I'm thinking of doing a full re-tread of this AU, considering how far my skills have come in terms of drawing since I began it. Everything bar maybe the frigates will be redone, and organised more logically I should think. Anywho, before I do that, I figured I let loose for judgement a redo of the Perth class air defence frigates (try and guess where I got my inspiration from
![Wink ;)](./images/smilies/icon_e_wink.gif)
):
PERTH CLASS FRIGATE
After the RWN decommissioned the Guided Missile Destroyers Perth and Kalgoorlie in the early 1990s, Westralia was without any form of naval area air defence for a considerable period of time. Over a decade after their retirement, in 2005, the Navy instituted a program to restore that lost capability. Solutions and proposals were examined from all manner of directions; whether it being fully indigenous design and build, indigenous design but foreign build, foreign design and indigenous build, or a complete foreign purchase. Ship designs such as the Sachsen, LCF, F100 and Type 45 were all considered. Preference was, however, given to indigenous design and builds, as it was seen as a method of assisting in the retention of technical skills in the shipbuilding workforce, avoiding a 'valley of death' that could impact the burgeoning Westralian shipbuilding industry. As design requirements evolved, the RWN began to emphasise certain design elements. Significant RCS reduction was high on the wishlist, as was use of the then still under-development Westralian designed 'Kingfisher' NADR AESA radar paired with an AEGIS combat system. Provision for the future integration of the Tiger Shark supersonic multi-role cruise missile, at that point undergoing initial prototyping and testing, was also a requirement of the design. In 2008, three designs were shortlisted for the program: a new, stealthy member of the Concorde series of frigates (Concorde 140) from National Westralian Shipbuilders private-arm; a larger clean-sheet design from relatively new-comer Campbell Maritime Services (simply dubbed 'Air Defense Frigate' by the company); and a variation of Navantia's F100. In late-2009, NWS was announced the winner of the program with their Concorde 140 frigate design.
The chosen design, christened the
Perth-class, clearly demonstrated its design lineage from the earlier
Broome-class. Most evidently, it utilised the same weapons module in its forward superstructure construction, modified to increase the number of Mk41 VLS cells to 48. This would technically allow all the frigates in the RWN to share modules through refit, though this 'interchangability' was not something easily done, the modules more intended to aid in easier refit and maintenance rather quick weapons changes. The reduced RCS focused design resulted in the large reduction in deck area, however, and left no room for the large box launchers required for the Tiger Shark missile expected to come into service in the 2019-2020 timeframe. Instead, an additional 8-cell Mk41 VLS was fit in forward of the hangar. Heavy automation was utilised in the design, reducing crew size to a relatively tiny 117.
Construction of the vessels began in 2011, in the government owned NWS yards in Henderson. However, progress was intentionally slowed under a controversially 'stretched' shipbuilding program that was intended to fully fill the skills-related 'valley of death' until the next major shipbuilding project, with this also allowing the installation of newer technologies such as Cooperative Engagement Capability that were not part of the original design. Costs understandably increased, though at a controlled pre-planned rate thanks to the intentional nature of the extended build. The first vessel,
Perth, was launched in 2016 and commissioned into the RWN in 2018.
Length: 143m
Displacement: 6160 tonnes
Speed: 31kts
Range: 7000nm at 15kts
Complement: 117
Armament: Zuytdorp Munitions 127mm gun (ZM L62N), 2 x Millennium Gun 35mm CIWS, 2 x M2 .50 BMG with Zuytdorp RWS fitted, 48 + 8 x Mk41 VLS firing SM-2, SM-6, ESSM and Tiger Shark cruise missile, MU90 Lightweight Torpedo
Sensors and Systems: 'Kingfisher' NADR (Naval Air Defence Radar), Sharpeye, Vampir NG, Ultra 2500, Thales Kingklip Hull-Mounted Sonar
Aviation and Boats: Up to 2 x Leonardo Wildcat, able to accommodate helicopters as large as AW101 in hangar, 2 x RHIB