Hunt-class mine countermeasures vessel

Last updated

HMS Quorn is pictured as she departs from Portsmouth. MOD 45139064.jpg
HMS Quorn in 2001
Class overview
NameHunt class
Builders
Operators
Built19781988
In commission1979present
Completed13
Active9
Laid up3
Lost1
General characteristics
Type Mine countermeasures vessel
Displacement750 t (740 long tons; 830 short tons) [1]
Length60 m (196 ft 10 in)
Beam9.8 m (32 ft 2 in)
Draught2.2 m (7 ft 3 in)
Propulsion
  • 2 shaft CAT C32 diesel
  • 2,000 shp (1,500 kW)
Speed17  kn (31 km/h; 20 mph)
Complement45 (6 officers & 39 ratings)
Sensors and
processing systems
  • Radar Type 1007 I band/SharpEye navigation radar [2]
  • Sonar Type 2193
Electronic warfare
& decoys
  • SeaFox mine disposal system
  • Diver-placed explosive charges
Armament
Stern view of HMS Brocklesby off Bahrain in 2021 HMS Brocklesby deployed on Op KIPION MOD 45167666.jpg
Stern view of HMS Brocklesby off Bahrain in 2021

The Hunt class is a class of thirteen mine countermeasure vessels of the Royal Navy. As built, they combined the separate roles of the traditional minesweeper and that of the active minehunter in one hull, but later modifications saw the removal of mine-sweeping equipment. They have a secondary role as offshore patrol vessels.

Contents

Development

Upon introduction in the early 1980s they were the largest warships ever built out of glass-reinforced plastic [5] and were the last in operation to use the Napier Deltic diesel engine. All were built by Vosper Thornycroft in Woolston except Cottesmore and Middleton, which were built by Yarrow Shipbuilders Limited on the River Clyde. Quorn was the last ship of the class launched.

Following the sale of Bicester and Berkeley to the Greek Navy, the sale of Cottesmore and Dulverton to the Lithuanian Navy and the decommissioning of Brecon, a contract to re-engine the remaining eight vessels was signed by BAE Systems in 2008, whereby the existing 30-year old Napier Deltic 9-59K power units were replaced by Caterpillar CAT C32 engines, together with new gearboxes, bow thrusters, propellers and control systems, in a six year refurbishment programme that was completed in 2018.

The capabilities of the remaining eight vessels of the Hunt class have been significantly enhanced by the installation of Sonar Type 2193 and the NAUTIS 3 command system. The performance of Sonar 2193 exceeds that of any other mine hunting sonar in service in the world today and is capable of detecting and classifying an object the size of a football at a distance of up to 1,000 metres (1,100 yd). [6] In late 2007 Chiddingfold used the Seafox drone, the Royal Navy's mine disposal system, during Exercise Neptune Warrior off Scotland. Seafox is described by the MOD as a "state of the art fire and forget system, capable of destroying mines in depths of up to 300 metres".

The 2021 defence white paper announced that all the Hunt-class vessels would be retired from Royal Navy service in the 2020s and replaced by automated systems. [7] It was subsequently indicated that the withdrawal would occur in the 2029 to 2031 period. [8]

In 2023, the navy began to take delivery of six REMUS 300 small autonomous underwater vehicles (SAUVs), produced by Huntington Ingalls Industries. The system is being acquired to enhance the capabilities of the Hunt-class ships and has a reported operating depth of 300 meters with an endurance time of up to 20 hours. [9] [10]

Ships in the class

All 13 ships of this class re-used names from the World War II Hunt-class destroyer. Four of the names had also been used for World War I Hunt-class minesweepers: these were HMS Bicester, Cattistock, Cottesmore and Quorn. HMS Atherstone had been a paddlewheel minesweeper in 1916, and Brocklesby was a coaster taken up from trade in 1916.[ citation needed ]

