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Current Events & News Blogs - Blog Rankings

Royal Navy destroyer goes into service without missile system

June 25, 2009 · Filed Under Current, Lore of the Sea, Ships

In February, we posted, Warships Old and New, about a new British warship, HMS Daring, a Type 45 destroyer, which docked next to HMS Victory, following her maiden voyage. We commented that “HMS Daring not only costs more than HMS Victory in today’s currency, but the six new destroyers of her class may cost almost as much as the entire Royal Navy fleet during the Napoleonic Wars.” It turns out that in addition to being costly, the new destroyers will be missing their primary weapons systems when delivered.

Royal Navy destroyer goes into service without missile system

A state of the art Royal Navy destroyer is to enter service without its vital missile system working in a move branded as “disgraceful” by a committee of MPs.

The new Type 45 destroyer will become operational without being able to fire its advanced Sea Viper air defence missiles because of a series of failings by the Ministry of Defence, according to the Public Accounts Committee.

The project has been hit by “cost overruns and time delays” and the ships will enter service three years late and £1.5billion over budget.

The committee said the situation was “deeply worrying” and had serious implications for Britain’s air defence capabilities.

The new Type 45s will not have their full capability “until well into the next decade” which will result in the veteran Type 42 destroyers being “patched up and kept in service for longer” at a cost of almost £200 million despite having limited capabilities, it found.

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