New Canadian Shipbuilding Strategy

[Kirkhill]

As you've noted it will be quite some time before we have the fleet available to do what we want/need it to do. We do however have other assets available to prosecute our most significant potential naval threat - submarines. We have the Aurora's with P-8s and MQ-9b's coming. We have the CPF's with Cyclones. The problem is we have a limited number available of each and a vast maritime domain to cover.

I'd suggest that while we wait for the fleet to be built we put a major focus on domain awareness so that we can better concentrate our limited ASW assets where required. To my mind we should be putting an urgent effort into fielding a substantial fleet of fairly simple UUVs and USVs to create a sensor web to monitor to waters of our EEZ.

Focus on detection...produce in mass and expect them to be expendable...don't allow for mission creep to make exquisite (and expensive) multi-role, cutting edge systems. Have the uncrewed systems detect and let the crewed systems respond.

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The $1.7 billion, five-year contract announced on 10 September would cover production ofwith entry into service early in 2026, the government said. The money would also pay for maintaining the submarines in service and for further development of the design.

‘This is the leading capability in the world in terms of a long-range autonomous underwater capability,’ Defence Minister Richard Marles told reporters. Specifications are undisclosed, but the all-electric Ghost Sharks are evidently less than 12 metres long, in at least one configuration, and displace less than 100 tonnes.

The dozens of Ghost Sharks in the initial batch, plus those that will follow, should enormously expand Australia’s ability to exploit the advantages of undersea warfare—to observe an enemy and disrupt its actions.

Editors’ picks for 2025: 'Sharks for filling the moat: what Anduril’s autonomous submarines can do for Australia' | The Strategist

Autonomous submarines that Australia has launched into production are likely to relieve operational pressure on the country’s crewed submarines, undertake the most dangerous undersea missions, and present an enemy with greater risk of detection and ...

www.aspistrategist.org.au

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Atlantic Bastion plans advancing as autonomous submarine XV Excalibur handed to Royal Navy

Excalibur is a 12-metre experimental vessel. At a displacement of 19 tonnes, it’s the largest uncrewed underwater vessel ever trialled by the Royal Navy.

www.gov.uk

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I don't think this is a solution on its own, but it could be an adjunct in the near term. It doesn't really address the problem of trickling out ships to match a job creation programme when what is required is a near term functional fleet.

 

[Czech_pivo]

Seaspan
2 JSS
3 OSFV PC7
1 OOSV PC6

Polar Icebreaker PC2
up to 15 MPIV PC4
JSS #3?

Davie
Polar Icebreaker PC2
6 medium icebreakers PC3
2 Ferries
2 GLAM? PC7?

Irving
8 AOPS PC4/5

15 RCD

need the people too, is there a danger that we spread things to thin?

If we get 10-12 subs then it becomes logical that we will most likely need a sub recovery vessel for each coast. Do we build that or do we farm that off for someone else to build?
It stands to reason that the CDC (Continental Défense Corvettte) becomes a priority as soon as we announce who will build our subs. Again, are we building those 12 ships or are we farming them out to someone else?
The first APOS was commissioned in June of 2021, by the time the last RCD is commissioned sometime between 2046-2050, Harry DeWolf will be pushing 30yrs old.

 

[suffolkowner]

If we get 10-12 subs then it becomes logical that we will most likely need a sub recovery vessel for each coast. Do we build that or do we farm that off for someone else to build?
It stands to reason that the CDC (Continental Défense Corvettte) becomes a priority as soon as we announce who will build our subs. Again, are we building those 12 ships or are we farming them out to someone else?
The first APOS was commissioned in June of 2021, by the time the last RCD is commissioned sometime between 2046-2050, Harry DeWolf will be pushing 30yrs old.

Yeah no idea how its all going to happen on the build side or the personnel side for the RCN.
Presumably AOPS replacement is a problem that can be put off for another day
Theres also rumoured addition of more PC2