Future Surface Combatant
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The Future Surface Combatant was the projected succesor to Type 22 and Type 23 frigates in service of the British Royal Navy until the program's de facto cancellation in late 2004. One or more classes of vessel however may yet fulfil the Future Surface Combatant capability in replacement of the Type 22 and Type 23 frigates.
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Design
Although initially envisaged as anti-submarine warfare escorts, since 2001 the emphasis was shifted to a more general warfare role. The design of the ship had not yet been decided, but possibilites included a variation of the Type 45 destroyer hull form or a more radical trimaran design. To this end, the research vessel RV Triton was commissioned to test whether a trimaran could be used in such a large and complex vessel.
Medium Sized Vessel Derivative
With the end of the FSC proposal, various attempts have been made to resurrect the concept of a medium sized vessel to replace at least the four Type 22 Batch 3 frigates (it is likely that the Type 23 ships will undergo SLEP), one of which is called the Medium Sized Vessel Derivative (MSVD). Amongst the options are an "off the shelf" purchase of the Franco-Italian FREMM multi-role frigate, and a variation of the Type 45 destroyer optimised for ASW and surface warfare.
See Also
The Royal Navy in the 21st Century
External links
- Future Surface Combatant (http://www.btinternet.com/~warship/Today/fsc.htm) - The Royal Navy PostwarTemplate:Navy-stub