Japan’s government pushes hard to woo Aussies with advanced frigate

NAGASAKI — Japan isn’t being shy about its desire to turn Australia into the inaugural customer for its advanced Mogami frigate, with the usually-conservative Ministry of Defense taking the rare step of flying Australian-based reporters to Nagasaki this week in order to hype up the Mogami’s capabilities.

Reporters were briefed for three days about the ship’s systems, Japan’s strong view that it and Australia would benefit from an even closer defense and industrial relationship and the fact that shipbuilder Mistubishi Heavy Industry will include all the program’s intellectual property and provide parts and support for the ships predicted 40-year lifespan.

As a sign of the government’s full-court press, Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani attended the launch and naming of the 11th ship of the class, and made a point of presenting his business card to each reporter after the launch ceremony. (Breaking Defense, like other outlets, accepted travel and accommodations for the trip.)

Should Australia buy the Mogami it would, Nakatani told reporters, “increase sustainment and resilience” in the Indo-Pacific. He, and almost every industry and government official reporters spoke with, stressed this is an “all-Japan government approach” to demonstrate how ready and committed Japan is to export its first major weapon system since before World War II.

Japan is competing against Germany’s ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) to sell Australia 11 frigates,  built in part to replace Australia’s aging ANZAC-class ships. The first three of the new ships will be built in the winning company’s country, then Australia will build the next eight in Western Australia in the Henderson shipyards north of Perth. The fourth ship may be built in the foreign yard, depending on how ready Henderson is at the time.

Currently, the Australian Defense Force and the ministry are working with the two companies in what is known as Comprehensive Risk Reduction, sources close to the program told Breaking Defense. A key decision will be made — probably this month — by the National Security Council after being briefed by the Defense Department. That will be followed by the official Request For Tender. A final decision on the winner is expected by the end of this year. Delivery of the first ship is expected by the end of 2029.

One of Australia’s requirements for the competition was that the contenders had to be ships that could be bought straight off-the-shelf.

Australia would buy an improved version of the Mogami, featuring a 32-cell Vertical Launch system that would double that of TKMS’ initial offer. It would also boast two diesel engines to provide enough power for the sophisticated Anti Submarine Warfare systems, mine warfare, advanced AESA radar and other sensors. They are mounted on large rubber gaskets to reduce vibration and other noises. The ship, which can steam at greater than 30 knots, has enough range to reach Djibiouti from Japan. Primary power is provided by a Rolls Royce MT30 gas turbine.

The Mogami frigate’s Combat Information Center, a key design feature of the Mistubishi Heavy Industries’ ship. Art provided by government of Japan.

Among the features that Japanese officials stressed was the ship’s advanced Combat Information Center (CIC), from where the captain would manage the ship, surrounded by up to 30 officers, though it would normally be manned by a crew of 10. The CIC is belowdecks and is protected by what officials described as tank armor, which requires highly specialized welding techniques to attach to the ship’s structure.

The reason for the extra protection is simple, according to a Japanese captain currently in charge of a Mogami and confirmed by other officials: If the CIC is heavily damaged or destroyed then the ship must return to port as it would not be able to keep fighting. The CIC is part of the reason the Mogami carries a crew of 90, compared to up to 160 on comparable ships in the Japanese and other navies. The Royal Australian Navy has had difficulties recruiting and fielding enough sailors so crew size may play a factor in the choice.

Among the data the CIC displays is video from anywhere inside the ship for damage assessment, readings from wearable sensors (they look like sports watches) that feed data on the physical condition and location of each sailor, and high definition imagery from ship cameras.

Japanese officials repeatedly pointed to Mitsubishi’s unbroken 35-year record of delivering naval ships on time. Osamu Nishiwaki, a top official at Japan’s Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency (ATLA), told reporters his government would guarantee on-time delivery.

“We the Japanese government will guarantee that the whole project, and all the contracts will go smoothly so that there will not be any delay to the project,” Nishiwaki said. To make his point utterly clear, he said: “We can definitely guarantee the on-time delivery.” Mitsubishi currently delivers two Mogamis to the government each year and expects to increase that temp to three soon.

An interesting wrinkle to the ship’s design that officials here returned to repeatedly is its reduced radar cross section and other stealthy features, such as reduced infrared and electro-magnetic signatures.

The bent angles of the hull and superstructure bear some resemblance to stealthy aircraft. Unlike most destroyers and frigates, the ship’s antenna are sheathed in a rounded cap so there’s no forest above the radar. The systems inside are modular so the antenna, likely to be one of the first structures on a ship to be damaged in battle, can simply be removed and a new one installed, a senior Mitsubishi official told Breaking Defense.

The Mogami class can dock without using tugs and boasts shallow draft, a requirement that was made after the 2011 tsunami that ruined and clogged the ports of northeastern Japan with debris.