HMS Dauntless the powerful Type 45 Destroyer was spotted in Plymouth Sound this morning.
The ship was the first to have completed her Power Improvement Project (PIP) installation at Cammell Laird’s Merseyside facility.
HMS Dauntless is conducting trials and exercising off the Plymouth coastline – where all six Type 45s – HM Ships Daring, Dauntless, Diamond, Dragon, Defender and Duncan – will be fitted with the Sea Ceptor missile system on top of crucial upgrades to the destroyers’ principal weapon, the Sea Viper.
Each destroyer carries up to 48 Sea Viper missiles, each held in a vertical-launch silo on the forecastle, each capable of taking out aerial threats at ranges up to 75 miles away, accelerating out of its launcher to reach speeds in excess of four times the speed of sound.
The evolution upgrade is designed to deal with the increasing threats posed by anti-ship ballistic missiles, ensuring the Type 45 is able to defend the Fleet – especially Carrier Strike Groups – against complex air threats both now and into the future.
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