Today, HMS
Clyde left for the South Atlantic. See
MOD news.
Clyde is one of the few ships ordered by this Government. Indeed, prior to the July decision regarding the new carriers, she was the only ship ordered in the last five years. So much for "the biggest shipbuilding programme since World War Two.....".
However, as
this page shows, opportunities to build a more capable vessel were turned down.
Armament was expected to be a minimal, probably a 30 mm gun. However after the decision in July 2004 to reduce the RN escort (frigate/destroyer) force from 31 to 25, the merit of improving the equipment fit (communications, sensors, and perhaps armament and a basic command system) in order to allow the OPV(H) to undertake a wider variety of roles was briefly considered.
If only she had a 76mm gun, a hangar and an embarked Lynx, she would be far more capable, possibly for not that much additional cost. Now what was that about spoiling the ship for a ha'penny's worth of tar?