FSL today delivered the first Romanian T22 frigate Regele Ferdinand to BAE SYSTEMS and the Romanian Navy. This follows a 12- month regeneration programme to prepare the vessel to the standard required by the Romanian Navy.

FSL Managing Director, Ian Booth, said “We are delighted to hand over the first Type 22 frigate to Romania on time and below cost. This has been a significant engineering venture involving many new systems. It has proven once again how our comprehensive engineering capabilities allow us to deliver complex military capability to domestic and export customers alike.”

FSL secured the contract to regenerate the former HMS Coventry against harsh competition, highlighting FSL’s keen cost base and highly competent technical and engineering capabilities.

Mr Booth added: “The Regele Ferdinand’s sea trials have shown that these ships are extremely capable and this specific experience will allow FSL to provide valuable assistance when phase two of the regeneration is subsequently carried out in Romania.”

The programme to regenerate the ships will be completed when a second ship, the Regina Maria (ex-HMS London), sails from Portsmouth next year after FSL completes another similarly extensive programme. Regele Ferdinand has been completed on time and to budget with the work including a major package of surveys, maintenance, equipment fits and re-preservation.

FSL’s role in the reactivation of each ship includes removing the Outfit DDLB NATON Sea Gnat decoy launch systems and four MM38 Exocet surface-to-surface missile launchers on the bow deck, before installing an Oto Melara 76mm Super Rapid gun.

Other equipment fits include a BAE SYSTEMS MPSW 2000 message handling system; an Inmarsat-B secure voice and data satellite communications system; an on-board maintenance management system and an electro-optical tracking system.

The former NCS Mark 1 compass was removed in decommissioning and has been replaced with a Sperry Marine Mark 39 ring laser gyro compass and a Sperry Marine LMX 420 global positioning system.

Another important part of FSL’s programme is upgrading the main machinery by installing two reconditioned Rolls Royce Olympus TM3 gas turbine engines and two Rolls Royce Tyne RM1C gas turbines. The commissioning, set to work and trials of auxiliary systems and the propulsion plant was a major achievement, given that the ex-HMS Coventry had been laid up for two years and there was not the traditional ship’s staff expertise available to provide operator input.