Type 31 (Inspiraton-class)

Guided-Missile Frigate Warship

United Kingdom | 2027

"The Type 31 guided-missile frigate is a tri-nation initiative involving Britain, Poland, and Indonesia."

Artist rendering of the Type 31 frigate; British Royal Navy press release.

Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 09/16/2023 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site; No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

The Type 31 is an under-construction guided-missile frigate design ultimately intended to stock the navies of Britain, Indonesia, and Poland. The warships are of a 5,700 ton displacement and crewed by approximately 107 personnel with a 7,500 nautical mile range while steaming at speeds up to 26 knots. Five will make up the British commitment to the project while Poland is set to receive three hulls and Indonesia a pair of hulls for their part. Commissioned service is planned for 2027.

For the British Royal Navy, the Type 31 "Inspiration-class" will be used concurrently with the equally-new Type 26 "City-class". Both will succeed an aging line of Cold War-era Duke-class warships in same role, broadening at-sea fighting capabilities considerably.

Dimensions include a running length of 455 feet with power stemming from a conventionally-powered CODAD (COmbined Diesel-And-Diesel) arrangement involving 4 x Rolls-Royce / MTU 20V 8000 M71 diesel engines with 4 x Diesel generators (Rolls-Royce or Caterpillar brand) to achieve desired performance. This will give the hulls a top ocean-going speed between 26 and 28 knots under ideal conditions with an achievable sailing range between 7,000 and 9,000 nautical miles.

A complete Combat Management System (CMS) will allow for excellent search-and-tracking capabilities tied to multiple engagement solutions running the gamut of ballistic, missile, and torpedo weaponry. A full Electronic Warfare (EW) suite will aid in protection of the ship from aerial, on-sea, and undersea threats at-range.

Primary armament at the heart of this guided-missile frigate will be a 32-cell Mark 41 Vertical Launching System (VLS) supporting surface-to-air, anti-ship, and land-attack missiles. Beyond this will be a single 57mm (Royal Navy) or 76mm turreted deck gun with a pair of air-defense autocannons, heavy machine guns, and torpedo launchers.

Over the stern will be supported a single navalized medium-lift rotorcraft with an attached full-service hangar facility. Up to four RHIBs will be available to boarding parties.

As drawn up, the ships will have an all-modern exterior with few protrusions seen from bow-to-stern. The bridge section will sit above and aft of the turreted deck gun. The mast works will be if an enclosed pyramidal design integrating into the forward superstructure. Smoke funnels will be seated aft of midships and staggered in two enclosed structures. The hangar section will seat additional sensors and processing systems as well as close-in weaponry. The structure steps down to reveal the helipad.

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Power & Performance
Those special qualities that separate one sea-going vessel design from another. Performance specifications presented assume optimal operating conditions for Type 31 (Inspiraton-class).

CODAD (COmbined Diesel-And-Diesel): 4 x Rolls-Royce / MTU 20V 8000 M71 marine diesels with 4 x Diesel generators (Rolls-Royce-MTU 16V2000M41B OR Caterpillar 3512C); 2 x Shafts astern.
Propulsion

28.0 kts
32.2 mph
Surface Speed

8,690 nm
10,000 miles | 16,093 km
Range

Structure
The bow-to-stern, port-to-starboard physical qualities of Type 31 (Inspiraton-class).

161
Personnel
Complement

455.0 ft
138.68 meters
O/A Length

7,700
tons
Displacement

Armament
Available supported armament and special-mission equipment featured in the design of Type 31 (Inspiraton-class).

1 x 57mm Mk.110 OR 76mm Leonardo "Super Rapido" turreted deck gun.
1 x 32-cell Vertical Launching System (VLS) for surface-to-air. anti-ship, and land-attack cruise missiles.
2 x 40mm Mk.4 OR 2 x 35mm PIT-Radwar AM-35 autocannons.
2 to 4 x 12.7mm Heavy Machine Guns (HMGs).
2 x 324mm torpedo launchers.

Air Arm
Available supported fixed-wing / rotary-wing aircraft featured in the design of Type 31 (Inspiraton-class).

1 x Navalized medium-lift helicopter supported from the stern (hangar facilities integrated)

Ships-in-Class (10)
Notable series variants as part of the Type 31 (Inspiraton-class) family line as relating to the Type 31 (Inspiration-class) group.

Total of ten hulls planned with five to serve the UK, three to Poland, and two to Indonesia.

Operators
Global operator(s) of the Type 31 (Inspiraton-class). Nations are displayed by flag, each linked to their respective national naval warfare listing.

Shipbuilder(s): Babcock International - UK / PGZ Stocznia Wojenna - Poland / PAL Indonesia - Indonesia

[ Indonesia; Poland; United Kingdom ]

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Artist rendering of the Type 31 frigate; British Royal Navy press release.

Going Further...
Type 31 (Inspiraton-class) Guided-Missile Frigate Warship appears in the following collections:

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