NavyName Pennant number BuilderLaunchedCommissionedStatus
Naval Ensign of the United Kingdom.svg  Royal Navy Brecon M29 Vosper Thornycroft 19781980Decommissioned, now training ship at HMS Raleigh
Ledbury M30Vosper Thornycroft19791981In active service
Cattistock M31Vosper Thornycroft19811982In active service
Brocklesby M33Vosper Thornycroft19821983In active service
Middleton M34 Yarrow Shipbuilders 19831984In active service
Chiddingfold M37Vosper Thornycroft19831984In active service
Atherstone M38Vosper Thornycroft19861986Decommissioned 14 December 2017
Hurworth M39Vosper Thornycroft19841985In active service
Flag of Greece.svg  Hellenic Navy EuropaM62Vosper Thornycroft19851988 / 2001In active service, former HMS Bicester
Kallisto M63Vosper Thornycroft19861986 / 2000Former HMS Berkeley, cut in two in a collision with a container ship on 27 October 2020. [11]
Naval Ensign of Lithuania.svg  Lithuanian Naval Force Skalvis M53Yarrow Shipbuilders19821983 / 2011In active service, former HMS Cottesmore
Kuršis M54Vosper Thornycroft19821983 / 2011In active service, former HMS Dulverton
Quorn M41Vosper Thornycroft19881989 / 2020 (M)Decommissioned 14 December 2017. Sold to Lithuania in 2020. Undergoing modernization to enter LNF in 2023.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Minehunter</span> Vessel for detecting and destroying naval mines

A minehunter is a naval vessel that seeks, detects, and destroys individual naval mines. Minesweepers, on the other hand, clear mined areas as a whole, without prior detection of mines. A vessel that combines both of these roles is known as a mine countermeasures vessel (MCMV).

<i>Sandown</i>-class minehunter 1989 class of British minehunters

The Sandown class is a class of fifteen minehunters built primarily for the Royal Navy by Vosper Thornycroft. The Sandown class also serve with the Royal Saudi Navy, the Estonian Navy, and the Ukrainian Navy. The first vessel was commissioned into Royal Navy service on 9 June 1989 and all the British ships were named after coastal towns and cities. Although the class had a primary mine countermeasures role, they have had a secondary role as offshore patrol vessels. As of early 2024, only one vessel of the class remains in active service with the Royal Navy.

HMS Kirkliston (M1157) was a Ton-class minesweeper of the Royal Navy, built by Harland and Wolff and launched on 18 February 1954. In a brief episode from 1956 to 1960 she was temporarily renamed HMS Kilmorey and was assigned to the Ulster division Royal Naval Reserve (RNR).

HMS <i>Bangor</i> (M109) 2000 Sandown-class minehunter of the Royal Navy

HMS Bangor is a Sandown-class minehunter commissioned by the Royal Navy in 2000. Designed to hunt naval mines in depths of up to 200 m (660 ft) using the Sonar 2093 Variable Depth Sonar (VDS) meaning that she can conduct mine clearance operations throughout the continental shelf. She is named after the Northern Ireland seaside city of the same name, and the second Royal Navy vessel to bear the name. As of January 2024, she was the last vessel of her class in active Royal Navy service.

<i>Osprey</i>-class minehunter Ship class

The Osprey class are a series of coastal minehunters designed to find, classify, and destroy moored and bottom naval mines from vital waterways.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mine countermeasures vessel</span> Naval ship

A mine countermeasures vessel or MCMV is a type of naval ship designed for the location of and destruction of naval mines which combines the role of a minesweeper and minehunter in one hull. The term MCMV is also applied collectively to minehunters and minesweepers.

Tripartite-class minehunter Ship class of minehunters

The Tripartite class is a class of minehunters developed from an agreement between the navies of Belgium, France and the Netherlands. A total of 35 ships were constructed for the three navies. The class was constructed in the 1980s–1990s in all three countries, using a mix of minehunting, electrical and propulsion systems from the three member nations. In France, where they are known as the Éridan class they are primarily used as minehunters, but have been used for minesweeping and ammunition transport in Belgium and the Netherlands, where the Tripartites are known as the Alkmaar class.

HMS <i>Ledbury</i> (M30) 1981 Hunt-class mine countermeasures vessel of the Royal Navy

HMS Ledbury, the second ship of the name, is a Hunt-class mine countermeasures vessel of the Royal Navy. She was launched in December 1979 and commissioned on 11 June 1981, the second ship of her class. She cost £65 million at time of building, which was at the time the most expensive cost-per-metre for any class of ship built by the Royal Navy. Most of this cost went into the research and development of Ledbury's glass reinforced plastic hull.

HMS <i>Pembroke</i> (M107) 1998 Sandown-class minehunter of the Royal Navy

HMS Pembroke was a Sandown-class minehunter of the Royal Navy (RN), the second ship launched from the class' second batch, with several improvements over the first five built.

HMS <i>Inverness</i> (M102) 1990 United Kingdom ship; also used by Estonian Navy

HMSInverness(M102) was a Sandown-class minehunter of the Royal Navy. She was decommissioned by the Royal Navy in 2005, and in 2008 became EMLSakala(M314) of the Estonian Navy.

