AUSTRALIA'S NEW AIR WARFARE DESTROYERS:
* Three ships are being built. The Hobart, Brisbane and Sydney. The Hobart has been handed over to the federal government and will enter service later this year followed by the Brisbane in 2018 and the Sydney in 2020.
* The program has cost about $9 billion and is over budget by about $1 billion.
* The ships each displace about 7000 tonnes, have a crew of 186, a top speed of 28 knots and a range of 5000 nautical miles, or more than 9000 kilometres.
* The ships are powered by a combination of gas and diesel turbines and have twin propellers.
* The destroyers are armed with harpoon missile systems and have missile decoy technology.
* They are fitted with a flight deck and hangar for one helicopter.
