Royal Navy Type 45 Destroyer HMS Daring is set to return to the fleet later this year following a prolonged period out of service for over 3300 days.
In response to written questions from Conservative MP Ben Obese-Jecty, Defence Minister Luke Pollard said the Type 45 destroyer, which entered Extended Readiness in October 2017, is nearing completion of major upgrades.
“HMS DARING entered Extended Readiness in October 2017 and will return to the Fleet later this year following completion of material upgrades including the Power Improvement Project,” he said.
The Power Improvement Project (PIP) is designed to address well-documented propulsion issues affecting the Type 45 class, improving resilience and reliability in high-temperature environments.
British warship passes 3,000 days out of service
Daring was laid down in 2003, launched in 2006, and commissioned in 2009. From keel-laying to commissioning, the process took 2,307 days. In contrast, the destroyer has now been out of service for more than 3,300 days, exceeding the entire time it took to build and bring her into the fleet.
The ship was withdrawn in April 2017 to begin the Power Improvement Project (PIP) and a major refit. The PIP was introduced across the Type 45 class to address known limitations with the ships’ power and propulsion systems. The original WR-21 gas turbines, which included an intercooler unit, had caused reliability issues in warm climates.
The upgrade package replaced the two original diesel generators with three larger and more reliable units. For Daring, this engineering programme was combined with a broader refit carried out at the Cammell Laird shipyard, which concluded in late 2022. After returning to Portsmouth in early 2023, Daring entered the regeneration phase. Then-Defence Minister James Cartlidge confirmed in May 2023 that PIP work had been completed, alongside that of HMS Dauntless. Dauntless has since returned to active service, while Daring has remained alongside, undergoing further work. According to defence sources, HMS Daring has now begun crewing ahead of trials.
Perspective
The 3,000-day milestone places HMS Daring’s regeneration period in context when set against her earlier career. From commissioning in 2009 until withdrawal in 2017, she spent eight years in operational service. Since then, she has spent more than eight years out of service. If she returns to sea trials in early 2026, the balance between those two phases will be almost even.
The length of this period is not the result of a single factor. The Power Improvement Project required deep modifications to the ship’s machinery spaces, and this was combined with a major refit at Cammell Laird. After Daring’s return to Portsmouth in 2023, the focus shifted to regeneration: systems testing, certification, and assembling and training a crew for a ship that had been inactive for years. Each of these stages has contributed to the overall timeline.
Across the class, the PIP has been designed to deliver long-term reliability, ensuring that all six destroyers remain capable of fulfilling their role as advanced air defence platforms into the future. Parliamentary statements have noted that no technical issues have been reported with the ships that have already completed the conversion.
