RN Type 45 destroyer updates

[CougarKing]

Yet another Type 45 DD on the way!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/7734104.stm


http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/glasgow_and_west/7734020.stm

More than 10,000 people have gathered on the banks of the River Clyde to witness the launch of the Royal Navy's latest Type 45 Destroyer.

HMS Dragon slipped into the water from BVT's shipyard at Govan, Glasgow, with an 18m Welsh Dragon on its bow.

The vessel will provide air defence cover, be able to carry up to 60 Royal Marine Commandos and operate a Chinook sized helicopter from its flight deck.

Dragon is the fourth of six new Type 45 Destroyers to be launched.

The Type 45 will replace the Navy's ageing fleet of Type 42 destroyers.

All six new vessels are to be built and launched in Glasgow, securing work at yards on the Clyde well into the next decade.

HMS Daring was launched in February 2006, HMS Dauntless in January 2007 and HMS Diamond in November 2007.

They are due to come into service in 2009 and 2010.

Work on the fifth and six T45s, Defender and Duncan, is still ongoing.

With a price tag of £605m, each of the 150m long vessels weighs in at about 7,350 tons.

Speaking at the launch of HMS Dragon, Admiral Sir Mark Stanhope, Commander in Chief Fleet, said: "We are in the middle of the largest procurement programme for the Royal Navy in many years and today's event underlines the importance of the Royal Navy in the 21st Century.

"The Type 45 destroyers will be powerful and versatile ships, capable of undertaking a wide range of military tasks.

"They are based on first-class innovation and engineering which will set new standards in air defence and they will ensure that the Royal Navy remains at the forefront of the world's navies."

 

[MarkOttawa]

Good looking ship (there's a video at the link):

Britain's most expensive warship
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article5607341.ece

A new kind of Royal Navy warship was greeted with enthusiasm as she berthed in what will be her home port for the first time yesterday.

HMS Daring, described as the world’s most advanced destroyer, the first of six Type 45 warships to replace the ageing Type 42s, sailed into Portsmouth to the sound of a 15-gun salute.

Hundreds of people, including families of crew members, lined the harbour walls.

The £650 million, 7,350-tonne destroyer has a crew of 191, twice the range of the Type 42, and is armed with a new air-defence missile system called Sea Viper, which can track hundreds of targets up to 250 miles away.

Details:
http://www.naval-technology.com/projects/horizon/

Mark
Ottawa

 

[geo]

Pretty

 

[Yrys]

See also :
New £30 million Royal Navy warship to be built in Portsmouth
First Type 45 Destroyer for Royal Navy to be launched soon

HMS Daring makes home port debut, BBC News

Videos of 4 min 34 s on previous link of "Caroline Wyatt goes on board the Navy's new hi-tech ship",
and 2 min 35 s of "Promotional video of HMS Daring during her construction and sea trials"

(The operation complex look amazing to my eyes.)


On board 'world class' destroyert, BBC News

HMS Daring is the first Type 45
destroyer built at the Clyde shipyards.

TYPE-45 DESTROYER - THE NAVY'S NEWEST WARSHIP

1 Flight deck to take Lynx or Merlin combat helicopter
2 Navigation radar
3 Long-range radar monitors air and surface threats
4 Communications mast
5 Small-calibre gun
6 Multi-function radar can guide ship's missiles and detect enemy ones
7 Gunfire control system
8 Vertical-launching system for short- and long-range missiles
9 Medium-calibre main gun
10 Bow sonar (under keel)


Type 45 Daring class destroyer, BBC News

HMS Daring, the first of six Type 45 Anti Air Warfare Destroyers in production
for the Royal Navy, has docked at its home port of Portsmouth for the first time.
It has been hailed by its creators as the most powerful and advanced vessel of
its kind.

As a class of warship, destroyers have historically been small, agile ships
designed to protect larger, slower convoys and strike groups from airborne and
naval threats. Since the end of World War II, destroyers have steadily grown,
both in size and in terms of firepower.

HMS Daring is no exception to this trend. The Type 45 destroyer's primary mission
is air defence, a role that its arsenal reflects. The Principal Anti Air Missile System
(Paams) is the Type 45's primary weapons platform and is designed to combat
enemy missile attacks on ships. Paams consists of a 48-cell vertical missile launcher
that allows the destroyer to engage targets from 360 degrees. The missiles themselves
are a mix of Aster 15s and Aster 30s, which can strike targets at distances of up to
30km (19 miles) and 100km (62 miles) respectively. They are radar-guided by the
Sampson phased-array radar system perched, like the head of a snowman, atop the
Type 45's mast. The radar suite on the Type 45 can track targets for hundreds of miles
around, on the sea and in the air.

1. Bow sonar system - below keel                       Length - 152.4m
2. 114mm deck gun                                           Beam - 21.2m (max)
3. Vertical launcher system                                 Displacement - 7,350 tonnes
4. Aster15 Surface-to-Air Anti-Missile                  Range - 7,000 nautical miles
5. Electro optical fire control for guns                  Stores - 45 days
6. Navigation radar                                           Max speed - 28+ knots
7. Missile fire control radar and surveillance        Complement - 190 (max 235)
8. 30mm gun
9. Long range radar
10. Flight deck and hangar for helicopter

In addition to missiles, the Type 45 also has an electro-optically guided 114mm deck gun
forward and 30mm weapons on the port and starboard sides. While these weapons do not
pose much of a threat to other naval vessels, they will enable the Type 45s to fulfil additional
roles such as providing supporting fire for troops on land.

The destroyers can also host either Merlin or Lynx helicopters, which are armed with
torpedoes and depth charges, and in the case of the Lynx, Sea Skua anti-ship missiles.

