Royal Navy frigate Sutherland to return to service after four-year refit

The Royal Navy Type 23 frigate HMS Sutherland has returned to sea after nearly four years following a major overhaul in Devonport dockyard.

The ship is the final Type 23 frigate to receive the life extension upgrades courtesy of defence firm Babcock, allowing her to continue in service into the mid-2030s alongside her sisters.

Sutherland sailed from Devonport to begin sea trials and training ahead of re-joining the Royal Navy fleet and serve on operations around the globe, mainly on anti-submarine warfare missions in the North Atlantic.

The ship underwent a full structural survey and a major upgrade, which included more than 800 inserts and 11,500 weld repairs. The latter demanded more than five kilometres of welding.

The frigate also received an upgraded 2150 sonar system, requiring the removal of the sonar bow dome – a major lifting operation involving specialist support.

She is also the last ship in her class to receive the Sea Ceptor missile system – now proven in action after HMS Richmond downed drones in the Persian Gulf last year.

Entire sections of the ship have been deconstructed and then rebuilt to allow engine, generator and machinery control upgrades: forward and aft switchboards, new diesel generator and motor generator sets in the forward and upper auxiliary machinery rooms, as well as the installation of several miles of new pipework and cables.