Royal Navy: Ferocious gun installed on HMS Glasgow as new Type 26 warship armours up to hunt submarines

A 5in gun has been fitted to HMS Glasgow during engineering work in Scotland. She is the first of the eight new Type 26 frigates being built to supersede their Type 23 counterparts.

All Type 26 frigates will be fitted with a Mk45 Mod 4A Medium Calibre Gun. This is the latest variant of a US Navy weapon which is fitted to more than 280 warships in 11 navies including those of Australia, New Zealand, Japan and several NATO allies. Its considered an upgrade from the Mk8 4.5in, which has been the Royal Navy’s medium gun of choice since the 1970s and fitted to frigates and destroyers.

Neil Stevenson, Type 26 Weapons Group Leader at Defence Equipment and Support team, said: “This is a major milestone for the Type 26 MOD Weapons team and the Type 26 BAE Naval Ships Gunnery team. The Mk 45 Mod 4 is a proven, effective weapon that incorporates the latest technologies for today’s multi-mission warships. Throughout the entire team has been supported by US Department of Defence and the Royal Navy, ensuring that this system is at the forefront of gunnery technology and adaptability, that meets the needs of the Royal Navy, now and in the future.”

The Royal Navy said the new gun is fully automated, safer, reliable, accurate, interoperable with Nato allies and is able to eliminate threats including aerial drones and fast-moving inshore attack craft. The barrel of the weapon is still to be fitted to HMS Glasgow. Once operational, shells weighing up to 31 and a half kilos will be shot out of the muzzle at speeds between 823 and 1,051 metres per second - up to three times the speed of sound. The gun’s automated handling system means sailors no longer need form a chain to supply the gun with fresh shells. Shells are instead pulled in from a “deep magazine” to constantly re-fill the 20-round “ready to use” magazine.

Sailors are no longer required to lift heavy shells, deal with moving machinery or risk injury when the gun fires. The Royal Navy said the first-class medium gun “packs a punch in extremes of weather, day or night, is easier to maintain, operates seamlessly working with allies and is highly reliable”, with an availability rate of 99.6 per cent.

The City-class frigates - designed primarily to be submarine hunters - are expected to be part of the fleet in the late 2020s and into the 2030s. They are also expected to carry out other roles and deployments. Ships will also have adaptable mission bays to house autonomous equipment such as drones and mine hunting systems.