Royal Navy: New Type 26 warship HMS Glasgow training commences as sailors get to grips with new main gun

Two sailors took a trip to the USA to learn how to use the 5in Medium Calibre Gun equipped to HMS Glasgow. The new Type 26 frigate is the first of eight City-class warships being constructed to replace her Type 23 counterparts.

The new 5in gun will supersede the battle-proven 4.5in gun which has been used in the fleet since the 1970s. Petty Officers Dave Strachan and ‘Tiny’ Sanderson spent three months in San Diego on a comprehensive course covering every aspect of the new weapon. The US Navy use a Mk45 Mod 4A variant of the gun, which is also utilised on more than 280 warships in 11 navies including Australia, New Zealand, Japan and other Nato allies.

It is capable of firing larger shells to deal with a range of threats. This includes enemy installations ashore, drones, fast inshore attack craft and hostile boats. The new gun is fed a constant supply of shells during a shoot automatically by an automated handling system - saving sailors the need to carry heavy shells while maintaining the system to prevent jams.

PO Strachan and Sanderson’s training spanned basic operation, maintenance requirements, defect analysis and, where necessary and repairs. They took part in classroom tests, trials on simulators and replicas. Their knowledge was scrutinised over an 11-week period, culminating in a four-hour-long multiple-choice exam, followed by a practical session.

This tested the officers proficiency to bring the gun online, load rounds in simulation mode as well as a solitary physical round and deal with various defects including broken lamps, busted sensors and damaged components. PO Strachan said: “As we are both former 4.5in maintainers we had a good foundation of the skills and experience needed. We were able to apply some of the knowledge we had previously gained and apply it to the areas that were common between both guns - the basic principles of each weapon are very similar, as well as the ways in which each navy utilise them.”

Both officers passed with flying colours. They were not able to use the gun on a live firing exercise aboard a US Navy warship. HMS Glasgow’s turret and handling system have been installed, though the barrel has yet to be fitted. No shells will be fired from the gun until later this decade.