§ Mr. FrancoisTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) if the type 45 destroyer will regularly operate a helicopter; [6979]
(2) where the new type 45 destroyers will have their home port; [6981]
(3) if the forward equipment programme contains full functioning for type 45 destroyers; [6985]
(4) how many of the proposed type 45 destroyers will be available for operations, and excluding those in refit, at any one time; [6980]
(5) what the in-service date is for the new type 45 destroyer; [6984]
(6) what the planned complement is of (a) officers and (b) ratings on the new type 45 destroyer; and with which command system the type 45 destroyer will be equipped; [6978]
(7) when the last of the new type 45 destroyers is expected to enter service with the Royal Navy. [6986]
§ Dr. MoonieOn current plans, we expect that the first type 45 destroyer will enter service with the Royal Navy in 2007 and that the last will enter service in 2014.
We have yet to decide where the type 45 destroyers will have their base port. The decision is the subject of on-going work which will also take account of the base porting requirements of other vessels in the procurement programme such as the Future Aircraft Carrier and the Future Surface Combatant.
The forward equipment programme includes funding for up to 12 type 45 destroyers. Capability upgrades included in the type 45 incremental acquisition plan will be funded within the type 45 programme budget. Other capability upgrades, including those to reflect future changes in defence requirements and technology advances, would be funded as appropriate.
The currently planned complement of the type 45 is approximately 190 personnel, of whom around 20 will be officers and 170 other ranks. We are continuing to 1137W examine the scope for driving down the complement even further and to introduce a more flexible and adaptable style of crewing. Accommodation standards will be significantly better than in earlier classes of warship.
BAE Systems Electronics, the Prime Contractor, has selected a consortium comprising Alenia Marconi Systems and BAE Systems Combat and Radar Systems to develop and manufacture a Command System, known as the Combat Management System, specifically for the type 45.
Assuming a class of 12 type 45s, we expect that nine or 10 ships would, on average, be available at any one time to the Commander-in-Chief Fleet for tasking, while two or three would be undergoing maintenance, including one or two in refit.
In most operations we currently expect to have a Lynx helicopter embarked on the type 45 destroyer. The type 45 will also be interoperable with the Merlin helicopter. The type 45 destroyer will be a versatile platform, able to operate a variety of other helicopters; the ship's large flight deck can take helicopters up to and including Chinook size.