Lockheed Martin has completed the delivery of advanced combat systems services for the Royal Australian Navy (RAN)’s Hobart-class Guided Missile Destroyers.
The company has completed the SEA 4000 Phase 6 Combat System Design Agent contract on time and within budget, updating the destroyers’ design architecture and integrating Aegis’ Combat System Baseline 9 capabilities into the ships.
Work performed included the successful completion of a System Requirements Review, incremental design reviews, physical configuration audits, and the creation of a virtual environment that presents the combat system to naval operators.
The fitting comes amid Australia’s billion-dollar push to invest in its destroyers with tactical improvements and force system upgrades.
A Continuous Push
Lockheed Martin Australia and New Zealand Chief Executive Warren McDonald elaborated on the importance of the destroyers’ capability upgrades.
“The Aegis upgrades will ensure Australia keeps pace with the US Navy’s Aegis modernisation program, increases combat system lethality, and advances interoperability with our allies across the Indo Pacific region,” he said.
The company has transitioned into the Combat System Integration – Integrated Project Team after completing the contract, focusing on engineering support for the system upgrade in partnership with defense companies BAESMA and Saab Australia.
The team will deliver necessary upgrades across ships HMAS Hobart, HMAS Sydney, and HMAS Brisbane over the next decade.
