Absalon Class Combat / Flexible Support Ship

G

Grand Danois

Entertainer
swerve said:
The contrast with the weather for the send-off & the arrival off Africa is rather striking. :D
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Oh no. They're all from Denmark - it's just that global warming has made Denmark a tropical paradise. I'm considering converting my garden to a banana plantation. ;)
 
S

swerve

Super Moderator
Grand Danois said:
Oh no. They're all from Denmark - it's just that global warming has made Denmark a tropical paradise. I'm considering converting my garden to a banana plantation. ;)
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Ah. The pictures of sailors in whites (tropical uniform in the RN) & those of the ship in thin hazy cloud are the same occasion as the people wearing jumpers under a solid grey sky?

Ah yes. I should have looked more closely, & at more pictures. Oh dear. What an embarrassing mistake.
 
T

Ths

Banned Member
The importence of the mission.

The real importance for the Danish Navy is that they will be in command of a fleet i.e. more than two ships. Untill now the Danish Navy has send ships to be placed under operational control of other. Now they have operational control. That is a new capability.
 
G

Grand Danois

Entertainer
Ths said:
The real importance for the Danish Navy is that they will be in command of a fleet i.e. more than two ships. Untill now the Danish Navy has send ships to be placed under operational control of other. Now they have operational control. That is a new capability.
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The Thetis has had flag capabilities since 2002.
 
G

Grand Danois

Entertainer
swerve said:
Yes - has this deployment been long-planned? Or maybe someone had half an eye on it, & thought it best to be ready.
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This mission was agreed upon by the parliament 6 months ago, I knew it was some time ago but couldn't remember exactly when it was. :rel

I Like this pic (by SOK).
 
G

Grand Danois

Entertainer
This is the third pirate attack Absalon has been involved in fending off in less than a week!

Pirates attack Norwegian ship
A Norwegian tanker owned by shipping tycoon John Fredriksen has become the latest target of pirates who tried to hijack it in the Gulf of Aden.

The tanker Front Voyager was sailing through the gulf Saturday morning when alert crew spotted a speed boat closing in on the vessel.

The pirates on board the speedboat, believed to be from Somalia, came up alongside the large tanker and attempted to board while firing between 10 and 15 shots, according to reports from the scene.

"Fortunately no one (on board the vessel) was hit," said Dag Christoffersen of V Ships Norway, which manages the vessel.

The crew of the Front Voyager, trained to fend off pirates, contacted the Danish naval vessel Absalon stationed in the area to fight a wave of piracy in the gulf. The Danish ship sent an armed helicopter to the Front Voyager while the tanker's crew used water canons to keep the pirates from scrambling up the sides of the ship.

"These water canons are very powerful," Christoffersen told Aftenposten.no.

The helicopter arrived, the pirates were eventually captured and taken to an American battleship also stationed nearby.

Christoffersen praised the crew of the Norwegian-owned vessel, comprised of around 25 Russian officers and Filipino seafarers. The vessel continued sailing to Singapore after the drama subsided.

The Gulf of Aden, along with the Straits of Malacca, has become a site of frequent pirate attacks, with 24 reported just between April and June. Saturday's attack on the Front Voyager was the fourth in three days, according to Jesper Lynge of the Danish navy.

http://www.aftenposten.no/english/local/article2642781.ece
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And a cool pic of Absalon doing RAS.

http://www.navalhistory.dk/Danish/SoevaernsNyt/2008/_0907_ABSLTF01.htm
 
G

Grand Danois

Entertainer
Alright, not really Absalon news; I gather the Vikings didn't know of the Squat effect.

Oops! What would the Vikings say?

A Danish navy ship has run aground during a training mission this week.

The Olfert Fischer corvette was undergoing training against potential asymmetrical threats when it struck ground during a maneuver, damaging at least one screw. The incident took place near Zealand Odde on Sept. 11.

The corvette was operating at high speed close to the shore and practicing how to react if it came under attack by a small ship. That’s when the crew executed a a tight turn in shallow water, leading to vessel making contact with the seabed. Nobody was injured during the course of the events, the Danish defense ministry says.

Tugs are now being dispatched to tow the corvette to the Bundaberg shipyard for repairs. A full accident investigation also has been launched.

The Olfert Fischer was participating in the Danex 08 exercise, along with vessels from Germany, the U.K. and Poland. The ships are preparing for future operations in the Horn of Africa.

http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/blog...79a7Post:7a33f6aa-fa7e-4fc7-81a9-ae66b749db81
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The reason I find it interesting is because of the highlighted part. It almost gives the impression that a surge on the Horn of Africa is underway...

Btw, the pic of Olfert Fischer used on the blog is from a passage through the Kieler Kanal IIRC.
 
