On Feb 19/10, the US DSCA announced Pakistan’s official request to buy the Oliver Hazard Perry Class frigate USS McInerney [FFG 8], plus refurbishment and anti-submarine improvements. That deal is now a contract, and is reportedly the first step in an 8-ship purchase.
In 2009, USS McInerney trialed the naval MQ-8B Fire Scout helicopter UAV in counter-drug operations around the Caribbean, and became the first navy ship to use unmanned helicopters in a drug bust. It’s one member of a popular but declining ship class…
- Pakistan’s Perrys: The Alamgir Class [updated]
- Contracts & Key Events [updated]
Pakistan’s Perrys: The Alamgir Class
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Oliver Hazard Perry Class frigates still serve with the US Navy, but American ships have had their bow-mounted Mk.13 launch systems for SM-1 Standard air defense and RGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missiles removed. Those changes leave just torpedoes and a 76mm naval gun for offense, and the 20mm Phalanx CIWS as the ships’ main defensive weapon.
Further reports indicate that McInerney’s refurbishments are aimed at improving its anti-submarine capability only, making the term “guided missile frigate” something of a misnomer. Unless Pakistan undertakes additional approved work, its Alamgir Class will be anti-submarine frigates only, their weaponry outclassed by Pakistan’s new Chinese F-22P/ Zulfiquar Class multi-role frigates, and even its older British Type 21/ Tariq Class ships. On the other hand, the 8 planned ships will be filling an important coastal patrol and anti-submarine role, at a bargain price.
Perry class frigates also serve in the navies of Australia, Egypt, Poland, Spain, Taiwan, and Turkey. Most of those ships retain their original missile launching systems, and Australia’s ships have just finished an expensive set of deep upgrades.
Contracts and Key Events
Aug 31/10: The frigate USS McInerney is slated for inactivation, and re-commissioning.
April 20/10: Pakistan signs a contract to purchase and refurbish the USS McInnery. The purchase is free, but reported terms for the refurbishment vary from $64.77 – $78.0 million. The frigate is expected to be re-commissioned as PNS Alamgir on Aug 31/10, following refurbishments aimed at improving its anti-submarine capabilities.
Pakistan’s Defence Procurement Attache Captain Abdur Rehman reportedly inked the contract, and this is reportedly the first of a planned Pakistani fleet of 8 Perry Class frigates. Pakistan’s DAWN | India’s IANS | Russia’s RIA Novosti.
Feb 19/10: US DSCA announces [PDF] Pakistan’s official request for the initial ship, plus plus refurbishment, onboard spares, spare and repairs parts, support equipment, publications and technical data, and U.S. Government and contractor support.
The prime contractor is unknown at this time, but the estimated cost of the initial transfer plus refurbishment and support is $78 million. Implementation of this proposed sale will not require the assignment of any U.S. Government and contractor representatives to Pakistan.
Oct 18/08: Pakistan’s The Nation reports that President George W. Bush has approved the transfer of USS McInerney [FFG 8] to Pakistan. Cost is expected to be $65 million, and the ship is intended to monitor Pakistani territorial waters.
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In June 2006, Saab signed a SEK 8.3 billion provisional contract to supply S100B Argus turboprop airborne early warning (AEW&C) systems to Pakistan. According to earlier reports at Pakistani Defence, Pakistan aimed to buy 14 SAAB 2000 aircraft from Sweden: 7 for the PAF’s AEW&C role as Argus aircraft, and the remaining 7 for the state-owned PIA airline. Saab releases, however, have made no mention of a passenger version.
The Saab aircraft beat a number of other competitors, including Bombardier’s Dash-8/Q200 and US offers to sell the E-2C Hawkeye system. The Argus AEW&C award also caps a 25-year quest by the Pakistani Air force. The buy was recently reduced somewhat for financial reasons to 5 aircraft, but the first plane has now been rolled out….
