By 12 Oktober 2016
PSIM module undergoing testing on land prior to be being mated to the ship (image : DCNS)
SHAH ALAM: The nav radars for the first LCS has been delivered to the Boustead Naval Dockyard in Lumut, recently. The radars are the Kelvin Hughes Sharpeye in the E/F-band (X &; S-Band), industry sources told Malaysian Defence.
The nav radars will be be installed on the DCNS-designed panoramic sensors and intelligence module (PSIM). The PSIM combines an integrated mast, complete with the main radar (Thales Smart-S Mark 2 3D radar) under the radome and all the other sensors, plus the ops rooms and the associated equipment compartments into a single module.
A DCNS graphic explaining the PSIM module. (image : DCNS)
It is likely that LCS’s PSIM module is already undergoing assembly and once completed, it will be used to conduct system and integration tests at the BNS facility. During the construction of the Kedah-class, the ship’s CMS also underwent assembly and testing on land in Lumut before they were installed on the intended vessels.
Once the ship is launched, the PSIM module will be hoisted into its location amidships just behind the bridge.
For the first LCS, the mating of the PSIM module is likely to be conducted by the second half of 2017 as the ship is only expected to be launched by April.
Gowind 3000 frigates of RMN (image : MMP)
With two Sharpeyes per ship, Kelvin Hughes will supply 12 radars for the LCS programme. And a dozen more will also be needed for second batch of the LCS as envisioned by the RMN’s 15 to 5 plan.
Apart from the LCS, the Sharpeyes were also selected for the two RMN training ships, Gagah Samudera and Teguh Samudera. Both ships have had these radars installed on them as they are prepared for commissioning. These nav radars were stored for some three years as the ships were left uncompleted after the shipyard went belly-up. The ships are fitted with a single Sharpeye radar each
Industry sources also told Malaysian Defence that the same Sharpeye radars have been selected for the six New Generation Patrol Craft (NGPC) being built by Destini Bhd for the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA). The first NGPC is expected to be launch by year end.
See full article Malaysian Defence
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