Type 23 Duke

Royal Navy general-purpose frigate originally designed for anti-submarine warfare in the North Atlantic, now serving as the fleet's multi-role workhorse armed with Sea Ceptor missiles. The class is being progressively replaced by the Type 26 and Type 31 as it reaches the end of its service life.

In service since 1990 · 1 operator countries

Compiled from public sources ·primary reference ↗ ·last verified 2026-07-02

4,900

7,500

nmi

VLS

185

crew

Procurement snapshot

Availability & export

UK export-licensed

Subject to UK SPIRE licensing (ECJU); generally available to allied states.

Channel: Government-to-government or direct

Fielded & proven

Limited · 1 operator

In service since 1990. Status: active · ~16 built.

Lifecycle cost (est.)

No public unit price to model from.

Interoperability

Mk 41 VLS-class

Derived guidance from public data — export regime by country of origin, lifecycle from the GAO ~30% acquisition rule. Verify eligibility, pricing and offsets with the manufacturer and your acquisition authority.

Full specifications

Firepower

Armament, payload and guidance.

Main armament Primary weapon: main gun, cannon or missile type.: 1× 4.5 in Mark 8 naval gun
VLS cells Vertical-launch missile cells on a warship — a proxy for magazine depth. Higher means more missiles before rearming.: 32

Stronger than 50% of warships
Torpedo tubes Number of torpedo tubes (submarines and some surface ships).: 4

Stronger than 28% of warships

Physical

Dimensions, weight and crew.

Length Overall length including gun/probe where applicable.: 133 m

Naval

Displacement, speed, endurance and diving depth.

Displacement Standard displacement in tonnes — the ship’s size class. Larger hulls carry more but cost more and are less agile.: 4,900 t
Full-load displacement Displacement fully loaded with fuel, stores and munitions.: 4,900 t
Max speed Top speed in knots (surfaced, for submarines). Higher aids positioning and screening.: 28 kn

Stronger than 43% of warships
Range Cruising range in nautical miles. Nuclear vessels are effectively unlimited (fuel-wise). Higher means more reach without replenishment.: 7,500 nmi

Stronger than 71% of warships
Complement Crew size. Fewer eases manning cost; more may indicate a larger, more capable platform.: 185
Propulsion plant Machinery type — nuclear reactor, gas turbine (COGAG), CODAG, diesel-electric, AIP.: CODLAG: 2× Rolls-Royce Spey gas turbines + 4× diesel generators

Sensors & avionics

Radar, sensor suite and datalinks.

Radar Primary radar. AESA (active electronically scanned array) is the current state of the art.: Type 997 Artisan 3D radar
Sensors IRST, EO/IR turrets, laser designators, sniper pods, thermal sights.: Type 2087 towed-array sonar, Type 2050 hull sonar

Program

Cost, production scale and operators.

Units built Total production run. Higher means proven manufacturing, mature logistics and spares availability.: 16

Top 7% of warships
Operator countries Number of countries operating the system. More operators means broader support ecosystem.: 1

Stronger than 45% of warships

Specifications compiled from public BAE Systems and reference sources ↗. Published defense figures are approximations — treat comparisons as directional. Last verified 2026-07-02.

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