HMS <i>Brocklesby</i> (M33) 1983 Hunt-class mine countermeasures vessel of the Royal Navy

HMS Brocklesby is a Hunt-class mine countermeasures vessel of the British Royal Navy, her primary purpose is to find and neutralise sea mines using a combination of; Sonar, Mine Clearance Divers and the Seafox remotely operated vehicle (ROV). The class are the largest warships of glass-reinforced plastic (GRP) construction, which gives the vessels a low magnetic signature. In addition to her mine countermeasures activities, Brocklesby acts as an offshore patrol vessel, undertaking coastal patrol and fisheries protection duties.

HMS <i>Middleton</i> (M34) 1984 Hunt-class mine countermeasures vessel of the Royal Navy

HMS Middleton is a Hunt-class mine countermeasures vessel of the British Royal Navy. As of 2021, she forms part of 9th Mine Countermeasures Squadron operating out of HMS Jufair in Bahrain.

HMS <i>Cottesmore</i> (M32)

HMS Cottesmore was a Hunt-class mine countermeasures vessel of the British Royal Navy, launched in 1982 and converted in 1997 into a patrol vessel. The ship was declared surplus to requirement and put on the MoD list for disposal in 2004. In 2008 she was bought by Lithuania, along with Dulverton.

HMS Berkeley was a Hunt-class mine countermeasures vessel of the British Royal Navy. She was sold to the Hellenic Navy in 2001 and was commissioned as HS Kallisto. On 27 October 2020, she was cut in two in a collision with a container ship.

HMS <i>Dulverton</i> (M35) British Navy military vessel

HMS Dulverton was a Hunt-class mine countermeasures vessel of the British Royal Navy, launched in 1982 and converted in 1997 into a patrol vessel. The ship was declared surplus to requirement and put on the MoD list for disposal in 2004. In 2008 she was bought by Lithuania, along with Cottesmore.

<i>Avenger</i>-class mine countermeasures ship Class of American mine countermeasures ships

Avenger-class mine countermeasures ships are a class of 14 ships constructed for the United States Navy from 1987 to 1994, designed to clear mines from vital waterways. The ships have the hull designator MCM.

<i>Bedok</i>-class mine countermeasures vessel Singaporean navy vessel

The Bedok class are mine countermeasures vessels of the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN). They play an important role in the maritime security of Singapore, ensuring that the Singapore Strait and the sea lanes surrounding Singapore remain mine-free and open to international shipping. It is estimated that closure of Singapore's ports would result in direct trade losses amounting to more than US$1.2 billion daily, posing a serious threat to Singapore's economy. The four ships form the Sixth Flotilla of the RSN.

City-class mine countermeasures vessel Ship design project of the Royal Netherlands Navy and Belgian Navy

The Netherlands and Belgium are doing a joint procurement for the replacements of the Tripartite-class/Alkmaar-class minehunters. Each of the two countries is procuring six new mine countermeasure (MCM) vessels, which makes for a total of 12 MCM ships. The new MCM ships, developed by Naval Group, will include a range of unmanned systems including unmanned surface, aerial and underwater vehicles alongside towed sonars and mine identification and neutralization remotely operated vehicles.

References

  1. "Hunt Class Mine Countermeasures Vessels - Specifications". GlobalSecurity.org. 11 July 2011. Retrieved 13 March 2019.
  2. "New navigation radar system for Royal Navy". GOV.UK. 28 January 2016. Retrieved 4 August 2016.
  3. "The all-rounder – the 30mm Automated Small Calibre Gun in focus". Navy Lookout. 13 January 2021. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
  4. "In focus: the 50 cal heavy machine gun in Royal Navy service". Navy Lookout. 5 May 2023. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  5. Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships . Annapolis: US Naval Institute Press. 1996. p.  542. ISBN   1-55750-132-7.
  6. "The Royal Navy's most advanced minehunting sonar has entered service". Thales Group. 26 March 2004. Archived from the original on 15 March 2007. Retrieved 4 August 2016.
  7. "Unmanned Systems Set to Replace All Royal Navy Mine Warfare Vessels". The Maritime Executive. 24 March 2021. Archived from the original on 24 March 2021. Retrieved 8 April 2021.
  8. "Minesweepers out of service dates revealed". 6 September 2021.
  9. Scott, Richard (13 November 2023). "RN takes delivery of REMUS 300 SAUVs". Janes.
  10. "REMUS 300 Unmanned Underwater Vehicle (UUV)". Naval Technology. 21 March 2023.
  11. Tsiliopoulos, E. (27 October 2020). "Huge merchant ship cuts minesweeper "Kallisto" in two". New Greek TV. Retrieved 27 October 2020.