City, River, and Hunter variants in allied task groups

Every Type 26 variant must defend itself and contribute outside ASW, even though submarine hunting remains its foundation. The Royal Navy's City class can rely on carrier-group aircraft and Type 45 destroyers for much of the outer air-defence battle. Canadian River-class destroyers and Australian Hunter-class frigates face a broader integration problem because they may join British, American, Japanese, or other allied formations. Their wider capabilities help them reinforce both ASW and air defence when the composition of the allied formation changes. Canada could also assemble surface action groups, although that is considered unlikely here. Its planned River order is described as potentially larger than the British City and Australian Hunter orders combined, with the eventual comparison dependent on Norwegian orders and changes to British plans. The variants show how coalition expectations can reshape a common hull without erasing its original purpose.