HMS Active, one of the Royal Navy’s new Type 31 frigates, being built by Babcock, has entered the water for the first time at Rosyth.
The float-out of the vessel was carried out entirely at the Rosyth site, representing a first for the Type 31 programme and reflecting maturing shipbuilding capability at the yard. The ship had previously been rolled out of the build hall in February following construction inside the Venturer Hall.
HMS Active is the second of five Type 31 frigates being built for the Royal Navy, with all ships expected to enter service by 2030. The class is intended to support forward deployment, maritime security and general-purpose operations worldwide.
HMS Active is now in the water at Rosyth.
A complex operation delivered entirely at our Rosyth site for the first time on the Type 31 programme.
A sign of how our shipbuilding capability continues to grow. pic.twitter.com/tV1DPEDOGl
— Babcock International (@Babcockplc) March 23, 2026
The ship takes its name from a Type 21 frigate that served during the Falklands War, with the name intended to reflect the Royal Navy’s focus on persistent global presence. The programme forms a central part of efforts to expand and modernise the Royal Navy surface fleet.
Babcock said: “HMS Active is now in the water at Rosyth. A complex operation delivered entirely at our Rosyth site for the first time on the Type 31 programme. A sign of how our shipbuilding capability continues to grow.”
The Type 31 design displaces around 5,700 tonnes and will be equipped with a 57mm main gun, Sea Ceptor air defence missiles and a mission bay to support a range of modular payloads. It will also operate a Wildcat or Merlin helicopter and is designed to accommodate a core crew of around 110 personnel. The programme is being delivered as part of the UK’s National Shipbuilding Strategy, with Rosyth acting as the build hub for all five vessels in the class.
Image via Babcock.
That’s four frigates in the water fitting out, four laid down any being built and 1 having steel cut..
It’s just possible we might have 5 new commissioned frigates by 2030.. ( 2 T26 and 3 Type31)… the real battle and what may be a budget black hole is can the keep 3-4 of the T23s running beyond 2030 as well as bring into commission 4 frigates in 2-3 years.. big ask and big stakes… Cameron and Brown you arses..
The danger is that the RN will be overwhelmed by new ships needing sailors, having pared back during the slump. Are we doing enough to create the new crews? If not, should we sacrifice old expensive-to-operate ASW frigates for new GP frigates. I would argue not on the promise of unproven autonomous ASW systems, but I suspect I’d be in the minority.
Given the state of the “old expensive to operate ASW frigates” I don’t think there’s going to be an either/or situation, they will be lucky to still be operational by the time the new frigates start coming online at the rate the 23’s are dropping.
That’s the killer really ASW.. we loss those last T23s and it’s all down to 2 T26s… that’s going to struggle to manage even the TAS ship role.. let alone a carrier deployment..
Totally agree Jonathan, but that piece of work Blair paid his part too, I remember the early T26 concept drawings from 2022, (when it looked like an enlarged T23) just at the time our commitment to Iraq and Afghanistan were ramping up.
Blairs government froze T26 in its tracks and the nightmare we have now was set in place.
Yep all three of them get a good solid F-.
Absolutely, that said, its a slight relief to us all to see actual hardware creeping towards service.
Yes I remember Tony Blair preparing for the Iraq war in 2022 as well.
I have heard Tony Blair blamed for many things but the T26 frigate delay 🤦♂️
Congratulations to all at Babcock. I hope she’ll be a lucky ship for everyone involved with her over the years, with the obvious exception of her enemies.
Great news. Now place a batch 2 order of 5 T31 and keep the line going.
Given the leaks about the DIP, hope for export orders to keep the line going.
What leeks are those? (Twats in Cabinet delayed it again, citing wanting to add the Iran War results into the whole thing, so even more fucking delays).
The Times defence reporter has it that the 83 is to be kicked into the long grass with the 45’s to serve longer, but even with that there’s still something like 10 billion in savings needed in the DIP.
I’ll take that with an option for UK to add to the order and take one or two preferentially if National need arises.
Good news for sure, but I’m still surprised how long it takes to build frigates here. China build warships in about a third of the time.
So, can we infer from this news that the fitting out of Venturer is nearing completion?