G

Grand Danois

Entertainer
This is kind of freaky... According to the press release this is preparation for the deployment of Esbern Snare (L17) (Absalons sister ship) to CTF150 medio november !

I'm a bit skeptical about this.

Anyhow there are some cool pics of the jamming equipment on the Falcon 20 and various frigates doing evasive maneuvers under HP jamming/air attack (by Hawks) in the gallery. I have attached two. The rest kan be found under this link:

http://forsvaret.dk/DANEX08/Iframe/

List of participants for those who have interest.

http://forsvaret.dk/DANEX08/Deltagere/
 
K

KIJ

New Member
Esbern Snare crew to Africa

Esbern Snare won't be sent to Africa, it's only the crew of Esbern Snare, which will be onboard Absalon...:)

That way each of the crews will have 3 months onboard Absalon.
 
J

jd6300

New Member
Other RADARS

Todjaeger said:
And



Perhaps it is just me and my IT background but... I am all for the use of COTS when such a solution makes sense, but relying on a Windows-based system for something as crucial as a radar/fire control system just gives me the willies. I would hope that the system has been exhaustively tested so that the Blue Screen of Death does not come to have another meaning as well.

-Cheers
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I have seen a lot about the THALES SMART system but have not seen anything about the other large spherical dome RADAR that is on the upper rig. Does anyone no what they are hiding behind there?
 
K

keiran3

New Member
The Absalon class modular concept has many advantages, including obviously mission flexibility and rapid upgrade/modification potential. It is a pity that the United States has so completely botched the potential of this concept with their LCS programs.

For all the midsize navies that will need new frigate-grade surface combatants in the near future, ships built along the same concept would make a great deal of sense.

Case in point: Canada's last major class of warships, the Halifax class frigates, finished construction in the mid-90's. These are basically Cold War ASW platforms with limited AAW and anti-surface self-defence capability. The Tribal-class destroyers that were intended to provide air cover are several generations behind the curve, lacking modern radars and combat systems for their SM-2's.

Minus the need to hunt submarines in the North Atlantic, these ships are sent all over the world on missions for which they weren't really designed and in which they are of marginal use. No one hholds out any hope of justifying future expenditures to build similar ships.

With an Absalon-like ship, this would change. The ability to reconfigure as everything from a troop transport to field hospital to relief distribution centre to disaster management centre to spec-ops mothership would give the navy instant saleability as a tool for supporting Canadian foreign policy in the roles Canada most often assumes. Impressive as the Canadian relief effort in Haiti was, the existence of such a ship could have considerably enhanced the mission.

Of course, Absalon also provides a good basic weapons loadout, one that could be easily enhanced. Thus, the navy gets a credible battle platform and Parliament gets a reason to fund it. Overall, the concept provides a highly flexible, economical "best of both worlds" capability that can sustain some of the midsize navies through the doldrums of Operations Other Than War, and assure them of a credible force when the world changes again.
 
P

ProM

New Member
Can anyone tell me which IFF system the Absalon class is fitted with?

I believe the Smart-S can integrate with several and don't know which the Danish Navy chose.
 
B

Belesari

New Member
I am in agreement and so are many others. Not only that the absolon also has a sister design that makes a damn nice light destroyer.

keiran3 said:
The Absalon class modular concept has many advantages, including obviously mission flexibility and rapid upgrade/modification potential. It is a pity that the United States has so completely botched the potential of this concept with their LCS programs.

For all the midsize navies that will need new frigate-grade surface combatants in the near future, ships built along the same concept would make a great deal of sense.

Case in point: Canada's last major class of warships, the Halifax class frigates, finished construction in the mid-90's. These are basically Cold War ASW platforms with limited AAW and anti-surface self-defence capability. The Tribal-class destroyers that were intended to provide air cover are several generations behind the curve, lacking modern radars and combat systems for their SM-2's.

Minus the need to hunt submarines in the North Atlantic, these ships are sent all over the world on missions for which they weren't really designed and in which they are of marginal use. No one hholds out any hope of justifying future expenditures to build similar ships.

With an Absalon-like ship, this would change. The ability to reconfigure as everything from a troop transport to field hospital to relief distribution centre to disaster management centre to spec-ops mothership would give the navy instant saleability as a tool for supporting Canadian foreign policy in the roles Canada most often assumes. Impressive as the Canadian relief effort in Haiti was, the existence of such a ship could have considerably enhanced the mission.

Of course, Absalon also provides a good basic weapons loadout, one that could be easily enhanced. Thus, the navy gets a credible battle platform and Parliament gets a reason to fund it. Overall, the concept provides a highly flexible, economical "best of both worlds" capability that can sustain some of the midsize navies through the doldrums of Operations Other Than War, and assure them of a credible force when the world changes again.
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