The Type 31 frigate has high hopes for the British Navy

The Type 31 frigate, which the British Navy has high hopes for,

The British Navy will deploy military forces in the Indo-Pacific region to cope with the pressure of a certain eastern power. However, the actual deployed warships make people laugh out loud, because the UK is considering deploying a Type 31 frigate, which is also a so-called large warship in the British media, and is also an important move for the UK to return to Asia. So what is the strength of this Type 31 frigate?

The Type 31 frigate is not in service, but is only part of Britain’s so-called national shipbuilding strategy. In 2010, the United Kingdom approved the so-called Global Combat Ship Plan, which is intended to replace the 13 Type 23 frigates equipped by the British Navy. A total of 10 ships were built, 5 for the UK, 2 for Indonesia and 3 for Poland.

In the National Defense and Security Lecture in July 2016, the new warship called the universal frigate is intended to be deployed permanently east of the Suez River and will be able to witness Britain's military success from the Persian Gulf region to the Asia-Pacific region. Glory. The British Navy only has the Type 45 destroyer and the Queen-class aircraft carrier that is not in service. I don't know where the courage comes from.

The first Type 31 frigate will be launched in 2023, but the service date has been pushed to 2027, which means that it will take at least 5 years for the Type 31 frigate to become combat effective. The Type 31 frigate is the same as all frigates developed in Europe, that is, the tonnage is getting larger and larger, and the overall technology is becoming more and more advanced, but there is also the problem of insufficient overall weapons.

The displacement of the Type 31 frigate has reached 5,700 tons, which is larger than my country's 054A. It is between 054A and 052D. It is already a light destroyer. The length of the ship reaches 138.7 meters. Similar to it is the 052C, one of the main forces of the Chinese Navy. The latter has a displacement of only about 6,000 tons.

The Type 31 frigate is equipped with four diesel engines jointly developed by Rolls-Royce and MTU, with a single power of 8.2 megawatts. It is equipped with a generator jointly developed by Rolls-Royce and MTU, but the maximum speed is only 28 knots and the endurance is 9,000 nautical miles. In terms of firepower, the Type 31 frigate is equipped with a 24-unit anti-aircraft missile launcher, which is relatively small in number.

The main gun is a 57mm main gun, and warships of this level generally use at least 76mm naval guns, or even 100mm naval guns. The secondary battery is two 40mm naval guns and several 7.62mm machine guns for self-defense. The helicopter hangar at the stern can carry a purpose helicopter, such as an AW159 or AW101 helicopter.

Judging from the amount of weapons carried, it is only a 054A-class frigate, but its advantage is that it was designed relatively late, and its overall stealth capability and seaworthiness are quite excellent. In addition, the radar electronic system is also relatively advanced, and it can be regarded as a relatively mainstream new frigate.

A single Type 31 frigate cannot make any waves in the Indian Ocean or even the Asia-Pacific region. In terms of combat effectiveness, it is not much stronger than the 054A, and it has no advantage over the online 054B. Compared with the 052C of the same tonnage, it is even worse in terms of weapon loading and weapon advancedness.

There are no anti-ship missiles at all. In fact, during normal service, the Type 31 frigate is not equipped with anti-ship missiles, but it can be equipped according to threats and war conditions. This is because the primary purpose of the Type 31 frigate is not to improve the combat effectiveness of the British Navy, but to save equipment funds to replace old warships.

This kind of warship cannot be called a front-line main equipment in the UK. The UK also believes that the Type 31 frigate is basically a warship used in medium and low-intensity conflicts, rather than a multi-purpose frigate used by the Chinese Navy. .

When this Type 31 frigate encounters a Chinese Navy warship, even if it encounters a 054A, it may not be able to defeat it. If you encounter a main warship like 052D or even 055, it is not an exaggeration to say that this Type 31 frigate is a toy ship.

This statement in the UK is to promote the so-called afterglow of the empire on which the sun never sets. In fact, the entire British navy is very backward. There are not many advanced warships, and the number of new warships to be replaced is also relatively small. Even Also limited by funding, the actual combat effectiveness of warships is very low.

The UK’s so-called strategy of returning to the Asia-Pacific is essentially just a daydream and a ridiculous joke.