The RINA Warship conference in Adelaide in June 2024 heard that surface combatant survivability needs to be revisited to address challenges posed by attacks by multiple UAVs, and uncrewed vessels have challenges all of their own. Future warships will have to be able to survive – and fight – in the face of a new […]
A paper presented at the 2024 RINA Warship conference in Australia heard an analysis of how the Royal Australian Navy might meet a requirement for greater fire power and more missile-armed vessels. The Royal Australian Navy’s surface fleet is well-equipped in sensor and combat management systems but lacks the ability to deploy sufficient effectors, but […]
Drawing on design practice employed in surface combatants and aircraft carriers, a project to develop concept designs for drone carriers has been developed in response to growing use of naval USVs. The use of drones in naval warfare has come sharply into focus since the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the use of uncrewed units […]
The first in RINA’s long-running series of ‘Warship’ conferences outside the UK took place in Adelaide, Australia in June 2024, and focused on the Royal Australian Navy’s significant need for, and investment in, new vessels. As Rob Gehling, Secretary of the institution’s Australian Division explained, the conference was organised by RINA headquarters in the UK, […]
The US Navy embarked on construction of its latest frigate design before the design was finalised, a decision that is creating ongoing problems. Design of the US Navy’s FFG 62 Constellation-class multi-mission frigate – a programme it embarked on because of failures in its Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) programme – has slowed and construction has […]
A keel-laying ceremony took place on 3 June 2024 for the German Navy’s first F126 frigate, the first ship in what is the largest procurement project in the history of the German Navy. The first frigate will be christened Niedersachsen and is scheduled for delivery in 2028. At the keel-laying ceremony at Peene Shipyard, part […]
On 28 June 2024, construction was initiated of the first Canadian Surface Combatants (CSC), a new class of destroyers for the Royal Canadian Navy. The River-class project is the largest and most complex shipbuilding initiative in Canada since the Second World War and a key part of the country’s National Shipbuilding Programme. The Honourable Bill […]
Babcock has been selected by Saab to support the design of the Swedish Navy’s new Luleå-class surface combatant. Saab, which was commissioned by the FMV, the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration, will design four ships for the Swedish Navy. Babcock will initially provide engineering support, including structural design and auxiliary systems, supporting Saab to complete the […]
A decade-long programme of upgrade work on the UK Royal Navy’s ageing Type 23 frigates is nearing completion, with one ship left to complete the process. At the end of February 2024, the UK Royal Navy frigate HMS St Albans returned to sea after what the Royal Navy described as a “massive revamp” at Devonport […]
In February 2024, Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) confirmed that its Newport News Shipbuilding division (NNS) had initiated topside testing of the electromagnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS) on the US Navy’s aircraft carrier John F Kennedy (CVN 79). EMALS, first integrated into USS Gerald R Ford (CVN 78), replaces the existing steam catapults currently in use on the US Navy’s Nimitz-class […]
The Netherlands Ministry of Defence has provisionally selected Naval Group – offering its Black Sword Barracuda design – to deliver a replacement submarine capability to succeed the Royal Netherlands Navy’s current Walrus-class boats. Announcing the decision on 15 March 2024, State Secretary for Defence Christophe van der Maat said that the French naval shipbuilding, support […]
The Australian government has selected BAE Systems and ASC Pty Ltd to jointly build Australia’s new fleet of nuclear-powered submarines in the latest significant development in the AUKUS trilateral security pact. SSN-AUKUS is a new class of nuclear-powered attack submarine (SSN) being developed in partnership with the US and Australia to satisfy the needs of […]