His Majesty's Naval Service of the British Armed Forces |
---|
Components |
|
History and future |
Ships |
Personnel |
Auxiliary services |
This is a list of Active Royal Navy weapon systems.
The 4.5-inch (114 mm) Mark 8 gun can be found on all the Royal Navy's frigates and destroyers and was used from the Falklands War to the War in Iraq. The gun can fire up to 24 high explosive shells per minute, each weighing more than 40 kilograms (88 lb), at targets more than 12 miles (19 km) away – this can be extended to nearly 18 miles (29 km) if special extended-range shells are used.
The main purpose of the gun is naval gunfire support – artillery bombardment of shore targets. In this role the gun is capable of firing the equivalent of a six-gun shore battery. It can still be used as an anti-ship weapon. [1]
The 30 mm DS-30B Mk 1 and DS30M Mark 2 are 30-millimetre (1.2 in) automated naval gun systems designed to defend ships from fast inshore attack craft armed with short-range weaponry. The DS30M Mark 2 system consists of a 30 mm Mark 44 Bushmaster II cannon on a fully automated mount with an off-mount electro-optical director (EOD). The systems are fitted to all Type 23 frigates (Mk2s) , Type 45 destroyers (said to be carrying Mk1s as of 2021), Batch 2 River-class offshore patrol vessels (OPVs) (Mk2s), Hunt-class mine countermeasures vessels (Mk1s), Sandown-class minehunter (Mk1) and several Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) ships (Bay, Tide and Wave classes) all reported to be carrying Mk1s when they have weapons packages added. The system is capable of being deployed on the aircraft carriers HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales, but as of 2021 had not been fitted. [2] [3] [4]
The Oerlikon 20 mm (0.79 in) cannon can be found on the Albion-class landing platform docks, the Batch 1 River-class OPVs, the primary casualty receiving ship RFA Argus, and the multi-role replenishment ship Fort Victoria. [4]
The Browning .50-calibre heavy machine gun can be found fitted to ships, the first of which was HMS Atherstone in 2014, [5] and in 2021 it was reported that HMS Lancaster had also been fitted with them. [6]
All Royal Navy ships carried miniguns for close in defence. [7] [8] But the system was scheduled to be retired from service in 2023 and replaced with Browning .50 caliber heavy machine guns. [9]
The Phalanx Close-in Weapon System (CIWS) is an anti-ship missile defence system. It is fitted to the Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers, HMS Albion, the Type 45 destroyers as well as the Bay-class landing ships and Wave and Fort Victoria-class replenishment oilers in the RFA. It is also currently in the designs[ when? ] for the new Type 26 frigate. During Operation Telic, Phalanx guns were removed from ships and were crewed by Royal Navy personnel based at Basra airport, as part of the Centurion C-RAM system. [10]
Phalanx is now the only CIWS fitted to Royal Navy ships following the decommissioning of HMS Invincible, HMS Illustrious and the Type 22 frigates which were equipped with Goalkeeper. The last active Goalkeeper system was removed from HMS Bulwark when she entered extended readiness in 2016.
The Spearfish torpedo is the Royal Navy's heavyweight torpedo, weighing nearly 2 metric tons (2.0 long tons ; 2.2 short tons ), which is carried by both the attack submarines and ballistic missile submarines. It has a range of more than 30 mi (48 km) with a speed in excess of 92 miles per hour (148 km/h) and can be used either against other submarines or ships of any size. It carries a 300 kg (660 lb) explosive charge and is guided either by its in-built sonar or via a copper-cadmium wire. [11]
The Spearfish is undergoing a major upgrade program which will provide sophisticated advances in its homing, warheads, tactical and fueling systems, as well an upgraded guidance link. [12]
The Sting Ray torpedo is the Royal Navy's lightweight torpedo which is designed to be carried by the anti-submarine helicopters AgustaWestland Merlin and Lynx Wildcat. It has a range of around 5 mi (8.0 km) with a speed of more than 52 mph (84 km/h) and is designed to be used predominantly against submarines. It carries a 45 kg (99 lb) explosive charge which is powerful enough to punch through the double hulls of modern submarines. [13] It is also integrated on board the Type 23 frigates, deployed by two twin torpedo launchers.
