British Navy HMS Spey Offshore Patrol Vessel joins Portsmouth Naval Base.

According to information published on October 28, 2020, the British Navy HMS Spey, the fifth and final River Class Batch 2 Offshore Patrol Vessel (OPV), departed BAE Systems’ shipyard in Glasgow on October 28, 2020, on her delivery voyage to her new home of Portsmouth Naval Base.
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The fifth and final River Class Batch 2 Offshore Patrol Vessel Britsih Navy HMS Spey departed Glasgow today on her delivery voyage to her new home HMNB Portsmouth marking the end of the OPV build program in Glasgow. (Picture source BAE Systems)

HMS Spey’s departure marks the completion of the Batch 2 OPV program build phase, which has seen BAE Systems design, construct, commission and deliver five River Class OPVs to the Royal Navy in six years.

Having recently completed a program of successful sea trials to fully test the vessel, HMS Spey will now join her four sister ships in the Royal Navy fleet. Thanks to a urea filter which reduces nitrogen oxide emissions from diesel generators by about 90%, HMS Spey will be one of the most environmentally friendly ships to join the fleet.

At its peak, the program sustained approximately 1400 jobs within BAE Systems and delivered a supply chain spend of almost £240m to more than 150 suppliers across the UK and Europe. The pace of the program also provided a valuable opportunity for more than 200 BAE Systems apprentices to experience all aspects of ship design, construction, outfitting and test and commissioning.

The OPV program has provided a significant opportunity to continue to invest in new cutting-edge technologies and processes to deliver greater capabilities to the Royal Navy. It has also supported the development of new talent that will now go on to contribute to the successful delivery of the next generation City Class Type 26 ships, which are also being designed and built by BAE Systems on the Clyde.

Through these programs, the Company is able to maintain critical engineering skills that are vital to sustaining the UK’s world-leading industrial base, as well as supporting the continual development of its employees’ capabilities in the design, construction, and integration of complex warships.

Upon arriving into Portsmouth, HMS Spey will be officially handed over to the Royal Navy. Once commissioned, she will enter a period of ship’s staff workup and her first maintenance period under the Contractor Logistics Support program (CLS) which will be delivered by BAE Systems’ Maritime Services business, which delivers upkeep and maintenance for the entire Royal Navy surface fleet based at Portsmouth.

The British Royal Navy HMS Spey is a Batch 2 River-class offshore patrol vessel manufactured for the British Royal Navy. The River-class s a highly versatile ship, designed to perform Economic Exclusion Zone management roles, including the provision of maritime security to coastal areas and effective disaster relief.

The 90-meter vessel is equipped with an air surveillance radar which can be used to detect low flying aircraft often used in smuggling operations. The ship’s rigid inflatable boat can be deployed swiftly from the davits for recovery and rescue operations and gives the ability to conduct sea boarding.

the HMS Spey is armed with one 30 mm DS30M Mark 2 that can engage fast inshore attack craft armed with short-range missiles, rockets, rocket-propelled grenades, machine guns or explosives, while 25 mm guns mounted port and starboard provide secondary armament to the vessel.

Featuring a 20-meter long flight deck, the 90-meter River-class vessel can land and fuel a medium-sized helicopter, up to 7 tonnes. It also provides ample deck space to up to six 20ft ISO containers for mission stores or humanitarian aid, with a 16-tonne capacity crane enabling cargo to be easily discharged to a jetty.