The Royal Navy is currently testing 155mm guns to replace the 114mm. As well as having
greater destructive power, these guns would provide a 50% increase in range.

Fitness centres

The crew complement is 190 though there is room for 235 on board. Amenities for
improvements in quality of life seem fairly common on the Type 45; berths that were
previously home to 30 or 40 men have been replaced by cabins which sleep six.
These will have internet access. Recreation facilities and fitness centres are also built
into the vessels.

Construction on HMS Daring began in 2003. She was launched in February 2006, started
sea trials in October 2007 and is expected to be commissioned into the navy in the next
six months. Since launching HMS Daring, BVT Surface Fleet Ltd has launched three more
Type 45s, Dauntless, Diamond and Dragon.

Defender is expected to launch in October, 2009, leaving only Duncan of the original six
Type 45s ordered by the navy.

 

[MarkOttawa]

A six inch gun seems rather like a cruiser to me ;D.  Must be half-time at the (very interesting)  Super Bowl.

Mark
Ottawa

 

[starseed]

A six inch gun seems rather like a cruiser to me ;D.  Must be half-time at the (very interesting)  Super Bowl.

Mark
Ottawa

6 inch? That's the same 4.5 inch they've had mounted on every destroyer since 1938, only they lengthened the barrel to 55 calibres. As already mentioned they're currently trying to "Navalize" a version of their 155 for ships to simplify their logistics, since the ammo is already available in many forms, and since the gun is primarily used for NGS anyway.

EDIT: Wow, I am dumb. I just realized that's exactly what you meant by a 6 inch gun. Sometimes I think the school system did my generation a disservice not teaching us imperial =\

 

[geo]

Aren't the Germans messing around with a Pz2000 turret on naval vessels ?

 

[Galahad]

Aren't the Germans messing around with a Pz2000 turret on naval vessels ?

That project has been cancelled due to the difficulties of navalizing the gun, ie weather proofing, recoil dissipation, etc.

They have since made a deal with Finmeccanica for delivery of Otobreda 127 mm Volcano main guns for the F125 class of frigates, while the preceding F124 class will remain equipped with Oto Melara 76mm guns.

 

[Harley Sailor]

What a sweet looking ride.  Now if I could only get inside for a tour and a couple of ales.

 

[CougarKing]

Another notable, though belated, update:

First Royal Navy Type 45 destroyer on course for commissioning

The first of six Type 45 destroyers, Daring , will be commissioned into the UK Royal Navy during a ceremony at Portsmouth naval base on 23 July. The 7,450-ton ship was accepted off-contract from prime contractor BVT Surface Fleet in December 2008 and is expected to meet its in-service date in December 2009

[first posted to http://jdw.janes.com - 17 July 2009]

 

 

[CougarKing]

More articles about the Type 45 Destroyer class members' progress:

http://www.asd-network.com/press_detail/22038/HMS_Daring_is_Commissioned_Into_the_Fleet.htm]Link

BBC link

Guernsey's affiliated warship HMS Daring, the Royal Navy's newest and most advanced warship, was formally commissioned into the fleet on Thursday 23 July 2009 in front of a royal guest.

The ship's sponsor, Her Royal Highness the Countess of Wessex, who launched the Type 45 destroyer in Scotland in 2006 and visited the island only two weeks before, was the principal guest at the ceremony at Victory Jetty, Portsmouth Naval Base.

HMS Daring's Commanding Officer, Captain Paddy McAlpine, read the Commissioning Warrant and the National Anthem was played as the ship's Jack and White Ensign were raised and the commissioning pennant unfurled.

Second Type 45 Destroyer Dauntless Completes Sea Trials Ahead of Schedule

(Source: BVT Surface Fleet; dated July 18, web-posted July 28, 2009)

GLASGOW, United Kingdom --- Dauntless, the second of the Type 45 destroyers being built by BVT Surface Fleet for the Royal Navy, has today returned from sea trials, having successfully completed extensive platform and combat system trials ahead of schedule.

Over the last 23 days, Dauntless has travelled 4500 nautical miles in the Clyde and North Channel and operated with other military and civilian surface units.

The combined BVT and Royal Navy crew have successfully demonstrated the ship's capability across the three key areas of Power, Propulsion and Combat. During her time at sea, Dauntless also undertook communication trials, integration trials and a number of customer acceptance activities.

Commenting on the ship's return, BVT's UK programme director, Angus Holt said; "I am delighted with the results that have been achieved by the BVT staff, Royal Navy personnel and our partners who have crewed the ship for the last 3 weeks."

"The team work has ensured that she has not only returned to Scotstoun ahead of schedule with all trials achieved but also that we remain on course to hand her over to the Royal Navy in December."

The Type 45 Anti-Air Warfare Destroyers are the most advanced ships of their type in the world to date and will provide the backbone of the Royal Navy's air defences for much of the first half of the 21st century. As well as providing a specialist air warfare capability, they will also afford the fleet a general-purpose multi-role platform capable of performing tasks from peace support and defence diplomacy through to high-intensity warfare.


BVT Surface Fleet, a Joint Venture between BAE Systems and VT Group, is a leader in the design, manufacture, integration and support of naval ships, delivering complex engineering, integration and through-life support across the lifecycle of a vessel.
With operations in Glasgow, Portsmouth and Filton near Bristol, it employs over 7,000 people and has the facilities, skills and partnerships to set the global standard in excellence as a trusted and innovative through-life surface warship partner in both the UK and export markets.

http://www.defense-aerospace.com/article-v...sea-trials.html