The Mk11 Depth Charge is a depth charge used by Lynx Wildcat or Merlin Mk2 helicopters to attack enemy submarines. [14]
The Seafox Mine Disposal System is an unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) used by both the Sandown and Hunt-class minehunters to counter naval mines. The unit incorporates a remotely controlled surveillance system in order to identify a target, guided from the parent ship via fibre optic cables. Once a mine has been identified, an expendable autonomous or remote guided unit is guided to the target and detonates a shaped charge to destroy the mine. Four independent reversible motors and a hover thruster provide high manoeuvrability, allowing for exact placement prior to charge detonation. The Seafox has been used by the Royal Navy clearing coastal waters in both Iraq and Libya conflicts.
The Sea Ceptor missile is currently being integrated [ when? ] into the Type 23 frigates, as a replacement to the Sea Wolf missile. It has a maximum range over 25 kilometres (16 mi) and can reach Mach 3. The manufacturer states it has a "wide target set", including the capability to engage small naval vessels, which would give the missile a limited surface-to-surface role. A Royal Navy officer of the Type 23 frigate HMS Westminster stated: "Westminster managed to explore the real potential of the system during her training and to say it is a real game changer is an understatement. Unlike its predecessor, the system is capable of defending ships other than Westminster herself. Whether it's engaging multiple air threats or fast incoming attack craft, Sea Ceptor represents a massive capability upgrade for the Type 23 frigate." [15]
The Sea Viper is the main weapon of the Type 45 destroyers. As part of PAAMS, it can defend an entire naval task group against aerial threats up to 70 mi (110 km) away.
Internationally, the Sea Viper system is known as Principal Anti-Air Missile System. It comprises the SAMPSON radar, a Combat Management System, S1850M long-range radar, the Sylver vertical launching system and Aster 15 (20 mi, 32 km) and Aster 30 (75 mi, 121 km) missiles, which are highly manoeuvrable and capable of speeds over Mach 4. [16]
In November 2022, UK Secretary of State for Defence, Ben Wallace, confirmed that Norway's Naval Strike Missile would be purchased to equip a total of eleven of the Royal Navy's Type 23 frigates and Type 45 destroyers on an interim basis. [17] [18] Beginning in late 2023, the Naval Strike Missile (NSM) began being fit to a total of 11 Type 23 frigates and Type 45 destroyers in a 2×4 canister configuration to replace the Harpoon Block 1C anti-ship missile, which was formally retired at the end of 2023. [19] The missile also has the capability to attack land targets. [20]
The permanent replacement for Harpoon will be the FC/ASW (Future Cruise/Anti Ship Weapon), first announced in 2016, it will fly at hypersonic speed and will equip the new Type 26 frigates from 2028. [21] [22] In October 2021 this was put on hold. [23] [24] Then it was announced in November that the introduction of these weapons may be delayed until the 2030s. [25]
The Martlet is a lightweight air-to-surface and surface-to-surface missile under development by Thales Air Defence for the United Kingdom. As of 2021, Martlet entered initial service on the Fleet Air Arm's AgustaWestland AW159 Wildcat in the air-to-surface mode with up to twenty Martlet missiles envisaged for deployment on a single Wildcat helicopter. The missile is intended to counter light fast attack boats. [26] Full operating capability is anticipated in 2025. [27]
The Martlet has also been tested in the surface-to-surface mode on the Type 23 frigate, using a launcher mounted on the side of the 30 mm cannon, as a relatively inexpensive missile to use against small craft and unmanned aerial vehicles.
