MalaysiaÂ’s navy gets boost with 12 new helicopters
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http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Tuesday/National/20030527081606/Article/
Navy to get 12 new copters
Jason Gerald
PEKAN, May 26: The Royal Malaysian Navy will be getting 12 new helicopters — six Super Lynx from Britain and six French-manufactured Fennec — worth more than
RM850 million to strengthen its aviation wing.
It will take delivery of the RM678 million Super Lynx in August while the RM172 million Fennec helicopters will arrive in the country in the middle of next year.
RMN chief Laksamana Datuk Mohd Ramly Abu Bakar said the helicopters would complement a fleet of Alouette III helicopters now being used by the navy's aviation wing besides replacing the six WASP HAS Mk 1 helicopters decommissioned by the RMN in December 2001.
"We are confident that the Super Lynx and Fennec helicopters will strengthen our aviation wing's capabilities.
"At present, although we have missiles that can travel hundreds of kilometres, our radar system has its limitations." Ramly said the radar system was unable to complement its weapons system.
"However, with the new helicopters, we will be able to use their radar system to optimise the use of our weapons system." Ramly was speaking to reporters after handing the last of the six WASP HAS Mk 1 helicopters to Abu Bakar Museum here this morning.
Also present were chairman of the museum's board of directors Datuk Kurnia Makram Datuk Abdullah Md Drus, museum director Ahmad Farid Abdul Jalal and Tanjung Gelang RMN chief Laksamana Pertama Mohd Amdan Kurish.
The other five WASPs are being displayed at the Maritime Museum in Malacca; Royal Malaysian Air Force Museum in Sungai Besi, Kuala Lumpur; Universiti Sains Malaysia campus in Tronoh, Perak; and Universiti Teknologi Malaysia campus in Skudai, Johor.
In serving the RMN, the WASP helicopters have flown more than 10,000 hours with over 5,000 day and night landings aboard naval vessels.
In the 13 years of service, the WASPs have recorded zero accidents.
It is learnt that the Fennec helicopter, which is capable of carrying four people, will be used for training purposes while the Super Lynx multi-role helicopter will have anti-ship weapons capabilities and able to ferry six personnel for maritime operations.
"The Fennec also has added advantages as it has twin engines and other special capabilities for sea operations," said Ramly.
"We will be displaying one of the Super Lynx helicopters at the Langkawi International Aerospace and Maritime Exhibition to be held from Sept 31 to Oct 4." -
http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2003/5/5/business/gpeuro1&sec=business
Eurocopter focuses more on MÂ’sia
BY PAUL GABRIEL IN MARSEILLE, FRANCE
EUROCOPTER, the worldÂ’s top helicopter manufacturer, is intensifying its focus on Malaysia as a potential market for more of its latest and sophisticated aircraft.
A wholly owned subsidiary of EADS (European Aeronautic, Defence and Space Co) which is one of the top three aerospace companies in the world, the French helicopter giant has already sold over 60 civil and military aircraft such as the Puma, Super Puma, Ecureuil, Dauphin N2 and N3, and EC-155 to Malaysian operators.
Eurocopter is also the maker of the 23 Alouette IIIs in service with the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) and the Malaysian ArmyÂ’s aviation wing for more than 40 years.
The firm is presently building six AS 555SN Fennec helicopters for the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) at its main production site in Marignane, in FranceÂ’s southern city of Marseille.
With this 42 million-euro (RM168mil) contract, Eurocopter will be the only helicopter manufacturer to equip all three divisions of the Malaysian Armed Forces.
The Eurocopter aircraft at its plant in Marignane in Marseille, France.
Eurocopter’s vice-president (Asia-Pacific) Norbert Ducrot said the creation of Eurocopter Malaysia – the latest subsidiary of the leading helicopter maunufacturer – served to reinforce the Franco-German group’s presence in Malaysia.
(The Eurocopter group was formed in 1992 from the merger of the helicopter divisions of Aerospatiale-Matra of France and DaimlerChrysler Aerospace of Germany).
“Eurocopter made the decision to create a subsidiary in Malaysia with the view of providing the best support to Malaysian operators in terms of logistic, technical and maintenance services as well as to forge a strong link with the local industry.
“Malaysia is a very important, potential market for Eurocopter, especially for military and parapublic aircraft as well as corporate and civil operators.
“Malaysia is also one of the countries with the strongest potential for economic expansion in South-East Asia and we are fully aware that your needs for helicopters has significantly increased and become more specific over the past two years.
