The Australian Government announced on Friday 29 June 2018 that BAE System’s Type 26 ‘City Class’ Frigate (shown above) has been chosen as the successful bidder for Project SEA 5000 Phase 1 (Future Frigate).
The project will introduce into Royal Australian Navy (RAN) service the next generation of nine anti-submariane warfare Frigates and replace Australia’s existing fleet of eight Anzac Class frigates (shown below) which were introduced into service in the 1990s and early 2000s. Construction should commence in 2020 with the lead ship in service in the late 2020s.
The two other contenders, Navantia with their F100 frigate design, and Fincantieri with their FREMM class Frigate, were unsuccessful (images of both types are shown below).
Some technical data on the Type 26 is shown below (with an Anzac class in parentheses for comparison):
Displacement: 6,900 tonnes (3,600)
Length: 149.9 m (109)
Beam: 20.8m (14.8)
Speed: In excess of 26 knots (27)
Range: In excess of 7,000 nautical miles (6,000)
Complement: 118 (163)
Armament: 1 x 5 Inch Mk 45 (same) 72 cell VLS for Anti-air, Anti-Ship or Land Attack missiles (8 cells)
2 x 30mm cannon (2 x .50cal HMG)
2 x Phalanx CIWS (1 CIWS)
Torpedos not fitted (2 x Mark 32 3 tube torpedo launches with Mark 46)
Aviation: Large Chinook capable Flight Deck. Accommodation for two helicopters up to AugustaWestland Merlin size (1 Helicopter)
You can find out more about Project SEA 5000 Phase 1 (Future Frigate) here: http://www.defence.gov.au/casg/EquippingDefence/SEA5000PH1_FutureFrigates
You can find out more about the Type 26 Frigate here: https://www.baesystems.com/en/product/global-combat-ship
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