Evolving expeditionary capabilities - Jane's

Evolving expeditionary capabilities
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In a period generally characterised by lean defence budgets and more complex and
demanding military requirements, Jim Dorschner reports on how some armed forces
around the world are developing and fielding multirole expeditionary capabilities

Expeditionary capabilities were once considered the sole purview of powers like France, the
United Kingdom, and the United States, but now other forces are turning their attention to
developing this kind of capability.

The trend is most pronounced in the Asia-Pacific region, where the 'tyranny of distance', combined
with concerns over China, North Korea, and terrorism, is motivating Australia, Japan, and South
Korea. In Europe, meanwhile, Italy and Spain continue to invest in advanced expeditionary
capabilities with a weather eye on events in Africa, while Turkey is working on indigenously
produced platforms and Egypt is commissioning the new ships and aircraft needed to project
power in Libya, Yemen, and the Red Sea littoral.

Given the long lead times necessary to procure major expeditionary platforms, such as aviation-
capable amphibious ships and specialised vehicles, weapons, and aircraft, emerging new
capabilities arguably represent requirements identified more than a decade ago, when the
operational landscape was dominated by continuing deployments to Afghanistan and other post-
9/11 aspects of combating global terrorism.

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An LHD world

Large, modern multirole landing helicopter dock (LHD) ships are the benchmark platform for
effective, rapidly deployable expeditionary forces. Examples include two 27,800-tonne vessels
commissioned by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) in 2014 and 2015: HMAS Adelaide and HMAS
Canberra . Built by Navantia in Spain and completed by BAE Systems in Melbourne, each of these
LHDs can embark a landing force of about 1,120 personnel with up to 110 vehicles, including M1
Abrams main battle tanks (MBTs), on two vehicle decks, supported by four large landing craft
mechanised (LCM) 1E vessels operating from the well-deck.

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A Tiger armed reconnaissance helicopter being directed onto the deck of HMAS Canberra to
conduct first-of-class flight trials. (Commonwealth of Australia)
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A vast flight deck can simultaneously accommodate six MRH90 Taipan assault helicopters or four
Boeing CH-47F Chinook heavy-lift helicopters, as well as Tiger armed reconnaissance helicopters
(ARHs). Importantly, both ships have a bow ski-jump and other features to facilitate operation of
the short take-off/vertical landing (STOVL) F-35B version of Lockheed Martin's Lightning II Joint
Strike Fighter (JSF). While Australia has no plans to obtain the F-35B for now, the US Marine
Corps is expected to deploy periodic fighter detachments aboard Adelaide and Canberra .

The ships are also fitted with advanced C3I systems to serve as afloat operational headquarters,
along with extensive medical facilities, including trauma care. As such, these ships are also ideally
suited to serve as disaster relief platforms in a region routinely subject to devastating typhoons,
tsunamis, and other calamities.

With a range of up to 9,000 n miles the LHDs give Australia the ability to project powerful joint
forces throughout the Pacific and Indian Oceans and beyond as required, yet expeditionary
capability requires more than just LHDs. Australia can also deploy and support tailored forces that
include tactical air power and maritime patrol aircraft (MPAs), both of which are being enhanced
with the introduction of new F-35A fighters and Boeing P-8A MPAs supported by Boeing E-7A
Wedgetail airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) platforms and new Airbus Military A330
multirole tanker transports (MRTTs). Boeing C-17A, Lockheed Martin C-130J, and Alenia C-27J
transport aircraft are critical for deploying follow-on land forces and supporting joint expeditionary
forces.

With Australia having not retained any amphibious capability after the Second World War, the
crews that will operate the new LHDs are being trained in new skills and competencies, including
handling maritime aviation and landing craft. Perhaps the most formidable challenge is building an
effective landing force from scratch. The Amphibious Ready Group (ARG), built around the army's
2nd Battalion Royal Australian Regiment in Townsville, consists of about 2,000 troops with combat
support and service support attachments, and should be declared fully operational later this year.
An infantry company with support elements, about 350 strong, can then be deployed with 48
hours' notice. The US Marine Corps (USMC) continues to directly assist Australian efforts to
establish expeditionary capability.

