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Lion-class Dreadnought

A profile image of HMS Lion.

The Lion-class battleship is a class of six fast battleships in service with the Royal Navy.

The first design of the Lion-class in 1938 was a larger, improved version of the King George V class with 16-inch (406 mm) guns. At least three of these ships were ordered, and six planned, but construction was suspended after the Battle of the Blockade in favour of additional aircraft carriers. The design of the Lion-class changed several times in response to the removal of treaty restrictions on size and in light of war experience, before the class was cancelled in 1943. After the decommissioning of the King George V-class in 1963, the Royal Navy wanted a new class of battleship to replace them, and the Lion-class design was chosen as the basis of this new class.

The program ran into difficulties surrounding gear, equipment and parts which hadn't been produced in twenty years, the high cost of the ships and their manning requirements, as well as claims that battleships had been completely obsoleted by aircraft carriers and missiles. The construction of the Lion-class and in particular the cancellation of HMS Agincourt were also a contributing factor to the discovery of the Carrier Affair.

The final ship in the class, to have been named HMS Agincourt, was transferred to the Royal Indian Navy and renamed HMIS Vikrant.

Specifications[]

Original Configuration[]

  • Role: Battleship
  • Service Period: 1968-1989
  • Characteristics
    • Length: 830 feet (252.984 meters)
    • Beam: 115 feet (35.052 meters)
    • Draft: 35 feet (10.668 meters)
    • Displacement: 56,500 tons
  • Crew: 1,750
  • Propulsion: 8 x 8,300 kPa Foster-Wheeler boilers, 4 x Parsons geared steam turbines, 4 x shafts, 210,000 shp
  • Range: 12,000 nautical miles (22,224 kilometers) at 15 knots (27.78 km/h)
  • Speed: 32.5 knots (60.19 km/h)
  • Sensor Suite:
    • Type 985 Air Search RDF
    • Type 988 Air Search RDF
  • Armament
    • 9 x BL 16"/45-caliber Mk.IV naval guns (3x3)
    • 16 x QF 4.5"/55-caliber Mk.8 naval guns (8x2)
    • 2 x 4-cell Sea Dart Mk.II SAM Launchers - removed in the 1988 Rebuild
    • 5 x Sea Cat SAM Launchers - removed in 1980s
    • 4 x Royal Ordnance 30mm CIWS - added in the mid-1970s
  • Armour:
    • Belt: 6–15 in (152–381 mm)
    • Deck: 2.5–6 in (64–152 mm)
    • Barbettes: 12–15 in (305–381 mm)
    • Gun turrets: 7–15 in (178–381 mm)
    • Conning tower: 3–4.5 in (76–114 mm)
    • Bulkheads: 4–12 in (102–305 mm)

1988 Rebuild[]

  • Type: Battleship
  • Service Period: 1993-Present
  • Characteristics:
    • Length: 830 feet (252.98 meters)
    • Beam: 115 feet (35.05 meters)
    • Draft: 35 feet (10.67 meters)
    • Displacement: 56,500 tons
  • Crew: 1,052
  • Propulsion: 8 x Rolls-Royce WR-21 Gas Turbines, 4 x Turbodiesel cruise engines, 4 x shafts, 230,400 shp (172 MW)
  • Range: 9,600 nautical miles (17,780 kilometers) at 18 knots (27.78 km/h)
  • Speed: 32.5 knots (60.19 km/h)
  • Sensor Suite:
    • Type 985 Mod 2 3D Air Search RDF
    • Type 988 Mod 2 3D Air Search RDF
    • Type 996 Mod 1 3D Surface Search RDF
    • Type 1007 Navigation RDF
    • Type 1008 Navigation RDF
    • Sea Archer 50 Optronic Fire Control Director
    • Type 911 Fire Control RDF
  • Countermeasures:
    • Type 1032 Electronic Warfare Suite
    • Type 182 Towed Torpedo Decoys
    • Sea Gnat Decoy System
  • Armament:
    • 9 x BL 16"/45-caliber Mk.IV naval guns (3x3)
    • 16 x QF 4.5"/55-caliber Mk.8B naval guns (8x2)
    • 1 x 96-cell VLS (fires Garfish AAMs, Broadsword AShMs, and Storm Wind cruise missiles)
    • 4 x Royal Ordnance 30mm CIWS
  • Armour:
    • Belt: 6–15 in (152–381 mm)
    • Deck: 2.5–6 in (64–152 mm)
    • Barbettes: 12–15 in (305–381 mm)
    • Gun turrets: 7–15 in (178–381 mm)
    • Conning tower: 3–4.5 in (76–114 mm)
    • Bulkheads: 4–12 in (102–305 mm)

Unit Run[]

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