The Royal Australian Navy’s (RAN) Anzac-class frigate HMAS Arunta has successfully completed its anti-ship missile defence (ASMD) upgrade in Western Australia, making it the second vessel to undergo such an upgrade.
RAN Commander Surface Force AM commodore Jonathan Mead said: "The ASMD upgrade provides our Anzac-class frigates with significantly increased capability, particularly in defending against missile attacks."
The RAN’s HMAS Perth successfully completed its upgrade and tests in 2012.
The rolling upgrade programme will now involve HMAS Warramunga, with its crew already completing a ‘hull swap’ with the Arunta.
Arunta commanding officer commander David Tietzel said: "After completing a series of sea qualification trials in Western Australian waters, we proceeded to Darwin where we commenced unit readiness evaluations.
"We completed the first week of these evaluations as a single unit, prior to joining the Red Force fleet participating in Exercise Kakadu 2014.
"By undertaking these evaluations in a high-end war-fighting scenario, we were able to prove the capability provided by a modern ship like Arunta, manned by a high performing crew."
The vessel will now collaborate with a range of RAN ships and continue a workup and unit readiness programme on the east coast, before taking part in Exercise Distant Shores.
Image: HMAS Arunta during trials. Photo: courtesy of the Royal Australian Navy.
