China, which had the most number of passengers on board MH370, has contributed A$20 million of the A$180 million budget for the search efforts and the vessel.
The Australian was following up on an analysis of the weekly operational bulletins published by the Joint Agency Co-ordinating Centre (JACC) on the search efforts.
The analysis showed the DHJ 101 has so far spent 30 days at the most, perhaps even as little as 17 days, on the search efforts. The vessel has either spent most of its time in Fremantle when not on “weather standby” in the 7th Arc or in fact being “north of the search area”.
The JACC refused to disclose how many days the Chinese have spent in looking for MH370.
The DHJ 101, equipped with a sonar imaging “towfish”, came to Freemantle seven months ago.
The DHJ 101 apparently “abandoned” the search effort in early August. The JACC reported then that “the Chinese vessel would remain at anchor off Freemantle until weather conditions improve”.
The consensus is that the Chinese may have been testing submarine tracking technology and updating itself on advanced western underwater search techniques and equipment. The Australian cited the interactions between the Chinese and Australian and international experts engaged in the search effort.
The Chinese, it’s believed, have also been monitoring Australian and allied military activities.
Former Director of Security Intelligence, Clive Williams, said he “would be surprised if the DHJ 101 did not have an intelligence collection role”.
Williams, now attached to the Australian National University, said that Western Australia was a target-rich environment in terms of various Australian defence activities.
He said China has an active collection effort in Australia and a “hospital” ship, the Peace Ark, in the Indian Ocean for “research” activities.
The Australian submarine base is in Perth, at HMAS Stirling. The Special Air Service Regiment is in a Perth suburb. Other facilities include the Australian Defence Satellite Communications electronic spying station at Kojarena, near Geraldton; and the North West Cape naval communications station near Exmouth.
The real value of the DHJ 101, said Peter Jennings of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, was “learning first world techniques, tactics, and procedures on search and rescue”.
“The DHJ 101 isn’t purpose-built to be an intelligence-gathering ship,” he said. “However, the ship can note activities in and out of Freemantle and at HMAS Stirling.”
He noted that Chinese maritime units have been engaged in counter-piracy operations off the Horn of Africa and on extended deployments and exercising.
Greg Barton, from Deakin University, said the DHJ 101 “would probably be spying as a matter of course”.
The search for MH370, he said, was an opportunity for the Chinese to gather signals intelligence capacity including hydrophone instrumentation and tracking submarine movements.
The JACC, the Chinese Embassy in Canberra and its Consulate in Perth did not respond to queries from The Australian.
In April, Transport Minister Darren Chester thanked the Chinese Government for contributing the DHJ 101 and its search efforts.
He was joining the Chinese Consul-General in Perth, Lei Kezhong, for a visit to the ship.