India launched INS Arihant nuclear submarine Movie

Source : IBNLinve.com

Pakistan navy test fires missiles Video

source BBC

Kapal Selam, Tetap Jadi Prioritas TNI AL

Luas wilayah yuridiksi Indonesia yang mencapai 5,9 juta km persegi sangat membutuhkan sarana pengamanan yang handal. Luas perairan nasional yang terdiri dari 2,7 juta km persegi luas zona ekonomi eksklusif (ZEE) dan 3,2 juta km persegi luas perairan kepulauan dan perairan sangat membutuhkan kekuatan kapal selam dalam hal pengamanannya.

Kepala Staf Angkatan Laut (KSAL), Laksamana TNI Agus Suhartono mengungkapkan TNI AL kini sedang memproses pengadaan kapal selam. Rencana penambahan kapal selam ini menurut KSAL telah ditetapkan dalam cetak biru (blue print) kekuatan TNI AL.

Sebagaimana diungkapkan Kepala Dinas Penerangan TNI Angkatan Laut (Kadispenal), Kolonel Laut (P), Herry Setianegara di Mabes AL, Cilangkap, Jakarta Timur pada Kamis (11/3) bahwa TNI AL tengah memprioritaskan pembelian kapal selam hingga tahun 2011 nanti.

"Penambahan kapal selam tetap mempertimbangkan kondisi keuangan negara. Mengenai jumlah ideal kapal selam bisa dilihat dari berbagai perspektif, misalnya geografis," kata Agus Suhartono.

Dalam mengadakan kapal selam, kata KSAL, dipertimbangkan pula kemampuan selam dari kapal tersebut. "Kemampuan kapal selam itu bisa menyelam lebih lama, minimal dua minggu. Itu yang paling utama bagi kapal selam. Kalau kapal selam tiap hari harus muncul yah ketahuan. Harus bisa menyelam cukup lama," katanya.

Direktur Jenderal Sarana Pertahanan Kementerian Pertahanan (Kemenhan) RI, Laksamana Muda TNI Gunadi mengatakan anggaran yang dibutuhkan untuk pengadaan dan pemeliharaan Alutsista hingga 15 tahun mendatang sekitar Rp.400 triliun. Selain itu, ke depan Kemenhan dan TNI akan memprioritaskan penggunaan alutsista dalam negeri. Namun, untuk saat ini beberapa alutsista masih berasal dari luar negeri.

German submarine in Grand Harbour

German Navy submarine U-17 (Pennant number S196) slipped into Grand Harbour this morning for a courtesy visit.

The submarine was commissioned in 1973 and subsequently modernised, but vessels of this type are now being withdrawn.

The submarine has eight torpedo tubes and can carry mines.

It is seen above crossing Dockyard Creek, which is dominated by the sleek lines of the superyacht The Maltese Falcon.

Picture: Patrice Peyre

source timesofmalta

In too deep: Defence anchored by cost of new subs

As Australia prepares to commit to its most expensive defence project yet, military chiefs are being warned not to get out of their depth when buying new submarines.

Defence recently acknowledged that only two of Australia's six Collins-class submarines are seaworthy. (File photo) (Australian Navy)

Defence officials will be burning the midnight oil at their Canberra headquarters in the coming months, hatching plans for an all-out assault on the nation's purse strings.

Their mission will be to persuade their political masters that billions of taxpayer dollars should be committed towards building their preferred replacement for Australia's troublesome and costly Collins-class submarines.

Later this year, the Defence Force will give the Federal Government its wish list for the new submarines, detailing the features and capabilities it wants in the boats. It is expected to be the most expensive defence spending project in the nation's history.

"You can be absolutely sure that what they're cooking up is a very big, very complex, very sophisticated, very expensive and very risky submarine," says Professor Hugh White, head of the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre at the Australian National University and a Visiting Fellow at the Lowy Institute for International Policy.

Another leading defence analyst, Andrew Davies from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, says he is also worried.

"There are certainly a lot of things to worry about when planning a future submarine project because you'd have to say at the moment the Collins fleet is in a shambolic state," he said.

In an embarrassing admission, Defence recently acknowledged that only two of Australia's six Collins-class submarines are seaworthy.

Of the others, one needs repairs to a diesel motor and another requires repairs to one of its electric generators. Two more will be out of service for long-term maintenance for at least four years - a significant chunk of the submarines' projected operational life span.

Defence wants to replace the Collins boats by 2025.

"We've seen with Collins that developing your own submarine is a pretty fraught activity," Dr Davies said.

"You'd have to say the results, as we stand here today, are disappointing."