In northeast Asia, Japan and South Korea are developing expeditionary capabilities built around
large-deck aviation ships, but with different operational objectives in mind. For South Korea
expeditionary capability primarily means the ability to quickly project forces deep into North Korea
in the event of hostilities, preferably in conjunction with US forces. Amphibious envelopment has
been a feature of war planning on the peninsula since the famous Inchon landings punctured
North Korea's invasion of the south in 1950.

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The 18,800-tonne RoKN LHD Dokdo. (Michael Nitz/Naval Press Service)
                                                                                                                                    1649693
The 18,800-tonne Republic of Korea (RoK) Navy LHD Dokdo , commissioned in 2007, represents
an exponential increase in capability, particularly when paired with a squadron of new landing
ships tanks (LSTs) now entering service. A second Dokdo-class LHD is under construction for
delivery in 2020. Eventually South Korea will be able to deliver a brigade-sized marine landing
force complete with armour and artillery. Operating alongside the USMC, the two allies will be able
to establish a strong division-sized beachhead in the North Korean rear.

Dokdo normally embarks 10 naval UH-60P Black Hawk helicopters, seven amphibious assault
vehicles, six tanks, and two air-cushioned landing craft operating from a stern dock, together with
more than 700 marines. The flight deck can also handle RoK Army CH-47D Chinook heavy-lift
helicopters. By 2020 the Black Hawks will be replaced by a dedicated RoK Marine Corps air group
with new KUH-1 Surion assault helicopters, probably augmented by marine AH-64E Guardian
attack helicopters. The new LSTs also have Surion-capable flight decks and can embark 300
marines each, along with armoured vehicles and landing craft.

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While Japan imposed a limitation on the introduction of offensive military platforms after the
Second World War, increasing regional tensions and a higher international profile, particularly in
the Pacific Rim, have motivated a controversial return to what can only be described as an
expeditionary capability in the form of large-deck multirole aviation ships. Lacking a well-deck to
launch landing craft, but with a large side ramp for offloading vehicles and equipment, the two
units of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force's (JMSDF's) unique Izumo-class are officially
listed as helicopter destroyers (DDHs). However, at 24,000 tonnes they are nearly as large as the
Australian LHDs, can embark up to 14 helicopters, and can carry up to 500 troops along with
heavy vehicles.
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A Mitsubishi SH-60K naval helicopter of the Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force. (US Navy)
                                                                                      1427864
Designed primarily for anti-submarine warfare (ASW) and mine-countermeasures (MCM)
missions, both critical for securing Japanese home waters, JS Izumo and JS Kaga , commissioned
in March 2015 and March 2017 respectively, currently operate with an air group of seven
Sikorsky/Mitsubishi SH-60K Seahawk helicopters and two Leonardo/Kawasaki MCH-101
helicopters. However, the ships are expected to operate new Boeing MV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor
aircraft by 2020, which will significantly enhance their ability to deliver a marine landing force
ashore.

This aspect of the ships' multirole capability reflects dramatically increased tensions with China
over the disputed Senkaku/Diaoyu islands and other islands in the Nansei chain in the East China
Sea near Taiwan. Furthermore, if Japan becomes involved in any future Korean conflict, the two
ships would clearly play important roles either as ASW/MCM platforms or as part of allied
amphibious operations and in post-conflict recovery.

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information contained herein is from sources considered reliable but its accuracy and completeness are not warranted, nor are the
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omissions or any loss, damage or expense incurred by reliance on information or any statement contained herein.