“We are planning to propose our new state-of-the-art helicopters to Malaysia,” Ducrot said in an interview at the Eurocopter plant in Marignane recently.
Also present were Commander Yeow Ho Siong and Lt Commander Suhaimi Sani of the RMNÂ’s Fennec Helicopter Project Team who will be based in Marseille until March 2004 to monitor the Fennec project.
Yeow and Suhaimi have been in Marseille since January 2002 with three other RMN officers.
Ducrot said the twin-engine AS 555SN light helicopters ordered by the RMN was the military version of the AS 355N civilian model, and would be ideal for search and rescue and training missions and “over-the-horizon” targeting.
“The six helicopters are currently in various stages of production at our manufacturing plant and we expect the first completed one to undergo flight testing in May.
“These are the first military versions of the AS 355N that we are manufacturing, and almost 50% of the new helicopters have been customised for the RMN's needs,” he explained.
Ducrot said with the incorporation of Eurocopter Malaysia, Eurocopter was determined to gain a foothold in Malaysia in helicopter maintenance services in Malaysia.
“The setting up of Eurocopter Malaysia was an important strategic step for us. We plan to develop our Malaysian maintenance depot into a regional base,” he said.
Eurocopter has started building a new hangar for helicopters and rotary wing aircraft in Subang, while its administrative office is based in Kelana Jaya.
“Eurocopter is also working with several companies, such as Sapura Technology, Zetro Aerospace, SME Aerospace and Ikramatic System to further developing our industrial co-operation,” Ducrot said.
“In the future, we are exploring the possibility of conducting customisation work on some of our helicopters in Malaysia,” he pointed out.
Eurocopter is currently bidding to sell its EC-635 helicopters to the Malaysian army.
Ducrot described the Tiger and NH90 helicopters as two of the most exciting new products of Eurocopter.
“The Tiger uses stealth technology and is the modern-day attack helicopter. The French and German armed forces will be the first to have the Tiger range with 80 each, while Australia has ordered 22 units.
“As for the NH90, it is a state-of-the-art transport helicopter and we have received over 250 orders for it.
“We are competing (for tenders) in several countries in Asia and we would like to promote both these aircraft to Malaysia as well,” he added.
He revealed that Eurocopter already had a total of 60 orders for the NH90 from Finland, Norway and Sweden.
“Our targets are to build up the production of the Tiger and NH90 helicopters and develop them into benchmark products.
“We also want to make our customer support more effective through a new structural approach and a denser network of 'on-the-spot' services,” he added.
To a question, Ducrot said it had cost 2bil euros (RM8bil) for research and development on the Tiger helicopter, which was said to have a price tag of 20mil Euros (RM80mil) each. On EurocopterÂ’s order books, he said it had received orders worth a total of US$9bil, adding that this would keep the company busy over the next four to five years. -
http://www.utusan.com.my/utusan/content.asp?y=2003&dt=0506&pub=Utusan_Express&sec=Home_News&pg=hn_06.htm
Defence industry must be developed in line with requirements
KUALA LUMPUR May 5 - Malaysia's defence industry must be developed in line with developments in the weaponry system involving multiple technologies, said Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) Chief Datuk Mohd Ramly Abu Bakar.
He said as an example, the RMN planned to use eight types of new and old missiles for its armada of warships, submarines and helicopters.
The diversification of missiles ranging from anti-ship to anti-aircraft types from various countries such as the United Kingdom, France, Italy and Germany would certainly pose logistical problems, he told reporters after a function celebrating the retirement of 43 RMN personnel in conjunction with the 69th RMN Day, here Monday.
"...the logistical problems are due to the fact that our defence industry is still developing and is not yet able to produce the spare parts needed," he said.
The missiles being used by the RMN now are the Exocet MM38 and Exocet MM40 (France), Otomat Mark 2 and Aspide (Italy) and Seawolf and Starbust (United Kingdom).
The RMN is also expected to acquire the Sea Skua missiles for the Super Lynx helicopters while six Meko 100 warships to be delivered by their German supplier are expected to be equipped with the RIM-116A missiles, and the Scorpene submarines that were being ordered would also be installed with the guided missile system.
Mohd Ramly said the RMN was currently happy with the capabilities of all its missiles.
"All our missiles and their launchers are in good condition. We also have no plans of discarding the Exocet MM38 missiles which have been used since the 70's," he said.
