Congress Notified of Potential $1.5B Sale of Aegis Combat Systems for New Japanese Ship Class

USNI News – by Sam LaGrone

A proposed $1.5 billion sale of two ship sets worth of Aegis combat systems, anti-submarine warfare systems and a cooperative engagement capability (CEC) equipment will give Japan’s planned new class of destroyers the capacity to connect and receive information from American battle networks, according to a list of items in a foreign military sales (FMS) notification issued by the Defense Security Cooperation Agency on Friday.

The DSCA notice laid out the planned offensive punch of the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force’s (JMSDF) yet-unnamed class of guided missile destroyer (DDG) that is planned to join the Japanese fleet in the 2020s — currently referred to as the 27DD, according to a July story in Navy Recognition.  

The planned weapon systems sale for the two ships — the hulls of which will be built in Japan — further cements Japan’s trajectory in purchasing next generation weapons systems set to be compatible with the U.S. Navy’s emerging Naval Integrated Fire Control Counter Air (NIFC-CA)

“Japan continues to modernize its fleet to support Integrated Air and Missile Defense (IAMD) roles and special mission requirements. The addition of two new AEGIS DDGs will fulfill Japan’s mission goal of acquiring eight ballistic missile defense capable ships and will further enhance interoperability with the U.S. Navy, read the Friday statement.
“The proposed sale to Japan will represent an important commitment by the U.S. Government in furtherance of foreign policy and national security goals for both the United States and Japan.”

Centered around the established Lockheed Martin SPY-1D radar, the planned Mk 7 buys from Japan would give the 27DD class the same capabilities of the U.S. Navy’s Baseline 9 Arleigh Burke DDGs — capable of tackling ballistic missile defense (BMD) and simultaneously intercepting cruise missiles and aircraft — as well as transmitting and receiving target quality tracks to friendly ships and aircraft through CEC data links.

A planned upgrade to Japan’s existing Atago-class destroyers — announced in late May — will also give the two ships a similar technical backbone to tie into a joint U.S. and Japanese networked battle force.

The DSCA announcement follows a bevy in planned U.S. FMS sales to Japan. In June the State Department notified Congress of a potential $1.7 billion foreign military sales (FMS) case for Japan to buy four Northrop Grumman E-2D Advanced Hawkeye information surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft for the Japanese Air Self Defense Force (JASDF). In May Congress was notified of a potential $3 billion sale of 17 Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey tilt-rotors.

In addition to the Mk 7 Aegis Combat systems, and CEC the 27DDs will be outfitted with the AN/SQQ-89A anti-submarine warfare suite.

The following is the list of materials from the Aug 7, 2015 DSCA announcement.

Major Defense Equipment (MDE) includes:

-Two (2) AEGIS Weapon Systems (AWS) MK 7
-One (1) J7 AWS Computer Program
-Two (2) ship sets Multi-Mission Signal Processor (MMSP)
-Two (2) ship sets AN/MK8 MOD4 AEGIS Common Display System (CDS)
-Two (2) ship sets AN/SPQ-15 Digital Video Distribution System and Common Processor System (CPS)
-Two (2) ship sets AWS Computing Infrastructure MK 1 MOD4
-Two (2) ship sets Operational Readiness Test System (ORTS) hosted in AWS computing infrastructure
-Two (2) MK 99 MOD 8 Fire Control Systems
-Two (2) ship sets AN/SPG-62A Radar, Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) including Mission Planner blade server processors hosted in the CPS
-Two (2) Kill Assessment System/Weapon Data Recording Cabinets (KAS/WDRC) -Two (2) ship sets Mode 5/S capable Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) System
-Two (2) ship sets MK 36 MOD 6 Decoy Launching System
-Two (2) ship sets AN/SQQ-89A (V) 15 Underwater Surveillance and Communication System -Two (2) Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) Navigation systems with OE-553/U antenna
-Two (2) ship sets AN/SSN-6F (V) 4 Navigation Sensor System Interface (NAVSSI)
-Two (2) ship sets WSN-7(V) Inertial Navigation System (INS)
-Two (2) ship sets AN/URC-141(V) 3(C) Multifunctional Information Distribution System (MIDS) Radio Set
-Two (2) ship sets AN/UYQ-86(V) 6 Common Data Link Management System (CDLMS) -Two (2) ship sets AN/SQQ-89A (v) 15J UWS
-Two (2) ship sets Gigabit Ethernet Data Multiplex System (GEDMS)
-Two (2) ship sets Maintenance Assist Modules (MAMs) cabinets for Fire Control and Combat Systems equipment
-Two (2) ship sets Multi-Function Towed Array (MFTA) and associated OK-410(V)3/SQR handling equipment
-Two (2) ship sets of Vertical Launching System (VLS)
-MK41 components for Direct Commercial Sales (DCS) launcher to support BMD missions employing the Standard Missile 3 (SM-3)
-Two (2) ship sets Launch Control Units (LCU) MK 235 Mod 9 with Vertical Launching System (VLS) Global Positioning System (GPS) Integrator (VGI)
-VLS launcher components including twenty-four (24) MK 448 Mod 1 Motor Control Panel -Four (4) Programmable Power Supplies MK179 Mod 0
-Twenty-four (24) Launch Sequencers MK 5 Mod 1
-Four (4) Fiber Optic Distribution Boxes (FODB)
-Twenty-four (24) Single Module Junction Boxes
-Two (2) ship sets Gun Weapon System MK 34
-Two (2) ship sets MK 20 Electro-Optical Sensor System (EOSS)
-Two (2) ship sets of Cooperative Engagement Capability (CEC)
-Two (2) ship sets Global Command and Control System-Maritime (GCCS-M)
-Two (2) ship sets AN/SPQ-9B Radar
-Two (2) ship sets Enhanced AEGIS Combat Systems Trainer (ACTS) with communication suite -Two (2) ship sets technical documentation

http://news.usni.org/2015/08/10/congress-notified-of-potential-1-5b-sale-of-aegis-combat-systems-for-new-japanese-ship-class