Article Posted on : - May 13, 2011

Te Mana firing the Phalanx weapon system. A NZ Navy photo

SYDNEY (BNS): New Zealand Navy’s Anzac class frigate HMNZS Te Mana has successfully test-fired the Phalanx close-in weapons System (CIWS) during the ongoing Bersama Shield 2011 military exercise in the South China Sea.

The Phalanx system, a 6 barreled radar controlled 20mm machine gun that can fire up to 75 rounds of hardened steel bullets a second (4500 per minute), was test fired “to calibrate the CIWS radar tracking system to ensure accuracy.”

“Four firings were undertaken, with a total of 550 rounds fired,” the Royal New Zealand Navy said.

The weapon is designed as last-line of defence against anti-ship missiles and other air targets. If a target is not destroyed at long-range by the ship’s missile system, the CIWS fires a curtain of bullets to destroy the target as it closes in on the ship.

The Te Mana’s Phalanx system was upgraded in 2010 to improve its fire-control system, giving it the ability to target fast-moving surface targets, such as speedboats, as well as missiles and other air targets.

An upgraded Phalanx will be fitted to the frigate later this year, the navy said.

Exercise Bersama Shield 2011 involving the militaries of five countries – Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, New Zealand and UK – is set to conclude today.

One submarine, 9 ships, 57 fixed wing aircraft (including 8 F-18s, 4 MIG 29s, and 16 F-16s), 5 maritime helicopters and a variety of air and land-based support elements are part of the multi-national drill that began on May 2.

New Zealand Navy’s HMNZS Te Mana and Te Kaha frigates are participating in a Five Powers Defence Arrangements (FPDA) exercise in the waters of South East Asia.