Australian Navy Acquires Undersea Support Vessel from Norway

Australia has procured a 13-year-old Norwegian commercial vessel for $73.4 million, which it will convert into a military vessel for undersea military operations.

Deputy Secretary Naval Shipbuilding and Sustainment Tony Dalton said the new acquisition would be used to further advance a range of trials and activities leveraging new technologies in the undersea domain.

The Norwegian flagged MV Normand Jarl is currently undergoing inspection and certification activities in Singapore before sailing to Australia under an Australian flag later this year. The ship will be renamed Australian Defence Vessel (ADV) Guidance.

The primary role of ADV Guidance will be to support undersea surveillance systems trials, including the ability to deploy undersea crewed and uncrewed vehicles, and robotic and autonomous systems.

At 107 metres long, 22 metres wide and displacing 7400 tonnes, ADV Guidance will be able to sustain a range of Defence activities due to its modular mission systems, allowing specialist Defence teams and load-outs to be embarked to meet various system trial requirements.

“ADV Guidance will be instrumental in developing and testing robotic and autonomous underwater systems, ensuring Defence can compete and succeed in a wide variety of complex undersea environments,” Dalton said.