Astute Boat 4+ programme puts focus on cost reduction

摘要

In May last year, the UK Ministry of Defence announced the long-awaited go-ahead for BAE Systems to start the construction of the fourth Astute-class nuclear-powered attack submarine (SSN). Last year the UK MoD also revealed that its new SSN would be named Audacious. However, it only sanctioned a limited ￡200 million contract to cover initial manufacture work, deferring a commitment to a whole-boat price until an ongoing programme of work to drive down Astute manufacture costs has further matured.