the payload,” Neri said. “The ships will be spending longer times at sea and need to operate in higher sea states.”

The L-CAT shore-to-shore can carry enough fuel to travel 1,000 nautical miles without a payload, Neri said, yet still able to move 800 nautical miles with a 100-ton payload. The diesel-powered vessel will be able to move at 22 knots empty and 15 knots with a full load.

The twin hulls also have been expanded with a length of 32.6 meters and beam of 13.2, with room for 54 seats, up from 40 in the ship-to-shore L-CAT.

CNIM considered offering a larger craft able to carry two main battle tanks, Neri said, but surveys of navies, including the French Navy, showed craft with that ability were rarely used in that capacity.

The L-CAT shore-to-shore can mount two unmanned 20mm guns, Neri said, and because the ship will need to operate independently, it will have a larger radar, all controlled by LYNCEA, a naval mission management system produced by NEXEYA. The system, built around a large, touch-screen panel, is designed to allow smaller ships like offshore patrol vessels and small combatants the ability to generate and maintain a tactical situation based on ship sensors and tactical datalinks and provide weapons management capabilities.

The vessel can also mount a Thales CAPTAS-1 towed array system, Neri said, providing a submarine detection capability to smaller navies that don’t operate more sophisticated anti-submarine warfare systems.

“This could be a very cheap platform to provide that capability,” Neri said. “Small navies would like to know if submarines are working in their waters.”

A major advantage of CNIM’s business model, Neri noted, is that it is not tied to a particular shipyard to build its vessels. The company built its own L-CAT prototype, and the four French Navy and two Egyptian Navy vessels were built in Boulogne, France.

“But it can be built anywhere,” Neri said. “Our model is to take the technology to the shipyard. We are there for the entire production process to ensure the construction is done properly.

“This is the winning business model,” he added. “Most countries ask for in-country production. This is perfect for them.”

The L-CAT concept is part of Fincantieri Marinette Marine’s bid for the US Army’s Maneuver Support Vessel (Light), or MSV(L), program to replace a fleet of LCM-8 landing craft. If successful, the Fincantieri-CNIM partnership would build the ships at a shipyard in Michigan.

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Everyone loves pictures and that website wasn't allowing me to bring it over so I found this
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CNIM_FMG_LCAT_Sea_Air_Space_2015_news_2.JPG
 

FORBIN

Lieutenant General
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Radar for the new FFG


Euronaval 2016: Sea Fire radar FTI

The defense minister announced October 18, 2016 the launch of the midsize frigate program (FTI) for the French Navy. These frigates designed by DCNS, the DGA and the French Navy will be equipped with a number of facilities already in service on the airline Frigates Defence or the Multi-Mission Frigates: ASTER missiles, Canon 76 mm Missiles Sea Sea 40 , MU90 torpedoes ...

The new radar developed by Thales Sea Fire will be one of the most innovative systems of these buildings. For the first time a ship of the Navy will be equipped with a radar consists of four fixed antennas. The Sea Fire is completely digital AESA radar operating in S-band Each panel can activate 100 beams thus ensuring a very high refresh rate and a very good ability to further tracks. In fact it will be designed to monitor simultaneously more than 800 tracks. The goal is to "close the bubble self-defense" of the ship, including against new threats (anti ship ballistic missiles and hypersonic missiles).

At Thales we insisted that the strength of radar lies largely in the performance of data processing software. And in this area the French group is among the best in the world. The gradual upgrading software will allow the radar to improve performance throughout its life cycle.

Multimission the Sea Fire can provide air surveillance up to 500 km (particular against ballistic missiles) and a standby area up to 80 km. It will be used as a fire control system for the Aster 30 missiles on board the FTI. The Sea Fire can also be used as a weather radar.

The Sea Fire will benefit from easier maintenance. The charge in terms of maintenance at sea will be greatly reduced for the crew. Each of the four panels will be equipped with 12 modules grouping themselves under 8 sets that will be produced in series and can easily be replaced.

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Radar for the new FFG
your blogger
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is a basher :)
D'où cette question :

pourquoi ne pas transférer la mâture intégrée sur les deux FREMM de DA (plutôt que d'augmenter la puissance d'un radar obsolète : quel intérêt ?!), ainsi que les suivantes, allonger la cible du programme FREMM de 8 à 13 frégates tout en commandant pour une version simplifiée de la FTI pour remplacer les avisos A69 et les frégates de surveillance ?
says (
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) "Hence the question:

why not transfer the integrated mast on both FREMM DA (rather than increasing the power of an obsolete radar?! what interest), and the following, extend the target program FREMM frigates 8-13 all Order for a simplified version of the FTI to replace the A69 sloops and frigates monitoring?"
 

FORBIN

Lieutenant General
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your blogger
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is a basher :) says (
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) "Hence the question:

why not transfer the integrated mast on both FREMM DA (rather than increasing the power of an obsolete radar?! what interest), and the following, extend the target program FREMM frigates 8-13 all Order for a simplified version of the FTI to replace the A69 sloops and frigates monitoring?"
LOL
But in the fund he get right except for export this new can be interesting but for the rest definitely around 1 billions for RDTE cost yet minimum a FREMM... and obviously better for unitary cost build more.

So for French Navy it is a political/economic decision but as he say clearly better have 13 FREMM in more now we know the price for new same as FREMM... and better plan equiped 2 AAW ( 7 and 8th ) with the AESA radars after others during refit get this radar, in more FREMM have 32 SAM/missiles, more powerful.

Politicy ... ! and not good finaly for money and mainly military capacity... ! i do face palm...
 
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FORBIN

Lieutenant General
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inside
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=
(Especially against ballistic missiles)

I would've preferred if they had obtained a 5" gun rather than the ability to go into star wars :)
127 mm requested by Navy fro FREMM after Libya 2011 and coastal bombing, 76 mm range is a bit short and finaly nothing.

A precision Aster 30 is also used by French Air Force SAMP/T, Mamba but him is ABM capable vs BM with a max range of 600 km, Aster 30, on the Forbin not ABM IIRC coz radars or electronic.
 
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... ! i do face palm...
I hear you, for example there's a class of warships with guns in superposition: two 3" on the Huitfelds, because they don't have money for a 5" and a CIWS, which would be, ehm, logical for almost 7k-displacing ship:
Frigate.jpg

(it's a recent picture, some people from Indonesia visited F-362 (the name is ... Peter Willemoes):
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from the google translation I didn't figure why :)
 

FORBIN

Lieutenant General
Registered Member
I hear you, for example there's a class of warships with guns in superposition: two 3" on the Huitfelds, because they don't have money for a 5" and a CIWS, which would be, ehm, logical for almost 7k-displacing ship:
Frigate.jpg

(it's a recent picture, some people from Indonesia visited F-362 (the name is ... Peter Willemoes):
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from the google translation I didn't figure why :)
Huitfelds are very good warships, AEGIS like also and Danish have also 2 good Absalon versatile but well armed.

Languedoc close Iceland
Languedoc.jpg
 

Jeff Head

General
Registered Member
Exist an export variant different mainly for armanent and with presumably this RAM or other.
but French watchers say now
16 x Aster 15/30, 8 x MM-40 Bl 3, 1 x 76 mm, 2 x 20 mm, TL 324 mm, hangar for NH-90 or UAV and normaly AEGIS like. No LACM.

Normaly as FREMM have 2 sonars, hull and towed.

So versatile but missiles load inferior to FREMM ( Italians have also only 16 ) but better radars. Despite numbers of missiles can be considered FFG of 1st rank , La Fayette are not only considered for politic reasons !

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Nice!
 
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