The Sea Venom is a helicopter-launched lightweight anti-ship missile developed by MBDA to replace the Sea Skua. Sea Venom missiles were reported deployed with Royal Navy Wildcat helicopters operating as part of the Royal Navy's carrier strike group in 2021. [28] The missile weighs 110 kg (240 lb) and has a warhead of 30 kg (66 lb). However, operating challenges were reported in 2023 as "ongoing" and full operating capability for Sea Venom was delayed until 2026. [29] [30] It is optimized to attack fast inshore attack craft (FIAC), however it can also damage targets up to corvette size. [31]
The Tomahawk missile, also known as TLAM (Tomahawk Land Attack Cruise Missile), allows the Navy's submarines to strike at targets on land accurately. The missile has been in use with the Royal Navy since the late 1990s and has been used in the Kosovo conflict and in the campaigns in the War in Afghanistan and Iraq. It is fired from a boat's torpedo tubes. Once it reaches the surface, a booster rocket ignites to propel the missile skywards. The Tomahawk then heads for its target at 550 mph (890 km/h), delivering a 1,000 lb (450 kg) explosive warhead.
The Tomahawk IV is the latest version of the missile. It has a longer range than its predecessors and can be directed at a new target in-flight, and can also beam back images of the battlefield. In British service it is fitted to all Trafalgar and Astute-class submarines. [32] It is currently planned to be[ when? ] phased out of service in the United States Navy, with no more weapons to be produced after 2015, meaning that it may no longer be an option for the Royal Navy from around the end of the decade. [33] The UK last bought 65 Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles in July 2014. [34]
The Trident nuclear missile is Britain's nuclear deterrent. Carried only by the four Vanguard-class submarines, the missiles travel up to 7,000 mi (11,000 km) at over 13,000 mph (21,000 km/h). Each Vanguard boat can carry up to sixteen missiles, and each missile can deliver up to eight warheads. Each variable yield warhead can have a yield up to 100 kt. [35]
The TomahawkLand Attack Missile (TLAM) is a long-range, all-weather, jet-powered, subsonic cruise missile that is primarily used by the United States Navy and Royal Navy in ship and submarine-based land-attack operations.
The Trafalgar class is a class of nuclear-powered fleet submarines (SSNs) in service with the Royal Navy, and the successor to the Swiftsure class. Like the majority of Royal Navy nuclear submarines, all seven boats were constructed at Barrow-in-Furness shipyard, Cumbria. With only one boat remaining active and in commission and six retired from the seven originally in service, the class makes up part of the Royal Navy's nuclear-powered ‘hunter-killer’ submarine force. The Trafalgar class has nearly been replaced by the larger and more capable Astute class, of which five are commissioned.
The Type 23 frigate or Duke class is a class of frigates built for the United Kingdom's Royal Navy. The ships are named after British Dukes, thus leading to the class being commonly known as the Duke class. The first Type 23, HMS Norfolk, was commissioned in 1989, and the sixteenth, HMS St Albans was commissioned in June 2002. They form the core of the Royal Navy's destroyer and frigate fleet and serve alongside the Type 45 destroyers. They were designed for anti-submarine warfare, but have been used for a range of uses. Ten Type 23 frigates remain in service with the Royal Navy, with three vessels having been sold to the Chilean Navy, one being retired in 2021, and two being retired in 2023.
HMS Triumph is a Trafalgar-class nuclear submarine of the Royal Navy and was the seventh and final boat of her class. She is the nineteenth nuclear-powered hunter-killer submarine built for the Royal Navy. Triumph is the tenth vessel, and the second submarine, to bear the name. The first HMS Triumph was a 68-gun galleon built in 1561. As of 2022, she is the last boat of her class remaining in service.
The Type 45 destroyer, also known as the D or Daring class, is a class of six guided-missile destroyers built for the United Kingdom's Royal Navy in the early 21st century. The class is primarily designed for anti-aircraft and anti-missile warfare and is built around the PAAMS air-defence system using the SAMPSON Active electronically scanned array (AESA) and the S1850M long-range radars. The first three destroyers were assembled by BAE Systems Surface Fleet Solutions from partially prefabricated "blocks" built at different shipyards; the remaining three were built by BAE Systems Maritime – Naval Ships. The first ship in the Daring class, HMS Daring, was launched on 1 February 2006 and commissioned on 23 July 2009.
HMS Iron Duke is a Type 23 frigate of the Royal Navy, and the third ship to bear the name.
HMS Ambush is an Astute-class nuclear-powered attack submarine of the Royal Navy, the second boat of her class.
