Japan MoD signs contracts to build two ASEVs with MHI and JMU

MHI was contracted to build the first vessel for about 139.7 billion yen ($980 million) on August 23, while JMU was contracted to build the second vessel for about 132.4 billion yen ($930 million) yen on September 18, an official at the ministry’s Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics Agency (ATLA) told Naval News on September 19.

“The difference in these contract amounts is only due to differences in the parts being purchased, and so the specifications and performance of the ship will not change,” the official said.

These ships are scheduled to be commissioned in fiscal 2027 and 2028, respectively. As the construction of the ASEVs gets underway in earnest, Lockheed Martin on September 10 invited four Japanese journalists, including two Naval News writers, to its Rotary and Mission Systems (RMS) Division in Moorestown, New Jersey of the United States.

The RMS division manufactures Sikorsky helicopters, and designs, manufactures and supports maritime and land-based missile defense systems, among others. As it relates to Japan, this facility “has a long-standing history of supporting the development, integration, manufacturing and testing of all Japanese Aegis programs for over 30 years,” the company said.

What was Lockheed Martin‘s aim in inviting four Japanese journalist this time? There appear to have been three main aims:

•  To appeal the smooth progress of the ASEV program with the SPY-7 radar
• To promote the adoption of the SPY-7 radar on the successor vessels to the aging Kongo-class Aegis vessels, whose retirement is approaching
• To promote new equipment such as the new VLS Mk.70 PDS(Payload Delivery System) and the integration of the land-based interceptor PAC-3 MSE into the Aegis Weapon System

As for the first point, it is necessary to understand the twists and turns that Japan went through to have reached the ASEV program. In December 2020, the Japanese government made a cabinet decision to introduce two ASEVs as an alternative to the land-based ballistic missile defense system “Aegis Ashore.” And the “eye” of the Aegis system, or the core of the system, is the SPY-7, which Lockheed Martin calls “the world’s most advanced multi-function radar.”

LM emphasized that production of SPY-7 is progressing smoothly in line with the ASEV schedule to be commissioned in 2027 and 2028. There is a strong reason why Lockheed Martin earnestly promoted the high performance and scalability of the SPY-7 radar, which is the second major point above mentioned.

In Japan, attention is focused on whether the successor to the Kongo-class Aegis ships, which are nearing retirement, will adopt the SPY-6 radar from America’s RTX (formerly Raytheon Technologies) or Lockheed Martin’s SPY-7 radar. The next year or two will be the peak of sales efforts for both companies.

Currently, the JMSDF has a total of eight Aegis ships: four Kongo-class, two Atago-class, and two Maya-class. The first Kongo-class ship, Kongo, was 31 years old was as of March 2024, the second Kirishima was 29 years old, the third Myoko was 28 years old, and the fourth Chokai was 26 years old. Among the JMSDF destroyers, the former helicopter destroyer JS Hiei recorded the longest period of service reaching 36 years and four months, so the Kongo-class is certainly nearing the end of its lifespan.

The Defense Buildup Program approved by the Cabinet in December 2022 calls for the acquirement of 10 Aegis ships, two more than the current eight. In its budget request for fiscal 2025, the Ministry of Defense included 3.3 billion yen in technical research costs to study a successor to the aging Kongo-class Aegis ships.

Will the successor, called DDG(X), be the SPY-6 or the SPY-7? The U.S. Navy is expected to install SPY-6 on 65 ships of seven types (DDG Flight III, DDG Flight IIA, CVN-74, CVN-79, LHA-8, LPD-29, and FFG-62) by 2033.

Considering future interoperability with the U.S. Navy, there is a strong opinion that SPY-6 would be better even if SPY-7 is already adopted on ships equipped with the Aegis system. In response, Lockheed Martin argues that “the SPY-7 radar is fully interoperable with other SPY radar systems and will deliver IAMD(Integrated Air and Missile Defense) capability.”

The selection of the radar for the Kongo-class successor is likely to have a major impact on Japanese companies as well. Mitsubishi Electric announced in July 2024 that it had signed a supply contract with RTX to deliver the power supply unit, a core product of the SPY-6. If the JMSDF adopts the SPY-6, its orders are expected to increase.

Meanwhile, Lockheed Martin says it “is in active discussions with Japanese industry for sustainment and manufacturing of the SPY-7 radars for future ships.” This suggests there is a possibility that the firm will find an opportunity to win the competition, for example by allowing Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and others to license production. The third point is the promotion of new defense equipment such as the container-type Mk.70 PDS VLS.

The firm announced in May that it had launched a PAC-3 MSE missile from the Mk.70 container launch platform at the U.S. Army’s White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, and successfully intercepted a target, a cruise missile, in flight. This test was the first time that a PAC-3 MSE was launched using a virtualized Aegis weapon system and intercepted an actual target.

Meanwhile, Japan has been deploying the PAC-3 MSE, an improved version of the conventional PAC3 with a protection range more than doubled. According to the company, the vertical launch system PAC-3 MSE canister holds one missile and can be attached to all existing Mk.41 systems.

Lockheed Martin said that “the integration of the PAC-3 MSE into the Aegis Weapon System will deliver an enhanced IAMD capability to U.S. sailor.” This suggests the company is now considering selling it for the JMSDF’s Aegis ships.

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