An MCH-101 mine countermeasures helicopter of the Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force, which
forms part of the air group operating from JS Izumo and JS Kaga. (Japanese Maritime Self-
Defence Force)
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Mediterranean movers

The complex Mediterranean littoral has long generated tensions and conflict going back to ancient
times, but the past decade or so has seen a significant spike in concerns on all sides, driven by
long-running civil wars in Iraq, Libya, and Syria, political and social upheaval in Turkey and across
north Africa, into the Sahel region and in west and east Africa. For anxious NATO and European
Union (EU) member states the perceived need to secure their southern flank from the effects of
instability in Africa and the Middle East is punctuated by increased terrorist attacks in Europe and
the worst migrant crisis since the 1940s. Since the crisis exploded in 2014, tens of thousands of
migrants have continued to seek new lives in Europe, many of them risking everything in
dangerous crossings of the Mediterranean from Libya. According to the Missing Migrants Project
more than 1,000 migrants died crossing the Mediterranean from January-April 2017 and more than
5,000 died in 2016.

Among Mediterranean NATO and EU members the response to this widespread regional
instability, which directly threatens European security, has been an increasing emphasis on
expeditionary capabilities, specifically projecting multipurpose joint forces, including special
operations forces (SOFs), into the waters off north Africa, particularly Libya; into the eastern
Mediterranean; along the Atlantic coast of Africa as far as the Gulf of Guinea; as well as into the

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Red Sea and Indian Ocean along the east African coast, including security in the strategic Bab al-
Mandab Strait and along the Somali coast.

Key expeditionary missions include countering piracy; interdicting migrant trafficking and terrorist
activity; and assisting multinational efforts to improve security and governance in troubled states
like Libya. Equally important is being prepared to conduct contingency operations in unstable
areas. Such operations can include evacuating diplomatic missions and European citizens;
providing humanitarian assistance; training and assisting friendly local authorities and security
forces; collecting intelligence; and conducting raids and strikes.

USMC Ospreys on board Juan Carlos I during NATO's 'Trident Juncture' 2015 exercise. (Spanish
Navy)
                                                                                      1643012
While Spain has long had some expeditionary capability, the navy in particular has steadily built up
more flexible multirole forces with greater reach and endurance. The centrepiece of this effort is a
new multipurpose LHD commissioned in 2010, Juan Carlos I , built by Navantia to a design that
later served as the basis for Australia's Canberra-class LHDs. Juan Carlos I can embark a landing
force of up to 900, can operate navy AV-8B Harrier jump jets in addition to a variety of helicopter
types, and can accommodate four LCM-1E landing craft in the well-deck. In conjunction with two
aviation-capable Galicia-class landing platforms docks (LPDs) commissioned in 1998 and 2000,
the Spanish Navy can deploy and land a brigade-sized combined arms amphibious force up to
3,600 n miles from Spain.

The LHD's flight deck can simultaneously operate six medium helicopters or four large helicopters.
In addition to Harriers the normal air group consists of navy SH-60 Seahawks and SH-3 Sea
Kings, although army Tiger attack helicopters, NH90 transport helicopters, and CH-47D Chinook

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opinions and analyses which are based upon it, and to the extent permitted by law, IHS shall not be liable for any errors or
omissions or any loss, damage or expense incurred by reliance on information or any statement contained herein.

helicopters also operate from the ship. Juan Carlos I has also embarked with allied aircraft during
training exercises, such as USMC F-35B JSFs, CH-53E helicopters, and MV-22 Osprey tiltrotors.

The hangar deck can accommodate 12 helicopters or up to seven Harriers, with the upper vehicle
garage also available for additional hangar space. Altogether, up to 30 helicopters or 20 Harriers
can be carried. The upper garage can accommodate 77 light vehicles or 144 ISO containers, while
the lower garage can accommodate heavy vehicles, with space for up to 46 Leopard 2 MBTs.