All the old variations would be used until stocks had run out, he said.
The RMN first used the missiles with the acquisition of the Sea Cats for the frigates KD Rahmat and KD Hang Tuah which were bought in 1966 while the Exocet MM38s were first used by the fast assault craft Spica M purchased from Sweden in 1979. -
http://www.utusan.com.my/utusan/content.asp?y=2003&dt=0510&pub=Utusan_Express&sec=Home_News&pg=hn_04.htm
Purchase of submarines still necessary, says RMN Chief
KUALA LUMPUR May 9 - The purchase of submarines is still the most strategic weaponry procurement by the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) although mapping of the country's seabed has not been completed, said RMN Chief Datuk Mohd Ramly Abu Bakar.
He said that so far only 35 percent of the seabed and sea boundary had been surveyed.
"Even then, it is the re-surveying of sea maps left by the colonialists and we merely surveyed back using more modern technology," he told reporters after the launching of the International Hydrographics and Oceanographics Industry Conference and Exhibition 2003 (IHOCE 03), here Thursday.
The IHOCE 03, organised by F&R Exhibition and Conference Sdn Bhd with the cooperation of the RMN, will be held from July 8 to 10 at the Putra World Trade Centre.
Mohd Ramly said this when commenting on the views of RMN critics that Malaysia's position on the Sunda Shelf which was shallow and the narrow lane in the Straits of Melaka did not offer a good location for submarines to operate in.
He said the RMN needed more ships for hydrography or sea mapping as the exploration of the seabed was most crucial following the purchase of the first RMN submarine scheduled to arrive in two years' time.
The RMN has two ships for hydrography namely the KD Mutiara and KD Perantau but their capabilities for hydrography and oceanography or sea mapping are rather limited.
He was confident that the two submarines of the Agosta and Scorpene types from France, which were expected to be delivered in 2005 and 2007, would help in the mapping of the seabed through their sonar technology.
Ramly said the purchase of the submarines was a wise choice because other countries such as Indonesia and Singapore did not hesitate to own the "silent service" although there were views that this region was not suitable for underwater warfare. -
They like to buy things for their aviation museum to attract more tourists,don't they?
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http://www.utusan.com.my/utusan/archive.asp?y=2002&dt=0417&pub=utusan_express&sec=features&pg=fe_01.htm&arc=hive
Malaysia's defence purchases will not spark arms race, says analyst
KUALA LUMPUR April 16 - While Malaysia's recent defence purchases have been viewed cautiously by certain parties, the move cannot be seen as sparking an arms race in the region, said a local defence analyst.
He said that it was unfair to accuse Malaysia of starting an arms race as there were countries in the region that had been spending lavishly on defence even during the financial crisis.
In fact, he said, Malaysia's move to procure new defence equipment had been widely anticipated as the country's economic condition improves.
"Whenever Malaysia spends money on defence, it will always be seen as an arms race but when Singapore does the same thing, everybody will stay quiet," said the analyst, who declined to be named, in an interview with Bernama.
Malaysia's billion-ringgit arms purchase is contrary to a period during the Asian financial crisis in 1997 when defence expenditure was slashed and modernisation programmes of its armed forces were halted.
Defence Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak has said that the purchases were to upgrade and replace the armed forces' obsolete equipments and not aimed at matching the capability of other countries' forces.
Last year, Malaysia restarted its armed forces modernisation programmes with a procurement of 22 G5 155mm howitzer from South Africa and an undisclosed number of multiple-launch rocket system (MLRS) from Brazil.
The country has also bought an anti-tank missile and shoulder-launch anti-aircraft missiles from Russia and Pakistan.
The defence analyst said that Malaysia's yearly defence expenditure was modest at 2.5 per cent to its growth domestic product (GDP) compared to 6 per cent by Singapore.
Despite being the smallest nation in Southeast Asia, the island republic, he said, possessed one of the largest and most technologically-advanced military in the region.
Singapore, he said, had four American-made early warning aircraft, four submarines as well as more than 370 light tanks and hundreds of main battle tanks in its inventory.
Former Deputy Chief of Army, Lt Jen (Rtd) Datuk Seri Ali Alwi said that the recent purchases of weaponary by Malaysia were a culmination of years of planning by the armed forces.
"It will not spark an arms race in the region as the procurement was planned years ago," he said.
