First UK Astute-class SSN enters refit

HMS Astute arrives at HMNB Devonport ahead of starting its Mid Life Re-Validation Period. (Crown Copyright)

The first of the UK Royal Navy's (RN's) Astute-class nuclear-powered attack submarines (SSNs) has arrived in Devonport, Plymouth, ahead of starting its Mid Life Re-Validation Period, the service confirmed on 4 July.

Work on HMS Astute will be carried out by Babcock at its Devonport Royal Dockyard maintenance facilities, where the shipbuilder is also carrying out refits of the Vanguard-class nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs).

Laid down in 2007 and commissioned into service in 2010, Astute is the first of seven SSNs being built by BAE Systems at its facilities in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, and is the first to undergo its mid-life refit programme.

The boat's first refit phase comes after completing 15 years of continuous service, which, according to the RN, is the longest first commission in the history of RN's submarine service. During its initial commission, Astute achieved several ‘firsts' for the class, including operating in Australia in support of HMS Queen Elizabeth's carrier strike group deployment in 2021 and being the first Astute-class SSN to transit through the Suez Canal.

The last nine months of operation were spent conducting submarine operations in the Atlantic and Mediterranean.

BAE Systems has to date delivered five out of seven Astute-class SSNs to the RN, which were commissioned into service between 2010 and 2025. The sixth and seventh boats in class, HMS Agamemnon and HMS Achilles, are in the advanced stages of construction in Barrow-in-Furness. Under current plans, Agamemnon is scheduled to enter service around the third quarter of 2025. Achilles, meanwhile, is in the later stages of construction in Barrow.

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