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The Commonwealth government has announced a AU$277 million (US$180 million) contract extension to continue managing the Royal Australian Navy’s Collins Class submarine combat management system.
This multi-year, multimillion-dollar contract extension allows Raytheon Australia’s 150-strong team, supported by its local and global industry partners, to continue delivering the critical combat systems capability that will ensure the Royal Australian Navy’s Collins Class submarines remain lethal well into the 2030s.
Ohad Katz, managing director for Raytheon Australia, welcomed this contract extension, stressing the importance of this sovereign industrial capability, saying, “This contract extension reinforces Raytheon Australia’s 25 years of experience as the Collins Class submarine combat systems partner.”
As part of this ongoing contract, Raytheon Australia will be able to support a robust training pipeline of engineers and technicians as the Navy prepares to incorporate the Virginia Class conventionally armed, nuclear-powered attack submarines and eventually the SSN-AUKUS submarines later next decade.
“As Australia’s Collins Class submarine combat system manager, we remain committed to supporting the Royal Australian Navy and industry partners in delivering this vital capability for Australia’s defence,” Katz added.
Australia’s Collins Class submarines have formed the silent backbone of the Royal Australian Navy’s underwater fleet since the 1990s. Designed in Sweden by Kockums and built in Adelaide by the Australian Submarine Corporation, the six boats were intended to give Australia an advanced, long-range conventional submarine tailored for regional conditions.
Raytheon Australia’s combat system team has supported the fleet since their introduction in the mid-1990s, beginning with the lead boat, HMAS Collins, which was launched in 1993 and commissioned in 1996, though the program faced well-documented challenges with noise levels, combat systems and sustainment in its early years.
The company’s team mainly operates out of Perth’s Henderson Shipyard and Fleet Base West, HMAS Stirling, supported by additional services at Osborne and Sydney, with core elements of this contract to include elements of combat system integration and manager services, architecture and design, upgrades and updates, implementation and coordination of the AN/BYG-1 system, as well as wharf-side and deployable technical support.
Over time, extensive upgrades and Australian ingenuity turned the class into a highly capable, stealthy platform well-suited to the vast Indo-Pacific.
The Collins Class remains the cornerstone of Australia’s submarine capability, undergoing life-of-type extensions to bridge the transition to the future AUKUS nuclear-powered fleet in the 2030s.
Stephen Kuper
Steve has an extensive career across government, defence industry and advocacy, having previously worked for cabinet ministers at both Federal and State levels.
