British shipbuilder Babcock has unveiled a new frigate design that will be offered as a design for the Royal Navy’s Type 31 frigate.
Arrowhead, as the design is named is a 120 meter general-purpose frigate Babcock believes it can build for the Royal Navy under the £250 million price limit set by the defense ministry.
Babcock said the Arrowhead design is suited for either a single build strategy, or a cross–site build strategy bringing together modules – an approach used for aircraft carrier assembly at Rosyth.
Arrowhead’s adaptable configuration acknowledges operational roles will change through the life of the ship with multiple mission bays incorporated into the design allowing for rapid reconfiguration and re-role.
Craig Lockhart, managing director naval marine, Babcock said: “Arrowhead is a game changing general purpose frigate for modern navies. Optimising Through Life Support costs is at the very core of the principles of Arrowhead’s design and build methodology, all balanced against the ability to deliver the required capability.