HMS Duncan (D37)

HMS Duncan is the sixth and last of the Type 45 or Daring-class air-defence destroyers built for the Royal Navy. Duncan is named after Adam Duncan, Viscount Duncan of Camperdown (1 July 1731 – 4 August 1804), who defeated the Dutch fleet at the Battle of Camperdown on 11 October 1797.

Operational history
Duncan's construction began at the BAE Systems Naval Ships (now part of BAE Systems Surface Ships) yards at Govan and Scotstoun on the River Clyde in 2006. She was launched from Govan on 11 October 2010, on the 213th anniversary of the Battle of Camperdown). HMS Duncan sailed from Scotstoun shipyard, Glasgow on 31 August 2012 to commence sea trials. Duncan, the sixth and last type 45 destroyer, was commissioned on 26 September 2013. She is expected to enter service in 2014 after a period of trials and training.

Advanced air-defence
The Type 45 destroyers are primarily designed for anti-aircraft and anti-missile warfare with the capability to defend against aircraft, drones as well as supersonic sea skimming anti-ship missiles. The Royal Navy describe the destroyers' mission as "to shield the Fleet from air attack". The Type 45 destroyer uses the sophisticated Sea Viper air-defence system utilizing the SAMPSON active electronically scanned array multi-function air tracking radar, and the S1850M long-range air surveillance radar. The Sea Viper system is able to control and coordinate several missiles in the air at once, allowing several tracks to be intercepted. It has been suggested that the SAMPSON radar is capable of tracking an object the size of a cricket ball travelling at three times the speed of sound. A core component of the Type 45's Sea Viper air-defence system is the Aster missile, composing of the Aster 15 and Aster 30. MBDA describe Aster as an anti-missile missile capable of intercepting all types of high performance air threats at a max range of 120 km (Aster 30). The Aster missile is autonomously guided and equipped with an active RF seeker enabling it to cope with "saturated attacks" thanks to a "Multiple engagement capability" and a "high rate of fire". Presently the Daring-class destroyers are equipped with a 48-cell A50 Sylver Vertical Launching System allowing for a mix of up-tp 48 Aster 15 and 30 missiles. However, the Type 45 destroyer was designed to accommodate a total of 64-cells, while some reports suggest a total of 72-cells.

Affiliations

 * City of Dundee
 * City of Belfast
 * Scots Guards
 * No1 (Fighter) Squadron RAF
 * Worshipful Company of Cooks
 * Worshipful Company of Saddlers
 * Friends of Camperdown House
 * The Mary Rose Trust
 * Northern Ireland Children’s Hospice
 * Lachlan Goudie (Scottish painter and son of Alexander Goudie)
 * City of Duncan, BC and the Royal Naval Association Vancouver Island Branch
 * Glenfarclas distillery
 * Manchester & Salford URNU
 * HMS Hibernia
 * TS Duncan Sea Cadet Unit (Dundee)