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In “SAAB 2000 & ERIEYE AWE&C system,”a Pakistani government site explains the operational need for these aircraft, and chronicles their pursuit of the 707-based E-3C AWACS aircraft and related systems since 1979. Indeed, Pakistan had pursued the Erieye system before, but had been rejected several times under Sweden’s military export policies. With that roadblock clear, Pakistan has engaged in long negotiations with Saab that have finally come to fruition. With respect to the new aircraft’s radar capabilities, the article notes that:
“The Ericsson PS-890 Erieye radar uses an active array with 200 solid state modules. The range of the S-band, 3 GHz, and side looking radar is 300 km. The 1,985-lb (900-kg) dorsal antenna is housed in a 29-ft 6.3-in (9-m) long box radome mounted atop the fuselage. Utilizing adaptive side lobe suppression, the look angle on each side is about 160 degrees. From its standard operational altitude of 6000 metres (19,685 feet, or FL200) the radar has a maximum range of 450 km (279 miles). Against a fighter-sized target effective range is approximately 330 km (205 miles). Seaborne targets can be detected at 320 km (198 miles), though this is a function of the aircraft’s cruising height. The electronically scanned antenna can scan sectors of interest frequently while others are monitored, and a single sector can be scanned in different modes at the same time.”
That last bit is a reference to the AESA radar’s ability to scan ground and air activity at the same time, rather than switching between these modes as conventional radars do. An Australian airpower article explains the potential benefits of AESA radars against other AEW&C offerings like the E-2C Hawkeye – and also notes the limitations of the S100B/Erieye system:
“The limitation of the two sided array is that it can only cover two 120 degree sectors abeam of the aircraft, leaving 60 degree blind sectors over the nose and tail of the aircraft, and reduced antenna performance from 45 degrees off the beam aspect. Another limitation stems from the use of an airframe too small to accommodate a comprehensive self contained command, control and communications system, and other sensors such as a capable ESM and track association system.”
Saab’s corporate release notes that “two third of the order value is for Saab and one third for Ericsson Microwave Systems [for the PS-890 Erieye radars], witch is, after the Saab acquisition, expected to be a part of Saab in September 2006.” DID recently covered that acquisition.
Contracts and Related Events:
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April 24/10: Pakistan’s 2nd of 4 Saab-2000 aircraft lands at an operational base, as preparations are made to induct it into the fleet. PTI.
Dec 14/09: Pakistan’s Daily Times quotes Minister for Defence Production, Abdul Qayyum Khan Jatoi, who confirms that the 1st Erieye AWACS plane has reached Pakistan, and 3 more planes are expected in 2010. Karachi News.
Oct 21/09: In a ceremony in Linköping, Saab and the Pakistan Air Force celebrate the start of the final tests of the new Erieye AEW&C (Airborne Early Warning and Control) aircraft. The aircraft is currently undergoing system tests in Sweden, which aim is to evaluate the complete system including aircraft, radar, C2 system, communication and live situation picture. Follow on testing in Pakistan later in 2009, including integration into the Pakistan Air Force’s Command & Control Ground Environment.
May 28/09: Pakistan’s Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Rao Qamar Suleman, is quoted by Pakistan’s The News International as saying that Pakistan would begin receiving its AWACS planes by October 2009.
April 3/08: China’s government-controlled Xinhua reports that the first Saab 2000 Erieye aircraft for the PAF was rolled out in Sweden and prepared for flight trials by the year end, after being equipped with a full suite of mission systems. “The Pakistan Air Force achieved a major landmark in its Airborne Early Warning Program with the roll out of its first Saab 2000 AEW&C in a simple but impressive ceremony at the Saab facility in Sweden,” the PAF statement said.
The aircraft will be put through trials before being delivered to the PAF in 2009. See also Flight International’s photo coverage, which puts the total number of Saab 2000 aircraft at 5.
May 28/07: Maybe not quite finalized. A Saab release states that:
“With reference to the sale of Saab Airborne Surveillance Systems to Pakistan, the customer has for financial reasons and in accordance with the original contract, asked to renegotiate part of the contract concerning a reduction of the number of systems. Together with Saab terms and conditions then have been agreed, concerning a reduction. Saab and the Government of Pakistan continue as planned with the delivery of the system.
As a result of the renegotiation, the order value is decreased by approximately SEK 1.35 billion [DID 8.3B – 1.35B = 6.95B, a 16.3% reduction and about $1 billion at a May 28 conversion]. Income will decrease proportionally to the volume change, but other commercial terms and conditions will remain unchanged.”