HMS Artful is the third Astute-class nuclear-powered fleet submarine of the British Royal Navy. She is the second submarine of the Royal Navy to bear this name. Artful was ordered from GEC's Marconi Marine on 17 March 1997, and was constructed at Barrow in Furness. She was named on 20 September 2013, was rolled out of the shipyard construction hall on 16 May 2014, and was due to start sea trials in early 2015. Artful made her first successful basin dive in October 2014, and sailed on 13 August 2015 for sea trials. Artful was handed over the Royal Navy on 14 December 2015, and commissioned on 18 March 2016.
HMS Dido was a Royal Navy (RN) Leander-class frigate. Entering service in 1961, Dido was involved in the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation, served with NATO's Standing Naval Force Atlantic on several occasions, and was one of the frigates used for the filming of the drama series Warship.
HMS Phoebe (F42) was a Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy (RN). She was, like the rest of her class, named after a figure of mythology. Built by Alexander Stephen and Sons on the River Clyde, she was launched on 19 December 1964 and commissioned on 15 May 1966.
The Type 82 or Bristol-class destroyer was a 1960s guided missile destroyer design intended to replace County-class destroyers in the Royal Navy. Originally eight warships were planned to provide area air-defence for the four planned CVA-01 aircraft carriers. They would also have been able to operate independently as modern cruisers "East of Suez".
Future planning of the Royal Navy's capabilities is set through periodic Defence Reviews carried out by the British Government. The Royal Navy's role in the 2020s, and beyond, is outlined in the 2021 defence white paper, which was published on 22 March 2021. The white paper is one component of the Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy, titled as Global Britain in a Competitive Age which was published on 16 March 2021.
The Type 26 frigate, also known as City-class frigate, is a class of frigates being built for the United Kingdom's Royal Navy, with variants also being built for the Australian and Canadian navies. The programme, known as the Global Combat Ship, was launched by the British Ministry of Defence to partially replace the navy's thirteen Type 23 frigates, and for export. Its primary role is to conduct advanced anti-submarine warfare missions while supporting air defence and general purpose operations. The type is the first naval platform shared between Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom since the pre-Second World War Tribal-class destroyer.
The Rothesay class, or Type 12M frigates were a class of frigates serving with the Royal Navy, South African Navy and the Royal New Zealand Navy.
HMS Diamond is the third ship of the Type 45 or Daring-class air-defence guided missile destroyers built for the Royal Navy. She was launched in 2007, and completed her contractor's sea trials and arrived at her base port in 2010. Diamond formally entered service in 2011.
The 4.5 inch Mark 8 is a British naval gun system which currently equips the Royal Navy's destroyers and frigates, and some British destroyers and frigates sold to other countries.
The AgustaWestland AW159 Wildcat is a military helicopter, developed by the British-Italian helicopter manufacturer AgustaWestland, and later marketed by the Italian aerospace company Leonardo. It is an improved version of the Westland Super Lynx designed to serve in the battlefield utility, search and rescue, aerial reconnaissance, anti-submarine warfare (ASW), anti-surface warfare (ASuW), utility, command and control, and troop transport duties.
The 30mm DS30M Mark 2 is a ship-protection system made by MSI-Defence Systems consisting of a 30mm Mark 44 Bushmaster II cannon on an automated mount. It was designed to defend Royal Navy frigates from fast inshore attack craft armed with short-range missiles, rocket-propelled grenades, machine guns, or explosives.
Martlet or the Lightweight Multirole Missile(LMM) is a lightweight air-to-surface, air-to-air, surface-to-air, and surface-to-surface missile developed by Thales Air Defence for the United Kingdom. It is named after a mythical bird from English heraldry that never roosts, the Martlet.
The FC/ASW, FMAN/FMC, FOSW or SPEAR 5 is a next generation missile programme launched by France and the United Kingdom in 2017 to succeed their jointly-developed Storm Shadow/SCALP as well as their respective Exocet and Harpoon anti-ship missiles. Equally funded by both countries, the project is led by European missile manufacturer MBDA and is a product of the close defence relationship set out between both nations by the Lancaster House treaties. In June 2023, it was announced Italy would join the programme and began allocating funding in November.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link){{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link){{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link){{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link){{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)