Sea, land and air focus on littoral manoeuvre capabilities

The Australian Army’s aspirations to acquire Infantry Fighting Vehicles (IFVs) may be the big losers in the fallout from the DSR, but its littoral manoeuvre capabilities are set to be enhanced.

Soldiers and officers from the 2nd/14th Light Horse Regiment (Queensland Mounted Infantry), conduct a beach landing with the new Boxer Combat Reconnaissance Vehicle (CRV) in Far North Queensland. Picture: Department of Defence

The Australian Army’s current force structure and its aspirations to acquire large quantities of Infantry Fighting Vehicles (IFVs) may be the big losers in the fallout from the Defence Structure Review (DSR), but its littoral manoeuvre capabilities are set to be significantly enhanced.

One of the findings of the review was that the ADF, in its current form, is “not fully fit for purpose” and the document makes the point that the Army must be optimised for littoral operations in Australia’s northern land and maritime areas as a priority.

“Australia’s Army must be transformed and optimised for littoral manoeuvre operations by sea, land and air from Australia, with enhanced long-range fires,” the report states.

“Defence must rapidly accelerate and expand Army littoral manoeuvre vessels (medium and heavy landing craft) and long-range fires (land-based maritime strike) programs. This will require Army to re-posture key capabilities.”

To achieve this, the DSR recommends the first two phases of Defence’s existing Land 8710 (Littoral Manoeuvre Vessels) program are accelerated and their scope expanded.

“Without this, only limited numbers of major land capabilities can be projected offshore,” the report warns.

The Albanese government has agreed to these recommendations however no specific funding is listed during the four-year Forward Estimates period in the May Defence Budget Portfolio Statement.

As it stands, the Land 8710 program is split into three phases. The first will acquire a Littoral Manoeuvre Vessel – Medium (LMV-M) capability, together with new light amphibious vehicle (Littoral Manoeuvre Vehicle Amphibious), to replace Army’s LCM-8 landing craft and Vietnam-era Lighter Amphibious Resupply Cargo (LARC) vehicles.

A request For tender for the $800m Phase 1A LMV-M requirement was released to industry in December 2021 and calls for a steel-hulled vessel about 20 per cent larger than the 59-ton LCM-8.

To be built at Henderson in Western Australia, up to 18 new vessels will each have a range of between 1000 to 1200 nautical miles (1850-2200km) – enabling Army heavy vehicles to be transported from Townsville to the Solomon Islands, for example.

A number of Australian companies have responded to the tender, including Birdon Group, teamed with Echo Marine; The Australian Maritime Alliance (Serco, Civmec and IMC Naval Architects) with its Oboe vessel; Landing Craft Australia (Navantia Australia and UGL), and a team comprising Austal, BMT and Raytheon Australia.

Army’s LARC vehicles will be replaced by the new LMV-A under Phase 1B of Land 8710­ Phase 1.

Land 8710 Phase 2 seeks to acquire an undisclosed number of 3000 to 4000-ton heavy landing craft to replace the Army’s long-retired Balikpapan-class vessels and capable of carrying a number of tanks or IFVs over larger distances than the LMV-M.

Into the future Land 8710 Phase 3 will oversee acquisition of a fleet of Littoral Manoeuvre – Riverine (LMV-R) vessels capable of operating in the coastal waterways of Australia’s north and its neighbouring Pacific islands.

However, the DSR further recommends that all these new vessels are built in Australia, and acceleration of the Land 8710’s program will arguably place Australia’s continuous naval shipbuilding program under renewed pressure.

“To meet the requirements of our maritime and littoral fleets, we must increase the size of our supporting industrial base,” the report warns.

“Most importantly we must grow the size of our naval shipbuilding workforce.”