UK launches ambitious submarine renewal plan under AUKUS alliance

The United Kingdom will launch four Dreadnought-class nuclear submarines to replace its Vanguard-class vessels armed with Trident II ballistic missiles within the next 15–20 years.

Twelve attack submarines will also be built simultaneously at the Barrow-in-Furness shipyards in Cumbria under the AUKUS alliance between Australia, the UK, and the US, intended to patrol North Atlantic sea routes from the late 2030s, Caliber.Az reports, citing the Financial Times.

Earlier, the keel-laying ceremony for the lead Dreadnought-class submarine — a fourth-generation nuclear vessel — took place on March 20 at the BAE Systems shipyard in Barrow-in-Furness.

The new submarines, 153.6 meters long and crewed by 130 personnel, will reportedly be powered by Rolls-Royce’s latest PWR3 nuclear reactor, offering enhanced safety and longer maintenance intervals.

Equipped with twelve launch tubes for Trident II (D5) submarine-launched ballistic missiles, the new British submarines will feature advanced digital combat management systems and a high degree of automation to reduce crew workload.

The Royal Navy currently operates four Vanguard-class nuclear submarines — HMS Vanguard, HMS Vengeance, HMS Victorious, and HMS Vigilant — built in the 1990s.

According to the UK’s 2021 Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy, these vessels will begin to be replaced by the Dreadnought-class fleet in the early 2030s.

By Jeyhun Aghazada