Shipbuilder Irving says it is making steady progress on its twin construction programmes for Canada’s future fleet.
The firm recently announced it had built, lifted and flipped the first unit making up the hull of the first River-class destroyer, the future HMCS Fraser.
She will be the first of 15 warships in the class, based on the BAE Systems design which also forms the basis of the British Royal Navy’s Type 26 frigates.
The Canadian programme of 15 ships will run into the 2050s and is projected to cost at least C$77 billion. The keel of the first-in-class was laid down at the end of April last year, and she is scheduled to be commissioned in the early 2030s.
Canada’s Department of National Defence also announced last week that construction work had begun on its Land-Based Test Facility (LBTF) at Hartlen Point in Eastern Passage, Nova Scotia.
The LBTF, set to be completed by 2028, is where the River-class destroyers’ combat systems will be integrated and commissioned ahead of installation into the vessels.
Irving is also busy building the future CCGS Sermilik, the eighth and final Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ship (AOPS) and the second destined for the Canadian Coast Guard. The other six, designated Arctic and Offshore Patrol Vessels (AOPVs) have already been delivered to the Royal Canadian Navy.
The first AOPS, the future CCGS Donjek Glacier, is expected to be commissioned later this year.
- You can find out more on Irving’s LinkedIn feed and on the Canadian Government website’s Coast Guard page and Surface Fleet page