SHAH ALAM: MRSS as well, Plan B Shorts. In Malaysian Defence polls, the most favored MRSS design was the Damen Enforcer beating the Makassar class and the China made LPD. And it seemed that the MRSS was the next ship to be build under the RMN’s 15 to 5 plan until…May 9 of course.
Well the MRSS may still be build despite what the government is saying about the country’s finances. I am guessing here but I will say what the future holds for the military will be made known when the government announced its 2019 budget on November 2.
Anyhow it appears that I was guilty of missing a potential MRSS candidate at LIMA 17. In my defence, I must say that I am old guy now rather set in his ways. Anyhow it is hard to be a one man show at a defence show with many exhibits.
The Plan B, MRSS candidate is the 80m landing ship built by Shin Yang shipyard operating out of Kuala Baram, Miri, Sarawak. The shipyard build two of the landing ship for the UAE Navy. Both were delivered in 2012.
From Borneo Post.
MIRI: Shin Yang Shipping Corporation Bhd (Shin Yang) yesterday displayed the capability that a local company can be in par with the established global shipping and ship building industry.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) Navy gave it recognition and acknowledged its local expertise and skills in ship building by commissioning it to build two 80M LCT training vessels.
“Our business relationship with the UAE Navy started way back in 1998 after we sold a vessel,” said chief executive officer Captain Ting Hien Liong at the launching ceremony for the training vessels – Alquwaisat and Alputaisi at Piasau Slipways Sdn Bhd in Kuala Baram.
The business relationship blossomed and a series of order for vessels were made by the navy to Shin Yang over the years, said Captain Ting.
“Alquwaisat and Alputaisi were the eight and ninth vessels commissioned by the UAE Navy to us and we believe that this cordial business relationship will continue to grow,” he added.
Present at the ceremony was Shin Yang Sdn Bhd executive director Ling Chiong Pin. The UAE Navy was represented by Col Mahmoud Yousif Basif Alzarooni, Col Abdulla Yousif Abdulla Alhammad, Major Mohamed Rashed Aldhanhani and Major Omar Taresh Moosa Alali.
I am not saying the landing ship build by Shin Yang fulfilled the role of the MRSS as envisioned by the navy. But with moeny tight, four similar vessels of this class or an enlarged variant would be a boon to the RMN for its operations supporting the five offshore stations in the Spratlys as well as those in ESSCOM AOR. RMN is aware of the shipyard’s capabilities, its Kedah class and other ships as well, have been sent to Shin Yang’s sister facility, Piasau Slipways, for refits previously.
— Malaysian Defence
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View Comments (31)
These 9 ships that SY shipyard build is what UAE is using now to do amphibious landings in Yemen.
Off topic
The Philippine government has allocated PHP289 billion (USD5.46 billion) for procurement during the second modernisation phase (Horizon 2) of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), which runs from 2018 to 2023.
We cannot let our defence procurement budget to fall lower than what the Philippines has allocated for theirs. Even with USD2 billion per Rancangan Malaysia for each service like I have always advocated, that would be just USD6 billion overall, just a bit more than what the philippines are allocating.
Yeah 2months back, a Kedah was on a floating drydock at the shipyard, mast and Super Rapid under canvas. The amphib they built IMHO is not mil-grade,as the class certification is under Bureau Veritas, a norm for merchant vessels.
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UAE has no problem with that these ships are being used in the Yemen war
So it's the Damen Enforcer 10K we're getting, right?
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It's on hold so I am not sure whether the government will proceed with MRSS or not let alone the design chosen
Too slow for a naval ship at 12 knots.
@...
The Pinoys have different priorities in terms of defence expenditure as they now have a macho president, and they just came out of a devastating battle. They will surely need to spend more in beefing up their armed forces in view of China threats & Marawi incident.
I'm amazed what this local shipyard was doing in the international scene when I first read the news sometime back. Got me to wonder why RMN don't operate landing crafts. My simplistic logic that such vessel would be great as logistic support and training for our outpost island. Another feature was to utilize these landing crafts as sea base for ESSCOM, not until I was told it'll be uncomfortable for the crew.
Question is, what say RMN if the government go with the landing craft and not wait through this tough time, as the MRSS solution? I foreseen the first thing they will loss is the command ship part with these landing craft?
Anyway, that's just me. What other role will RMN loss?
any amphibi shuttle never meant to be fast
@ joe
USD5.5 billion is considered low, even with that amount the philippines cannot get alot of what they wanted. Duterte is not a fan of buying big for the military and that budget is what is left after he cut a lot of what the military wanted in the 1st place. So you consider malaysia spending less than what pinoy is getting as okay?
We have to ask what what role and expectations we have for our surface combatant units, and if we can realistically hope to have enough for these roles.
It should be obvious that if we have high intensity wartime taskings for the MRSS (as opposed to a peacetime or low intensity sealift role between East and West Malaysia, or a support role in low intensity actions- both which require only a converted civilian vessel) then the ship must be given a capable escort. The LCS can do this we will barely have enough escorts and there should be no great expectations as to their capability.
That would leave us with few or no units to take on other taskings, such as escorting merchant ships or oil platform protection. To say nothing of forming a task group to seek and engage enemy units.
3000 ton frigates moving at combat speeds (which are below flank speeds) have an endurance in single digit number of days. Without an oiler our ships will have to return to port for replenishment, which further increases the number we need.
We have to ask if wartime role for an MRSS will give us more taskings than we have (and will ever have) ships for. And if we don't need an amphibious warfare type ship for such a role, whether a cheaper type will do.