Independence-class frigate
_arriving_at_Pearl_Harbor_to_participate_in_RIMPAC_2022.jpg) An Independence-class frigate of the Daoan Navy
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| Class overview | |
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| Builders: | Bao Marine |
| Operators: | |
| Preceded by: | Reform-class frigate |
| Subclasses: | Protector-class offshore patrol vessel |
| Cost: | $255 million per ship |
| Built: | 2013 - Present |
| In commission: | 2016 - Present |
| Planned: | 19 |
| On order: | 3 |
| Building: | 5 |
| Completed: | 11 |
| Active: |
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| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Guided Missile Frigate |
| Displacement: |
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| Length: | 112 m (367 ft 5 in) |
| Beam: | 15 m (49 ft 3 in) |
| Draught: | 4.38 m (14 ft 4 in) |
| Propulsion: |
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| Speed: | In excess of 30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph) |
| Range: | 6,210 nmi (12,000 km; 7,000 mi) |
| Endurance: | 20 days at sea |
| Boats & landing craft carried: | 2 x RHIB |
| Complement: | 75 Personnel, excluding a 19-person air crew detachment. |
| Sensors and processing systems: |
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| Electronic warfare & decoys: |
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| Armament: |
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| Aircraft carried: | 1 x V-11 Pelikan / D-20 Albatross |
| Aviation facilities: | Helicopter deck & hangar. |
The Independence-class frigate (Daoan: Sự độc lập) is a class of stealth guided-missile frigates built for the Daoan Congressional Republic Navy and designed by the Daoan shipbuilder Bao Marine. The Independence-class frigates were designed as multi-mission vessels as its capabilities include anti-aircraft, anti-surface and anti-submarine warfare roles and low radar observability. Its armaments include a 75mm rapid fire gun, four remotely operated 30mm machine gun platforms, a single 35mm close-in weapon system, surface-to-air missiles, anti-submarine rockets & torpedoes as well as supersonic cruise missiles launched via a 16-cell vertical launching system. The ship's design was based around the principle of modular naval vessels which was meant to reduce cost and increase efficiency in construction & assembly. Ships of the class are poised to gradually replace the ageing Freedom-class destroyers that has been in service with the Daoan navy since 1991. The Independence-class is expected to fully replace the Freedom-class and become the mainstay of Daobac's active naval fleet by 2027. The Daoan Navy ordered a total of ten ships with the first ship of the Independence-class, the TCQ ''Trần Việt Thắng'', completed and commissioned in 13 April 2016. A total of six ships have been delivered by Bao Marine with a further four both on order and under construction. The Indepedence-class's modular design meant that it can be modified to fulfill other roles aside as a Frigate, with the Royal Navy of Brumen ordering both the standard Frigate and commissioning the creation of a patrol version of the Independence-class. The standard and variants of the Independence-class is also in service in the navies of XXX, XXX and XXX.
Development
The success of the Unity-class corvettes prompted leadership elements within the Daoan Navy to rethink the type of hardware they should prioritize to procure. Prior to the acquisition of corvettes the Daoan Navy relied solely on the Freedom-class destroyers as the mainstay of its surface combatant force which had been in service since 1991 and required twice the amount of crew to operate it compared to the small but versatile corvettes. Priority shifted from large warships with raw firepower to smaller, lighter, mobile & versatile vessels. Although the Unity-class fulfilled this role the Navy is unable to use the Unity-class to replace the older and more heavily armed destroyers. Therefore in 2010 the Navy commissioned a study to design a multimission vessel that was lighter than a destroyer but more capable than a corvette. The study proposed various types of ships ranging from medium-sized littoral combat ships (LCS) which were essentially oversized corvettes, guided missile frigates and a new but lighter type of guided missile destroyers. The procurement of a new destroyer was deemed to be not in alignment with the Navy's goal of a surface force that is more mobile and versatile. Furthermore it does not address the requirement of having fewer crew members to operate the ship. This left the LCS and frigates as the two primary design contenders with the frigate option ultimately prevailing over the LCS. A tender process was initiated in 2012 where Bao Marine, Khuat Shipyards alongside XXX from XXX proposed various frigate designs to the Daoan Navy to assess. Ultimately the design from Bao Marine was deemed to fulfill the Navy's requirements of a light, modular & multipurpose vessel. Furthermore Bao Marine, who was partook in the development & construction of the Unity-class corvettes, was able to reduce the estimated construction costs by utilizing or improving existing proven technologies & concepts that were applied to the corvette. The Daoan Ministry of National Security signed a procurement contract with Bao Marine in 2013 for the construction of six initial frigates with an option to increase the number of vessels in the future. Construction of the first vessel, the TCQ ''Trần Việt Thắng'' began in September 2013 at Bao Marine's Congvat-based shipyard. It was launched on 5 July 2015 with sea trials commencing a short time later. Sea trials concluded on February 2016 and the Trần Việt Thắng would be eventually completed and commissioned on 13 April 2016. Further vessels were commissioned on 2017, 2018, 2019 & 2020 respectively. On March 2021 the Daoan government, through the Ministry of National Security, ordered the procurement of a further four vessels. The Independence-class while initially meant to only augment the Freedom-class destroyers, proved itself to be a more reliable, cost-efficient and versatile vessel compared to the older destroyers. This has resulted in the Freedoms's fate being changed from partial to a full decomissioning of the Freedom-class destroyers.
