- UK’s Fleet Solid Support programme will begin construction
- The first of the three logistics ships will be built in Belfast and Cadiz
- The FSS vessel will be the second largest in the fleet, after the aircraft carriers
The UK’s Fleet Solid Support (FSS) programme will now begin production after completing the critical design review stage, covering the overall structural integrity, safety, and risk minimisation.
FSS will provide three support ships built to deliver munitions, supplies and provisions to the Royal Navy while at sea.
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Overlooked by more lethal programmes, such as the £1bn Digital Targeting Web, the logistics arm of Britain’s naval force offers a much-needed crutch for global reach.
The UK’s flagship, HMS Prince of Wales, recently returned to the Mediterranean after leading a carrier strike group to the Indo-Pacific in the last five months which was largely bolstered by allied vessels – double the number featured in the 2021 mission.
It does not help that the Ministry of Defence were forced to axe several ships late last year, forcing the the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) to repurpose its Bay-class landing ships for combat.
FSS programme
Each FSS vessel can reach speeds of 19 knots, they are 216 metres long (the length of two football pitches), with a displacement of 39,000 tonnes. They will be the largest UK military ships with the exception of aircraft carriers.
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By GlobalDataThe fleet will be inducted into the RFA, run by a crew of 101 people per ship, and accommodation provided for an additional 80 personnel operating helicopters, boats, or performing other roles when required.
Manufacturing of the first FSS will now begin across different shipyards – Navantia in Cadiz, Spain and by Harland and Wolff in Belfast, Northern Ireland – and all three ships will enter service after final equipment fits and military trials by 2032.
BMT produced the FSS design, which is intended to be adaptable from the outset to achieve a carbon zero status by the end of their 30-year operational lifespan.
In the meantime, FSS’s predecessor, RFA Fort Victoria, will continue operations to maintain some semblance of an operational solid support ship availability during the transition.
