Four Skjold-class craft in harbour at Umoe Mandal shipyard, Norway |
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| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Skjold class |
| Operators: | Royal Norwegian Navy |
| In commission: | 1999- |
| Planned: | 6 |
| Active: | 3 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | coastal corvette |
| Displacement: | 274 tonnes full load |
| Length: | 155.83 ft (47.50 m) 46.8 ft (14.3 m) (Length on cushion) |
| Beam: | 44.29 ft (13.50 m) |
| Draught: | 3.3 ft (1.0 m) |
| Propulsion: | 2 × Twin gas turbines →12,170 kilowatts Twin diesel engines →1,490 kilowatts |
| Speed: | In rough sea: 45 knots In calm sea: 60 knots |
| Range: | 800 nmi at 40 knots (74 km/h) |
| Complement: | 15-16 |
| Sensors and processing systems: |
Thales MRR-3D-NG air/surface radar Ceros 200 FC CS-3701 electronic warfare suite Sagem Vigy 20 Electro-optical sensor |
| Armament: | 8 Kongsberg Naval Strike Missile SSMs (when available) kept in an internal weapons bay 76mm Otobreda Super Rapid multi-role cannon Mistral Surface to air missile 12.7mm gun |
| Notes: | Soft kill: TKWA/MASS (Multi Ammunition Softkill System) Other: Link 11 and Link 16 |
The Skjold class patrol boats (skjold means "shield" in Norwegian) is a new class of superfast, large stealth missile craft, formerly known as MTBs (missile torpedo boats). From 2009, the Royal Norwegian Navy officially label them as coastal corvettes (kystkorvett) because their seaworthiness is seen as comparable to corvettes. They are built at the Umoe Mandal yard. Although the Skjold class patrol boats remain the fastest armed craft in the world (60 knots / 110 km/h) they still fall short of the unarmed Canadian Navy high speed patrol craft hydrofoil prototype HMCS Bras d'Or (successfully recorded speeds of well over 63 knots/ 116 km/h). [1]
Contents |
The Skjold class vessels began with the development of the Royal Norwegian Navy's "Project SMP 6081", and the first preproduction version was ordered on 30 August 1996. The first of its class, the P960 Skjold, was launched on 22 September 1998 and commissioned on 17 April 1999. The Norwegian Parliament's White Paper of 2001 recommended the building of five additional ships, which was confirmed in 2002. Ultimately the Skjold class MTBs will consist of six ships, four having already been launched in early 2008. The remaining two are currently under construction. Ship # 2,Storm, was to be delivered in April 2008. Following that, one new ship will be delivered every three months until Gnist is delivered in June 2009. Once full production has been completed the six Skjold-Class MTBs will supplement the Royal Norwegian Navy's existing pool of fourteen Hauk class MTBs, the latter soon to be retired.
The Skjold design is a surface effect craft, constructed of glass fibre/carbon composite materials. Buoyancy is augmented underway by a fan-blown skirted compartment between the two rigid catamaran-type hulls. This provides an alternative solution to the planing hull/vee hull compromise: the air cushion reduces wave slam at high speeds while presenting a low-drag flat planing profile at the waterline.
To ensure stealth capabilities, anechoic coatings of radar absorbent materials (RAM) have been used in the load-bearing structures over large areas of the ship. This strategy leads to significant weight saving compared to the conventional construction technique of applying RAM cladding to the external surfaces. The ship's profile has a faceted appearance with no right angle structures and few orientations of reflective panels. Doors and hatches are flush with the surfaces and the windows are flush without visible coaming (edge of window aperture) and are fitted with radar reflective screens.
The final design will see some changes compared to the prototype Skjold, which itself is being rebuilt to the new specifications. Most notably, the new vessels will use 4 gas turbines, two large ones and two small ones, giving greater power. The two MTU 123 cruise diesel propulsion units used previously for loiter speeds have been removed. Furthermore, the foredeck will be strengthened due to the addition of the 76 mm Super Rapid gun.The production of the hull material is being done using a different method to improve its strength and minimize fire vulnerability. The bridge will see some changes, including an upgrade to six weapon systems control consoles. Heavyweight torpedoes may also be included.
The U.S. Navy and Coast Guard expressed interest in the design and leased the P960 for a period of one year, from 2001 until 2002. During that time it was operated by a 14-man Norwegian crew out of Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek.
| # | Name | Laid down | Launched | Commissioned | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P960 | Skjold | August 4, 1997 | September 22, 1998 | April 17, 1999 | |
| P961 | Storm | October, 2005 | November 1, 2006 | Due to enter service spring 2008 | Sea trials as of Jan 08 |
| P962 | Skudd | March, 2006 | April 30, 2007 | Due to enter service mid 2008 | |
| P963 | Steil | October, 2006 | January 15, 2008 | Due to enter service spring 2011 | |
| P964 | Glimt | May, 2007 | Due to enter service late 2011 | ||
| P965 | Gnist | December, 2007 | Due to enter service mid 2011 |
| Royal Norwegian Navy patrol boat classes | ||||||||||||||||
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