Single Class Surface Combatant Project
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Operators: |
 Royal Canadian Navy
|
| Preceded by: | |
| Built: | 2020 – 2030s |
| Planned: | up to 15 |
| General characteristics | |
| Aircraft carried: | 1 x CH-148 Cyclone helicopter |
The Single Class Surface Combatant Project, has been superseded by the Canadian Surface Combatant project. It is the name given to the procurement project that will replace the Iroquois and Halifax-class warships with up to 15 new ships beginning in the early 2020s as part of the National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy.
The replacement vessels will be somewhat larger than the existing Halifax class, and presumably provide a wide-area air defence capability, anti-submarine warfare capability, as well as anti-shipping capability. The design of these ships is currently underway and both the total number of ships and their capability will be dependent on the budget that is allocated to the project. The new Liberal government, elected in October 2015, is undertaking a defence policy review which will include addressing these issues. Some analysts believe the Single Class Surface Combatant may "closely resemble" the Danish Iver Huitfeldt class of frigate. The ships might also be based on the FREMM multipurpose frigate design, with Canadian modifications. However, the final design and configuration of the vessels will be determined through the defence policy review.
The Single Class Surface Combatant Project is a naval procurement program for the Royal Canadian Navy created to replace the aging vessels of the Iroquois and Halifax classes. The Iroquois class, an anti-air warfare destroyer and the Halifax class, a multi-role frigate have come to the end or are nearing the end of their service lives and require replacement. The Iroquois class was originally scheduled for retirement around 2010 after 40 years in service; the ships were then expected to have their service lives extended until replacements were commissioned. However three vessels have now been decommissioned due to maintenance costs; the last remaining destroyer is experiencing engine and maintenance issues as of 2015. The Halifax class is projected to end their service lives in the 2020s.
The navy had investigated adopting the Active Phased Array Radar, leading observers to suggest that APAR and the associated SMART-L would equip the Single Class Surface Combatant or upgraded Halifax-class ships during the FELEX project. Upgrades to the existing Halifax class with such a system would likely be difficult since the APAR requires its own mast and might make the Halifax-class design top-heavy.
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