The British shipbuilding company BAE Systems MNS has expanded its production capacity to accelerate the construction of Type 26 frigates.

This is evidenced by the photos of Bob Shaw, which he shared with the UK Defense Journal.

The photos, taken by his drone, show a new large hangar being built as part of the Frigate Factory program, which aims to double the speed of frigate construction for both the Royal Navy and potential customers such as Norway.

Although its construction has not yet been officially completed, work has already begun on the construction of the third Type 26 City frigate, HMS Belfast, under the hangar’s roof.

Along with it, the construction of the fourth frigate of the second batch of this project, HMS Birmingham, will soon begin in the hangar, with steel cutting having taken place on April 4, 2023.

Under the new strategy, starting in 2025, ships will be built much faster than planned. First of all, the construction time will be reduced from 96 to 60 months from the moment the steel is cut to the commissioning.

In addition, the interval between ship construction will be reduced from 18 to 12 months, which will allow for faster laying of new hulls.

These results have been achieved through a large package of investments in the Govan shipyard, where BAE Systems MNS constructs the Type 26 frigates. Primarily due to a new hangar, next to the main construction site, where two frigates will be built simultaneously.

Thus, the total number of hulls that can be built will increase from two to four, which will accelerate the implementation of the program of procurement of anti-submarine frigates to replace the Type 23 project.

In addition to the Type 26 frigates, the Frigate Factory has prospects for the construction of new Type 83 multipurpose destroyers and Type 32 multipurpose frigates on its territory.

Currently, eight Type 26 frigates will be built as part of the first order at the Govan shipyard, of which the lead and second frigates are currently launched and being completed in Scotstoun.

To date, HMS Glasgow and HMS Cardiff have been launched and are undergoing completion. The first frigate, HMS Glasgow, is scheduled to be commissioned in 2026, and the second ship, HMS Cardiff, in early 2028, which will launch the process of replacing the fleet of aging Type 23 frigates.

At the same time, there are 3 more frigates at different stages of construction – HMS Birmingham, Sheffield and Belfast, which are expected to join the Royal Navy between 2029 and 2033-2035 if the construction goes smoothly.

In turn, to reduce delays with steel plate contractors, the government has allocated a financial package that will allow A&P to launch additional production of relevant steel elements.

BAE Systems will receive the first steel products from the beginning of 2025, which will accelerate the construction of HMS Birmingham, which was laid down on April 4, 2023.

Type 26

The Type 26 frigates are designed for anti-submarine warfare and high-intensity air defense. They are to replace the outdated Type 23s in the UK Navy.

The new frigates will have a displacement of 8,000 tons, a length of 149 meters, a beam of 20.8 meters and a speed of up to 26 knots. The crew will consist of 118 people.

The new ships will be armed with 127 mm Mk 45 artillery, 2 × 30 mm DS 30M Mk2 modules, 2 × M134 Miniguns, 2 × 20 mm Mk 15 Phalanx modules and 48 launch cells for FOSW or Tomahawk cruise missiles and 48 cells for Sea Ceptor CAMM missiles.