Yes indeed. It would be sad if Canada followed the trend... if the Tribals are not replaced, upgrading Halifax with area defence systems will be very difficult unless they are cut up and a new section with VLS is added. Radar-wise, even with a VLS section for SM-2, the absence of aegis-type would restrict the missiles' range and performance...Sea Toby said:Yes, but at least they were given a mid-life refit and modernization in which they were converted from an ASW asset into a AWD asset. Whether any new AWD destroyers will be built, which ones, where, and when will more than likely be addressed by the new defense review. Keep in mind Canada does have twelve city class frigates which were delivered in the 1990s. The new defense review may decide to cut and not replace the AWD destroyers, and instead upgrade their newer frigates. It seems many of the other NATO partners have cut the size of their naval fleets.
I'm not sure new tubes would fit SM-2s. As you mention, VLS for Sea Sparrows are literally stuck in limited space along the hangar. As they are, they can't even launch ESSM. Much larger and longer tubes are needed for SM-2s. Otherwise even for the Tribal DDGs this solution would have been preferred vs installing Mk41 for SM-2s.Sea Toby said:The greatest threat to Canada's trade links in my opinion are submarine related, as American and her allies, both east and west, have air superiority over the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Canada could also upgrade their fleet of frigates with the new VLS launchers of the DDG-1000 class, which has a considerably lesser footprint. Technology moves on.
Why bother with Mk 41 VLS? Currently these frigates Sea Sparrow launchers are configured in a 2x4 arrangement already besides the hangar. If the current tubes can't fit SM-2s, surely new tubes could.