The fourth of five new Offshore Patrol Vessels being built for the Royal Navy has been officially launched on the Clyde in Glasgow.
The ‘launch’ consisted of lowering the vessel into the water from a special barge, the barge picked up Tamar from Govan, just up the river from Scotstoun, last week.
A mixed Royal Navy-civilian crew will put the 2,000-tonne vessel through her paces off the west coast of Scotland after months of training and preparation.
Additionally, previously launched OPV Medway should move to Portsmouth early in the new year say the Royal Navy.
“We on HMS Medway are extremely excited for the challenges ahead and the imminent sea trials – and subsequent first entry into Portsmouth,” said Lt Cdr Harris in a release.
“My ship’s company continue to work hard to meet every future milestone and ultimately fulfil all the responsibilities required of her as she comes into service next year.”
By then, HMS Forth – the lead ship in the second generation of River-class vessels – should be back at sea. Problems with her have kept Forth in Portsmouth throughout the summer of 2018, but following rectifications by BAE, her crew are expected to move back on board in November with trials resuming in the second half of January.
The final ship in the class, HMS Spey, is due for launch soon say BAE.
Morning all
So soon we will have all 5 platforms in the water and on trials (hopefully with fewer defects than the first one).
Soon we will also have the outcome from the budget followed by MDP.
This will tell us the shape of the future fleet and what HMG wants to do with it to meet the strategic outcomes and missions it has defined.
We already know that Albion and Bulwark are safe.
We already know that both carriers will become operational within the next 5 years.
Everything else is pure assumption at this stage
Do we stay at 19 frigates and destroyers?
Will all 8 T26 frigates be ordered
Will the tender for 5 T31e be successfully let, getting the platform the RN want and not the one the treasury have costed
Will all 6 T45 receive their Pegasus update
Lots of questions for the RN to answer over the next couple of weeks, all a team a time when the Sec Def has been let down by his predessor with regards to outsourcing recruitment, finding that people do not want to wait on average over 300 days for an application to to join the army to be processed – we live in a country where people want to join but it takes so long they get employed elsewhere.
From arriving at the careers office to attestation took less that two months for me, that included PRMC – if something isn’t broken……
I had to wait around 6 months for my PRMC a few years back.
It took me about 8 months back in 1999
took me 3 weeks in 1977
The results of the MDP will be irrelevant if we end up with a snap election.
pointless toys, the rivers are easily big enough, if weaponised,and big enough to be classed as corvettes or perhaps specialised asw light frigate platforms 9 more ships, best of all they are, ALREADY BUILT. upgraded would make the R.N a far more potent force. the latest sigma corvette is 10 meters longer than a river, same width and draught 6 knots faster has 20 more crew, yet comes with a 72mm main gun, two triple torpedo lauchers, two quad anti air launchers and exocet!
Will they decide to flog a couple of the new OPSs off to Brazil at a knock down price – an offer you can’t refuse.
they’ve flogged off plenty before, pakistan buying all the type 21’s, which they are only just retiring brazil did very nicely with a couple of type 22’s and a helicopter carrier. romania had two t22’s as well, chile hasn’t done bad, a couple of the old counties(antrim, kent) a couple of hardly used t23’s and a 22 WE, ON THE OTHER HAND WOULDN’T DEMEAN OUR GOOD NAME WITH 2ND HAND SHIPS. WHEN IT COMES TO PROCUREMENT, THE U.K IS A SNOB.GOOGLENAVAL INACTIVE SHIPS REGISTER AND SEE WHAT AVAILABLE ON DONATION HOLD. THEN GOOGLE AMARG INVENTORY AND SEE WHAT THE U.K COULD AQUIRE WITH THE £116 MILLION WE GOT FOR THE HARRIERS, THE YANKS HAVE 500+F 16’S AND 300 F 15’S IN RESERVE STATUS. WE COULD DOUBLE THE SIZE OF THE r.a.f for peanuts! sorry about the capitals.
Oh how I do love whenever a new ship is launched.
God save the Royal Navy
BIG JOB THAT ONE.
Would it not be much simpler, and more importantly cheaper, to launch down a slipway? It’s almost as if they are deliberately making British shipbuilding as expensive and un-competitive as possible.
can’t beat the splas from a slipway
Would it not be much simpler, and more importantly cheaper, to launch down a slipway? It is almost as if they are deliberately making British shipbuilding as expensive and un-competitive as possible.
I Guess It depends on whether they have to build a Slipway !
There sits a gremlin in this site-our posts sometimes don’t appear straight away and we re-send resulting in double postings as above. Regards from Durban, Colony of Natal
Mine only appear if I use my phone. Maybe my office network settings though.
HAVE YOU TRIED CARRIER PIDGEON?
In 1962 September ? I joined on Monday and left on the Friday for JLR Bovington Dorset. The best of times.
i was about 3 weeks old!
HAVE YOU TRIED CARRIER PIGEON?
We should fit the last two with a bigger gun and some anti ship missiles, better warfare suit, and maybe a double torpedo tube, maybe some anti air missiles aswell, a corvette or 10 corvettes is what the navy could use. it could be done but at a cost. Ooops I’m thinking out loud!