Driven by similar concerns, the Italian Navy has a new LHD on order with Fincantieri and
Finmeccanica, with delivery planned by 2022. The ship will displace 22,000 tonnes, be about 210
m long with a beam of 30 m, and operated by a crew of about 450, with accommodation for an
additional 550 troops. A 50 x 15 m well-deck will accommodate up to four LCMs, as well as
amphibious vehicles and landing craft air-cushioned (LCAC) hovercraft. The flight deck will have at
least five helicopter spots, with a hangar deck below and a vehicle garage. An even larger LHA-
type aviation amphibious vessel is planned for delivery around 2020-22. This will embark 800
troops as well as a joint task force headquarters element.

The aircraft carrier ITS Cavour was delivered to the Italian Navy by Fincantieri in 2008. (Italian
Navy)
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Meanwhile, the Italian Navy depends on the aircraft carrier ITS Cavour , delivered in 2008 by
Fincantieri. Although it lacks a well-deck the 27,000-ton STOVL-configured ship can embark up to
400 marines, 24 MBTs, and up to 100 wheeled vehicles with access to a loading ramp. The air
group normally consists of a mix of AV-8B Harriers and medium-lift helicopters. The Italian Navy
has invested in a mix of highly capable new helicopters dedicated to amphibious and SOF support;
eight AW101s and 10 NH90s have been delivered so far, with additional orders expected. Army
aviation SOF-support NH90 assault helicopters, ICH-47F Chinook heavy-lift helicopters, and A129
Mangusta attack helicopters also operate from the ship.

                                                            [Continued in full version…]

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A still from a video released by the Egyptian Ministry of Defence on 16 September 2016 showing
an L-CAT docking with Egyptian Mistral-class LHD Anwar el-Sadat. (Egyptian MoD)
                                                                                        1685953
Although not a member of NATO or the EU, strategically situated Egypt is the latest Mediterranean
power to build up expeditionary capability based on two new Mistral-class LHDs originally built in
France for the Russian Navy. The first, Gamal Abdel Nasser , was handed over in June 2016 and
was followed by Anwar el-Sadat in September 2016. While there is tremendous potential for Egypt
in these two advanced ships, achieving functional operational capability will present numerous
hurdles and could take years.

The Egyptian Navy has no history of offshore amphibious operations, no naval aviation arm, and
no dedicated, trained all-arms amphibious landing forces. The navy is having to build capability
from scratch in a very resource-constrained environment. There is a scarcity of landing craft
beyond a handful of L-Cat catamarans delivered with the ships and no suitable helicopters
available in the navy or air force.

While the first of 46 Kamov Ka-52 Alligator attack helicopters on order for the air force will likely be
delivered later this year, plans to procure about 22 Ka-52K naval versions for operation from the
Mistrals appeared to have stalled because of technical issues with the type in Russian service.
However, a 2 May statement from Russian state corporation Rostec indicated that Ka-52K testing
is proceeding, but did not offer any details on when deliveries to Egypt might commence. Egypt
also lacks suitable assault helicopters with folding rotors that can fit on the ship's elevators, with
the Ka-29 a likely candidate. Lacking a naval aviation arm, presumably the Ka-52Ks and other
helicopters employed aboard the Mistrals will be operated by the air force.

Equally troublesome is the fact that the ships lack weaponry and electronic warfare systems, as
well as navigation, aviation, and communications systems. Also missing are cargo handling and
storage systems. Under the terms of the original contract with Russia, all of these were to be
installed after delivery and, as sold to Egypt by France, the ships reportedly have only simple
commercial marine systems sufficient for basic navigation. Discussions are thought to be
continuing with Russia to complete the outfitting of the ships' systems, but no further details are
currently available.

Once the ships achieve sufficient capability Egypt would most likely employ them on power
projection missions along the Libyan coast, serving as intelligence and support platforms in
ongoing efforts to aid the Tobruk-based Libyan National Army faction under the command of
General Khalifa Haftar, also supported by the United Arab Emirates. Tasks would likely include

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launching strikes by Ka-52 attack helicopters and serving as a floating logistics base for train-and-
assist operations ashore.

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