Design
General Characteristics
The Independence-class is 112 m (367 ft 5 in) long and 15 m (49 ft 3 in) wide, with a displacement of 2,650 tonnes when empty and 3,190 tonnes when fully loaded by both crew and cargo. This places the Independence-class on the lighter scale of displacement of modern frigates, whose counterparts generally have a displacement between 3,200 to 6,000 tonnes. Its speed is in excess of 30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph), has a maximum range of 6,210 nmi (12,000 km; 7,000 mi) and it can operate independently without any logistical support for a period of 20 days before needing to refuel & resupply at a port. The Independence-class was designed as a modular vessel and as such it was built around six major modules which were constructed individually before being assembled together. Some of the key considerations of utilizing a modular design approach was to expadite the overall construction process reducing it from 4 to 3 years, reduce the number of material waste, permit the construction & assembly of modules to take place entirely indoors alllowing work to continue unimpeded regardless of weather conditions and increase the overall quality of the finished product due to the standardization methods required in module construction & assembly. Bao Marine also designed the ship in such a way that it can be repurposed as an entirely different type of vessel, depending on the requirements of the customer. Propulsion is provided by a combined diesel–electric and gas propulsion system. The ship is powered by two BSY 9D diesel engines where each provided 3.7 MW (4,961 hp), two BSY 10F electric motors each providing 2.1 MW (2,816 hp) and two Bao Marine GX-5 gas turbines each providing 10.3 MW (13,812 hp) of power. The ship's stealth characteristics take form the utilization composite materials, radar absorbent coatings in the ship's exterior hull and low-observable/radar transparent technologies. The incorporation of such materials and the reduced number of protroding structures such as antaenas and externally mounted missile/rocket tubes helps the vessel maintain a low radar cross-section, allowing the vessel to be marketed as a frigate with stealth capabilities. Acoustic signature is reduced by utilizing propellers that were designed to reduce hydrodynamic noise and areas with machinery that generate large amount of noise are housed in specialized acoustic enclosures that reduce air-borne noise. Thermal signature of the ship from the ship's exhaust ports is reduced by injecting the engine's exhaust with cold air before expelled into the environment in order to mask it with natural background thermal heat.
Armament
The Independence-class are equipped with a diverse range of weapon systems that allows it to combat threats from all three theaters of war: air, land and sea.
- Guns: ships of the class are equipped with three types of guns. It is equipped with a primary KYC super-rapid fire 76mm naval gun with a rate of fire (RoF) of 120 rounds per minute (RPM). It is manufactured by Khuat Defense Systems and mounted on a stealth copula to help reduce its radar cross section. A 35mm Shield CIWS manufactured by Tran Heavy Industries provides point-defense protection for the frigate against incoming airborne threats, primarily missiles & rockets, that has penetrated the frigates long-range anti-air missiles. It has a maximum effective range of 4,500 meters and if required can also be used against surface targets at close range. The Shield's four-chambered autocannon fires shells that will detonate and expel 170 armor piercing tungsten coated projectiles at pre-set distance from the target. The Shield CIWS has ammunition capacity of 470 rounds, has a rate of fire of 200 rounds per minute when firing in burst mode, and a rate of fire of 1,000 rounds per minute when firing in full auotomatic. Additionally, two remote controlled weapon system (RCWS) equipped with 12.7mm machine guns are installed on the port and starboard sides of the ship to engage surface targets. The 12.7mm RCWS platforms are manufactured by Khuat Defense Systems and is used in its V2 Badger IFVs.
- Missiles & Rockets: all Independence-class frigates are equipped with a 16-cell vertical launching system that is capable of launching both surface-to-air missiles and anti-submarine rockets. Anti-surface cruise missiles are launched via two, four barrelled, launch tubes at the center of the center of the ship. With the exception of the cruise missile launch tubes, the adoption of a VLS platform allows the Independence class to reduce the number of externally mounted missile launchers or tubes on the ship's hull which reduces its radar cross section. For anti-aircraft warfare Independence-class ships are outfitted with AS-13 medium-range surface-to-air missiles with an operational range of 70km (43.5 mi). The ship's VLS is also capable of launching AW-10 anti-submarine rockets with a reported maximum range of 30km (18.6 mi). The AW-10 is comprised of two components: the rocket itself and a torpedo payload. When a target submarine is identified via the ship's mounted sonar or through its ASW helicopters, the rocket is launched in the general direction of the target submarine. Upon reaching a certain point the rocket releases its torpedo payload which, upon entry in the water, will activate the torpedo's guidance system using either active or passive sonar. For surface-to-surface combat ships are equipped with the AS-15 "Dagger" supersonic cruise missiles to engage both land and naval based surface targets. It has a maximum speed of Mach 4 and generally travels at a speed of Mach 1.5 - 2 during its journey towards the target before eventually accelerating to its maximum speed in the terminal flight phase. The missile is equipped with a secured data link system which can be utilized to change the missile's data mid-course. Additionally the Dagger is equiped with a active radar homing system allowing it to track targets auotonomously. The "Dagger" cruise missile is manufactured by Khuat Defense Systems and was originally launched from land-based silos or launchers. A modified naval version of the Dagger was designed for use in the frigates and is capable to be launched from the ship's 16-cell vertical launching system. The naval version of the Dagger has an operational range of 250km - 400km (160–250 mi; 130–220 nmi). By default all Independence-class frigates carry a minimum of eight Dagger cruise missiles.
- Torpedoes:
Sensors & Processing Systems
Aviation Facilities
Operational History
Variants
- Guided Missile Frigate
- Offshore Patrol Vessel