Daring class (2006)
 HMS Dauntless
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The guided missile destroyer of the Daring class - also known as Type 45 - replaced the destroyer of 2009-2013 Sheffield class (Type 42) of the British Royal Navy from. According to their own statements, Great Britain received the most modern destroyer fleet in the world at the time of the influx. The ships were built by BAE Naval Systems and VT .
history
development
After the failure of the NFR-90 project at the end of the 1980s, Great Britain planned in the 1990s, together with France and Italy, to build a new multifunctional frigate . In the course of the Horizon project , however, it became clear that the ideas of Great Britain differed significantly from those of the partners. In 1999 Great Britain dropped out of the project and commissioned British Aerospace, which was already involved in the Horizon project, with the construction of the Type 45 destroyers. This benefited from the experience already gained with the original project. A total of twelve destroyers were required, but the order was reduced to eight ships in 2004. Finally, on June 19, 2008, Secretary of State Bob Ainsworth announced that only six Daring- class units would be built and the option for the seventh and eighth ship of the class would not be used.
construction
The Daring- class destroyers were built using a modular design . They are the first British warships to have the hull segments built in different locations. The stern was made by BAE Systems in Govan , the middle section with the bridge by BAE Systems in Scotstoun and the bow by VT Group in Portsmouth . The chimney and mast superstructures were also manufactured by VT in Portsmouth. The individual modules were finally assembled in Govan, where the destroyers were also launched. Only the first ship of the class, the Daring , was assembled and launched in Scotstoun for reasons of capacity. The final equipment of all ships and the installation of masts, chimneys and propellers then took place in Scotstoun. The cost of each ship was around £ 1.1 billion .
Testing and commissioning
In March 2003 construction began on the first destroyer, the future Daring . As the first ship in her class, she began her test drives in the North Atlantic on July 18, 2007. This showed that the fuel consumption is 75 percent below that of the Sheffield- class destroyers . During the first test drives, a maximum speed of 31.5 knots was reached, originally only 29 knots were planned. From a standing start, the destroyer accelerated to 29 knots within 70 seconds, the braking distance is 840 meters at a speed of 30 knots. The HMS Daring was put into service on July 23, 2009, the HMS Duncan was the last ship to enter active service on September 26, 2013.
commitment
The first longer use was made by the Daring ; this began in early 2012 and leads the ship to the Persian Gulf , while the Dauntless completed an Atlantic tour in 2012 , part was also a shorter time as a station ship in the South Atlantic ( Falkland Islands and South Georgia ). The Diamond replaced its eldest sister on the Gulf in the second half of the year.
In November 2013, the Daring supported the international relief effort in the Philippines in the wake of Typhoon Haiyan .
Range of use
Compared to their predecessors of the Sheffield class, the new destroyers are almost twice as large and equipped with significantly more modern weapon systems. This also includes the SAMPSON and S1850M radar systems . Thanks to more modern propulsion and communication technology, the ships are also more efficient and cost-effective than the Sheffield class. At the same time, greater flexibility should be guaranteed for operations around the world. This includes shorter maintenance and repair phases. While the earlier destroyers were in service an average of around 230 days per year, the Daring class was in service for over 300 days. From the point of view of the Ministry of Defense in London , six ships should be sufficient to replace the previous eleven destroyers. Together with the new aircraft carriers of the Queen Elizabeth class , the nuclear submarines of the Astute class and the frigates of the FSC program (Type 26), the destroyers should further increase the efficiency of the Royal Navy.
criticism
As with other armaments projects, there were multiple budget cuts in the course of development. As a result, only six instead of the originally planned twelve destroyers are to be built. Critics of this decision fear that this means that adequate air defense for British naval units may not be available at all times. The Ministry of Defense , however, pointed out that the new destroyers were much more powerful and less maintenance-intensive, which is why six ships would be enough to replace the previous eleven Sheffield-class destroyers.
There was further criticism of the savings in weapon systems. The planned 155 mm cannon was replaced by a 114 mm cannon for reasons of cost; Instead of a rocket-based CIWS , the outdated Phalanx system is used and only Stingray torpedoes are carried for use by helicopters, and on-board torpedo systems are dispensed with. Anti-ship missiles and cruise missiles are also not installed, contrary to original plans. According to the Ministry of Defense, the retrofitting of all destroyers with these weapon systems is planned at a later date; this was already taken into account during construction. The sole reason for the subsequent installation is that some systems would not have reached series maturity at the time the first destroyers were put into service. Former Navy Commander in Chief Admiral Sir Alan West said:
"The ships are not the best that we could build, but [...] the armament enhancements to the later ships will improve their capabilities considerably. These ships are not the best that we could build, but [...] ] the additional weapon systems of the later ships will significantly increase their capabilities). "
Rear Admiral Chris Parry stated in January 2017 that the destroyers were "devilishly loud" underwater and that they sounded like a box full of wrenches. His crew would have put wooden wedges in hatches and doors to reduce the rattle. A corresponding investigation showed that Russian submarines could locate the noise over hundreds of nautical miles.
units
After the last construction lot of the Type 22 frigates had names that began on C, the new Type 45 destroyers began with those starting with D. The home port is Portsmouth .
| Identifier | ship | Launch | In service | Whereabouts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| D32 | HMS Daring | February 1, 2006 | July 23, 2009 | active |
| D33 | HMS Dauntless | January 23, 2007 | June 3, 2010 | active |
| D34 | HMS Diamond | November 27, 2007 | May 6, 2011 | active |
| D35 | HMS Dragon | November 17, 2008 | April 20, 2012 | active |
| D36 | HMS Defender | October 21, 2009 | 21st March 2013 | active |
| D37 | HMS Duncan | October 11, 2010 | 26th September 2013 | active |
Web links
- Information on the official website of the Royal Navy
- Detailed and up-to-date information on the Daring class
Footnotes
- ^ Type 45 Destroyers , House of Commons. June 19, 2008.
- ↑ BBC News: Destroyers late and over budget , March 13, 2009.
- ^ HMS Daring Information - Completion of Stage One Sea Trials , BAE Systems. August 14, 2007.
- ^ A b HMS Daring is commissioned into the fleet , Ministry of Defense. July 23, 2009.
- ↑ Beedall, Richard. Type 45 ("D" Class) Destroyer Daring Class - Part 1 ( Memento of the original from April 14, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , Navy Matters.
- ↑ Laura Hughes: British warships 'so noisy' Russian submarines can hear them 100 miles away, investigation finds. The Telegraph dated February 5, 2017
