Home Asia Pacific ASC rolls out submarine HMAS Waller in mid-life overhaul milestone

ASC rolls out submarine HMAS Waller in mid-life overhaul milestone

Photo: ASC

Australian shipbuilder ASC has rolled out Royal Australian Navy Collins-class submarine HMAS Waller from its Adelaide-based assembly hall as part of the boat’s mid-life overhaul.

HMAS Waller is three quarters through a two-year full cycle docking, and is set to be returned to the navy in the second half of 2020, following testing and trials.

Waller was the third of six Collins Class submarines built by ASC in Adelaide. It was laid down by the then-Australian Submarine Corporation in March 1992, launched in March 1997, and commissioned into the RAN in July 1999.

The fleet of submarines is about half-way through its service life, expected to be extended into the 2030s and ’40s.

Waller is the first boat in the class to be fitted with new replacement bow sonar arrays delivered by Thales UK.

The Collins Sonar Capability Assurance Programme (CSCAP) is part of the wider SEA1439 refit program to upgrade the capabilities of the RAN’s six Collins-class submarines.

As the first of six boats to undergo the mid-life refit, HMAS Waller has also received new flank arrays from Thales France.

Collins-class boats are set to be replaced by the 12 Attack-class submarines that will be delivered by Naval Group as prime contractor.