Over 60pct of navy assets more than 40 years old - navy chief

More than 60 percent of the navy’s assets are now over 40 years old, posing challenges to operational readiness and the need for phased replacement under the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) 15 to 5 Transformation Plan, said navy chief Zulhelmy Ithnain.

Zulhelmy (above) said the ageing fleet had placed increasing pressure on the navy, but the vessels must continue operating to safeguard the country's maritime waters.

“We have six operations that require ships to be deployed 24 hours a day throughout the year.

“These ageing vessels still have to go to sea, and this is a concern for the leadership because they are no longer in the same condition as when they first entered service,” he told reporters after the 53rd anniversary celebration of the first squadron of Perdana-class combat today.

He said most maintenance work now involves corrective maintenance rather than preventive maintenance, while the navy is also facing difficulties in sourcing spare parts.

Commenting on the four Perdana-class combat vessels that remain in service after more than 50 years, Zulhelmy said their continued operation reflected the navy’s effective maintenance culture.

He also said the vessels had been converted from missile boats into patrol vessels due to the obsolescence of their systems and equipment.

Enhancing assets’ structural integrity

The navy is also implementing an asset obsolescence management programme for KD Perdana and KD Ganyang to enhance the structural integrity of the vessels, enabling them to remain operational for another 10 to 15 years as an interim measure before they are replaced, he said.

Meanwhile, Zulhelmy said the navy’s asset modernisation programme would continue in line with the government's financial capacity under the RMN 15 to 5 Transformation Plan, with the acquisition of multi-role support ships (MRSS) planned under the 13th Malaysia Plan (13MP), while the procurement of submarines is expected to be considered under the 14th Malaysia Plan (14MP).

On the MRSS project, he said it had been approved by the government under the 13MP and is currently at the proposal evaluation stage before the procurement process is finalised.

“The project will be implemented under the 13MP and may continue into the 14MP. We require two MRSS under the 13MP, but the target under the RMN 15 to 5 Transformation Plan is three vessels, with the third to be built locally,” he said.

He added that several countries had submitted proposals to supply the MRSS, and the proposals are currently being evaluated.

- Bernama

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