First British Inspiration-class frigate to launch in 2023

British defense contractor Babcock International has begun production of the first lead ship of the Type 31 Inspiration class (inspiration).

Construction began after the ministerDefense Ben Wallace launched an automatic cutter in the Rosyte assembly shop. The first of five warships of the new class will be launched in 2023, the rest are due to be completed by 2030.

The Type 31 Inspiration general purpose frigate is designed to perform a wide range of missions, including submarine detection, patrol, intelligence gathering, maritimecombat and humanitarian support.It will be armed with a Sea Ceptor anti-aircraft missile system, a 57 mm main gun and two 40 mm Bofors guns, equipped with a 4D radar system and will be able to carry a Merlin helicopter or its equivalent. With a length of 138.7 m, it will be able to reach a speed of 28 knots (52 km/h) with a power reserve of 17 thousand km.

Plenty of use cases will providemodularity, which will become a new standard for the British Navy. It involves the use of universal structural modules (PODS), which can be changed and combined depending on the tasks and conditions of the current mission, even on the high seas.

PODS will be the size of a shipping containerCompatible with all new ships and submarines. They can carry drones, autonomous equipment for searching for mines, a command center for landing, humanitarian aid, a surgical department and the like.

text: Ilya Bauer photo: Royal Navy