Its the Ada Class, Which One? - Malaysian Defence (original) (raw)
RMN officers poring over the model of the ADA class at LIMA 2023. Malaysian Defence picture
SHAH ALAM: Its now confirmed, the LMS Batch II will be an Ada class corvette. Though which variant is selected and the equipment fit is currently being determined. Defence Minister DS Khaled Nordin in a written reply to a question in Parliament on March 13 stated that the government had determined the procurement of the ships will be conducted through the government-to-government approach with the Turkish government.
This will be conducted via direct negotiations with state-owned company Savunma Teknolojileri Mühendislik (STM), he added.
Turkish Navy TCG Kinaliada F-514, the fourth ship of the Ada class corvette. STM.
He said the Ministry of Finance on January 18 had approved of the procurement. “Following this the Defence Ministry has issued a letter of intent to the company – STM – on February 5 and the company had replied on February 8 for further negotiations.
The ministry via the Royal Malaysian Navy is currently undertaking the detail negotiations to determine the specifications and subsequently the cost before the procurement is concluded.”
Of course he did not say outright that the Ada class corvette will be LMS Batch 2 but since STM has offered the ship to meet the requirement, it is foolish to think otherwise. Khaled was responding to a question by Tanah Merah MP DS Ikmal Hisham Aziz on the procurement of LMS Batch 2.
The full answer here:
Kementerian Pertahanan akan melaksanakan perolehan Littoral Mission Ship Batch 2 (LMSB2) untuk Tentera Laut Diraja Malaysia (TLDM) melalui pendekatan Government to Government (GtoG) dengan
syarikat berkaitan Kerajaan Turkiye secara rundingan terus iaitu Savunma
Teknolojieri Muhendislik (STM).
Kementerian Kewangan (MOF) pada 18 Januari 2024 telah memberi kelulusan terhadap perkara ini. Susulan itu, Kementerian Pertahanan telah mengeluarkan surat niat kepada pihak syarikat pada 5
Februari 2024 dan pihak syarikat telah memberikan maklum balas pada 8
Februari 2024 untuk berunding dengan Kementerian Pertahanan sebagai
wakil Kerajaan.
Pada masa ini, Kementerian Pertahanan melalui TLDM sedang di
peringkat rundingan terperinci berhubung spesifikasi yang ditawarkan dan
seterusnya akan melaksanakan rundingan harga sebelum perolehan ini
dimuktamadkan.
PNS Khaibar of the Pakistan Navy, a variant of the Ada class corvette/light frigate.
Malaysian Defence has reported previously that the Ada class corvette was the favourite for the LMS Batch 2 though the industry wanted RMN to look to other designs.
As previously reported there are currently three variants of the Ada class – Turkish, Pakistan and Ukrainian. All three relatively the same size – 99 metres and a displacement of 2,400 tonnes. The main weapons are the 76mm guns, eight surface to surface missiles and two torpedo launchers. They can carry two S-70 helicopters.
Albatros NG. MBDA
It is in the anti-aircraft weaponary the ships differed, the Turkish ones are fitted with a single RAM launcher while the Pakistan ones – four of them – are equipped with MBDA Albatross missiles (a longer range version of the CAAM ER/Sea Ceptor) while the Ukrainian ones are equipped for MBDA MICA VL missiles.
Mica VL shipboard container/launcher. MBDA
I hazard to guess we may well end up with a variant of the Ukrainian one as the same missiles are also hardwired for the LCS. I stand to be corrected of course. Defence News has reported the Ukrainian two Ada class corvettes will cost around US$256 million (RM1.2 billion) though this may well exclude the cost of the missiles and other weapons.
The Ada class corvette, the Turkish Navy variant.
With our luck we may end up without the SAM as RMN had envisaged the LMS Batch 2 without them, only fitted for but not equipped with.
— Malaysian Defence