U.S. Navy to Test Electromagnetic Railgun Aboard Joint High Speed Vessel

Trial runs can be fun, but this test - Navy to Deploy Electromagnetic Railgun Aboard JHSV - ought to be a doozy:

The U.S. Navy plans to install and test a prototype electromagnetic railgun aboard a joint high speed vessel in fiscal year 2016, the service announced today.

This test will mark the first time an electromagnetic railgun (EM railgun) has been demonstrated at sea, symbolizing a significant advance in naval combat.

EM railgun technology uses an electromagnetic force - known as the Lorenz Force - to rapidly accelerate and launch a projectile between two conductive rails. This guided projectile is launched at such high velocities that it can achieve greater ranges than conventional guns. It maintains enough kinetic energy that it doesn't require any kind of high explosive payload when
it reaches its target.

High-energy EM railguns are expected to be lethal and effective against multiple threats, including enemy warships, small boats, aircraft, missiles and land-based targets.

"The electromagnetic railgun represents an incredible new offensive capability for the U.S. Navy," said Rear Adm. Bryant Fuller, the Navy's chief engineer. "This capability will allow us to effectively counter a wide-range of threats at a relatively low cost, while keeping our ships and sailors safer by removing the need to carry as many high-explosive weapons."

EM railgun technology will complement current kinetic weapons currently onboard surface combatants and offer a few specific advantages. Against specific threats, the cost per engagement is orders of magnitude less expensive than comparable missile engagements. The projectile itself is being designed to be common with some current powder guns, enabling the conservation of expensive missiles for use against more complex threats.

"Energetic weapons, such as EM railguns, are the future of naval combat," said Rear Adm. Matt Klunder, the chief of naval research. "The U.S. Navy is at the forefront of this game-changing technology."

This demonstration is the latest in a series of technical maturation efforts designed to provide an
operational railgun to the fleet. Since 2005, the Navy and its partners in industry and academia have been testing railgun technology at the Naval Surface Warfare Center in Dahlgren, Va., and the Naval Research Lab where the service has a number of prototype systems.

USN artist conception

The final operational system will be capable of launching guided, multi-mission projectiles to a range of 110 nautical miles against a wide range of threats. The series of tests are designed to capture lessons for incorporation into a future tactical design and will allow the Navy to best understand needed ship modifications before fully integrating the technology.

The Navy is using JHSV as a vessel of opportunity because of its available cargo and topside space and schedule flexibility. Because JHSVs are non-combatants, there is no plan to permanently install a railgun on any ship of the class. A final decision has not been made on which ship classes will receive a fully operational railgun.

Dear Navy,
Can I go along for the test ride?

High Speed Transports -Cheap

Hawaii Superferry Wants to Abandon Catamarans:

Hawaii Superferry has asked to abandon its two high-speed catamarans to creditors because of the significant cost of maintaining the vessels as the company moves through bankruptcy. MARAD, which guaranteed construction loans for the catamarans; Austal USA, the Alabama shipbuilder that built the vessels; and the state of Hawaii, which provided harbor improvements, are secured creditors with mortgage rights. MARAD, which holds first priority on the mortgages and is owed $135.7m, would likely take possession of the catamarans for charter if the bankruptcy court approves Superferry's request. Austal USA, which holds the second mortgage, announced last week that it is writing off the $22.9m it is owed for construction loans. A hearing on Superferry's request is set for July 1.

Reported here that the ferries headed from Hawaii to Alabama about March 30.

The Feds assert they will repossess the ferries, as set out here:

The U.S. Maritime Administration says that it plans to repossess and sell a pair of fast ferries built at Austal USA for Hawaii Superferry Inc.

Hawaii Superferry owes $136.8 million to the agency — commonly known as MARAD — which guaranteed the loans used to buy the ferries. It has another $22.9 million outstanding on a pair of loans from Austal.

MARAD reported this week that it plans to take possession of the ferries, now docked at Atlantic Marine in Mobile, as soon as it receives approval from bankruptcy court in Delaware. Hawaii Superferry Inc. filed for Chapter 11 reorganization in that state May 30.

The ferry vessels were purchased in 2004 for a combined price of $190 million, according to Austal, which now puts their value at about $87 million each, or $174 million together.

Austal Ltd., the Australian parent company of the Mobile shipyard, said Tuesday that it is writing off about $11 million, after taxes, for the 2008-09 fiscal year related to its ferry loans.

Talks among MARAD, Austal and Hawaii Superferry broke down last week, Austal officials said.

Maritime analysts had expected the ferry vessels to be retrofitted by Austal and chartered directly to the military. Jay Korman of The Avascent Group, a Washington, D.C., consulting firm that tracks defense programs, said Tuesday that MARAD is opting to sell the vessels rather than charter them directly, in order to recoup at least some of the costs for taxpayers.

Austal Ltd. President Bob Browning said he was disappointed that MARAD decided to seize the ferries without involving Austal in a project to prepare them for military use.

MARAD made the ferry loans under its Title XI program, which is supposed to support U.S. shipyards by reducing their reliance on military work.

Browning said that Austal approved lending $23 million to the ferry venture in part because the deal would help raise the profile of Austal's U.S. shipyard, which at the time had been operating in Mobile for only a few years. Although it succeeded in doing that — the Mobile shipyard in November won a potential $1.6 billion contract to build up to 10 high-speed fast ferries for the military — Browning said the company's lending days are over.

I'm a little disappointed that the Navy isn't picking up on these ships for conversion for use in projects like Africa Station, and other situations where high speed Ro-Ro assets might be useful. See the comments here.

Some, apparently seeing military conspiracy to keep Hawaii in the Union, report a military role for these ferries has always been in the background. See here and here from whence comes this old pdf:

Whatever.

Specs:
PRINCIPAL DIMENSIONS
Length overall 106.5 metres
Length (waterline) 92.4 metres
Beam (moulded) 23.8 metres
Depth (moulded) 9.4 metres
Hull draft (maximum) 3.65 metres
With mezzanine decks raised 4.6 & 4.7 metres (outboard and centre)
With mezzanine decks raised 2.6 metres below/2.2 metres above

PAYLOAD AND CAPACITIES
passengers 866
Vehicles 282 cars
or 28 trucks and 65 cars
Maximum deadweight 800 tonnes
Maximum axle loads Centre lane (dual axle) 15.0 tonnes
(single axle) 12.0 tonnes
side lanes (dual axle load) 12.0 tonnes
(single axle load) 9.0 tonnes
Mezzanine lanes 1.0 tonne
Crew as per usCG requirements
Fuel 215,000 litres

PROPULSION
Main engines 4 x Mtu 20V 8000 M70
Gearboxes 4 x ZF 53000 - 2
Waterjets 4 x KaMeWa 125 s11

PERFORMANCE (with ride Control fitted)
speed (90% MCR) 40.0 knots