The number of planes in the revised order was not specified, but a later report placed the total number of Saab 2000 aircraft in the revised order at 5. If the original order had been 6, a 16.3% reduction is about right.
June 22/06: Saab announces a SEK 8.3 billion (approx. $1.15 billion at then-rate conversion) provisional contract for Airborne Early Warning & Control (AEW&C) surveillance systems using Saab 2000 turboprops equipped with Ericsson’s Erieye radar.
********************************************************But where are the weapons coming from?
TEHRAN, April 23 (UPI) -- China inaugurated a missile plan in Iran last month, even as the United States and its allies were pressing Beijing to support a new round of tough economic sanctions on the Islamic Republic over its nuclear program, Jane's Defense Weekly reports.
It's a military relationship that goes back two decades and, in light of Russia's reluctance to provide the Iranians with advanced air-defense missile system to counter possible U.S. or Israeli airstrikes, is set to expand.
Robert Hewson, editor of Jane's Air-Launched Weapons, reported that the factory for assembling and producing Iran's Nasr-1 -- Victory 1 -- anti-ship missile was opened March 7.
The Nasr is identical to China's C-704 anti-ship missile, Hewson says. Iran's burgeoning defense industry, much of it controlled by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, has been producing Chinese-designed anti-ship missiles such as the C-801 since the early 1990s.
The C-704, developed by China Aerospace Group, targets ships of 1,000-4,000 tons displacement and is the equivalent of the U.S. AGM-119 anti-ship missile. With a range of 106 miles and a 240-pound warhead, the C-704 has a kill probability of 95.7 percent.
The Iranians, possibly with Chinese assistance, have even developed improved versions such as the Noor, an upgraded version of China's C-802, with a longer range than the original and over-the-horizon capabilities.
Indeed, Hewson observed that "Iran has gone further than China in fielding the C-802, taking what was previously a land- and ship-launched weapon and producing an air-launched version that can be carried by Mi-17 helicopters and fast-jet types."
Over the years Iran has developed a range of anti-ship missile systems from the Chinese weapons that gives the Islamic Republic's regular navy and the IRGC's naval arm the capability to exert a considerable degree of control over waters in the Gulf and the Persian Gulf.
This is the area from which U.S. naval forces would strike if hostilities erupt.
On Saturday, the IRGC concluded its annual three-day Great Prophet exercises in the Strait of Hormuz, the choke point gateway to the Gulf and a key energy artery, in a show of defiance against the United States.
The Nasr is a medium-range weapon that can be launched from warships or shore batteries and its development and planned mass production has been trumpeted by Tehran at a time when Iran's military forces are making preparations to counter possible attacks.
"In a methodical and deceptively modest manner China has helped Iran take charge of all its surrounding waters and this work between the two nations continues," Hewson reported.
"Follow-on versions of the Nasr are being developed to include an air-launched variant.
"There are other cooperative tactical missile programs under way and China's design bureaus have displayed several 'export only' weapons (such as the C-705 lightweight cruise missile) that would seem set to follow the established route into Iran," Hewson added.
"With such a solid relationship established between the two countries it is not difficult to see why China has been reluctant to commit to the Western push for sanctions against Iran."
China, ever hungry for energy sources to fuel its expanding economy, imports around 12 percent of its oil from Iran and seeks to secure Iranian natural gas through overland pipelines -- another reason it has shown little enthusiasm for new U.N. sanctions on Iran.
Hewson said no Chinese envoys were seen at the opening of the Nasr factory conducted by Iran's hard-line defense minister, Brig. Gen. Ahmad Vahidi, but the event marked "another milestone in the continuing military/industrial bond between the two countries."
Hewson observed that unlike Russia, China "has been very successful in offering Iran technology and capabilities that are actually wanted, as opposed to those that might be 'nice to have.'
"A path has been found through the factions within Iranian officialdom (and its armed forces) to deliver products that build trust in Beijing. In return, China gains influence with Tehran that can be parlayed into access to Iran's natural resources."
While these Chinese-origin systems have provided Iran with invaluable missile technology, this has had little or no impact on the development of its ballistic missile capabilities.
"Iran's strategic weapons can only (ultimately) involve it in a losing battle with the United States,' Hewson concluded, "but its tactical weapons have already altered the regional balance of power in a much more practical way."
- President Thomas Jefferson
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