The procurement of weaponary, said Ali, was also a way for the military to keep abreast with the fast-evolving technology.
Meanwhile, Jane's Defence Weekly's land forces editor Christopher F. Foss said that Malaysia's recent arms procurement had definitely improved the firepower of the its armed forces.
The army in particular, he said, had been trying in recent years to upgrade its capabilites and the purchases during the just-ended Defence Services Asia '02 as well as before the exhibition were certainly "a shot in the arm".
"(As a result of the new purchases), your armed forces are going to have an improved capability than 10 years ago," Foss said when met recently.
"That (procurement of G5 and MLRS-system) has considerably increased the range and firepower of your (Malaysian armed forces') artillery," said Foss, adding that Malaysia had also placed orders for an additional six G5 howitzers.
The G5 howitzer has a range of 40km using standard ammunition but can reach 50km using the rocket-assisted projectile while the Brazilian-MLRS has a maximum range of 90km.
The MLRS can also launch longer-range tactical surface-to-surface missiles.
Foss said that Malaysia's air defence capability had also received a boost with an agreement to acquire an undisclosed number of Jernas low-altitude anti-aircraft missiles from the European defence consortium, MBDA.
The 220 million pound-sterling deal which was inked during DSA '02, said Foss, was a significant step to Malaysia's air defence system as it gave them "a whole new capability they never had before."
The regiment-strong Jernas will be delivered to the Malaysian armed forces in three years.
The modern Jernas short-range air defence system (Shorads) and Igla V-Shorads will complement earlier armed forces' purchases of Pakistani-made Anza Mk-11 and Thales' Starburst shoulder-launch surface-to-air missiles. -
We spend 4%-5% of our GDP lah not 6%....unless it's changed...
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interesting to note that they have quite a variety of missiles in their inventory
can be good in a sense that u do not need to be over reliant on 1 supplier but on e other hand, u need specialised trained personnel n maintenance equipment, which can be a logistical nightmare -
Heard they will be buying more naval heli for their OPVs. But what about this "Hundreds of MBTs" we have?
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Exaggeration lah. You know how the Malaysian Press likes to bullshit. We only have 60 (officially that is
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Anyway, pay attention to the double standards... whenever we purchase an offensive weapons system (submarines, MBTs) we are being 'insensitive' and 'trying to start an arms race.' Whenever Malaysia does so, they are merely 'modernising their armed forces.'
While I agree the MAF is in desperate need of modernising, I find this unjustifiable. We, who have so much to fear and lose, being pushed around by Malaysia for trying to protect ourselves. Really, it is appaling. -
they are but malaysians...Originally posted by Typhoon:Anyway, pay attention to the double standards... whenever we purchase an offensive weapons system (submarines, MBTs) we are being 'insensitive' and 'trying to start an arms race.' Whenever Malaysia does so, they are merely 'modernising their armed forces.'
dont expect them too much -
a rather big modernisation i cld say this yr....buy pretty lots of equipments.......within a yr.......
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Let em buy lots... useless too without trained specialists...
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even more useless without capable logistics capabilities...
"ah sir ah... traffic jam, tyre flat lah... can wait or not..." -
Wha, if somebody hits thyeir supply train, they are screwed, they can lose entire types of units just in one go to lack of spare parts.
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The rag up north has reached a point where it has set new standards and hallmarks for imaginative and fictional reporting in mainstream media. While recent US journalists have come to light in scandals for false reporting, the ones up north don't even have to use any muscles (much less the one that matters) to exceed the misdeeds of their US counterparts.
Anyway, their articles are so incredibly stupid and ammo-scounging that it's amazing anybody still listens to them. I make it a point to ignore them out of hand the moment they present some "article" to "challange" us. -
Lol i think for now they are already having problems with their logistics sia....somemore they do not produce most of the parts....Originally posted by SingaporeTyrannosaur:Wha, if somebody hits thyeir supply train, they are screwed, they can lose entire types of units just in one go to lack of spare parts. -
Lol i think for now they are already having problems with their logistics sia....somemore they do not produce most of the parts....Originally posted by SingaporeTyrannosaur:Wha, if somebody hits thyeir supply train, they are screwed, they can lose entire types of units just in one go to lack of spare parts. -
aiya,Matland led by that senile Dr Mud always like that one...simply cannot make it...like to make a lot of noise and show off...Originally posted by |-|05|:Lol i think for now they are already having problems with their logistics sia....somemore they do not produce most of the parts....