The enlarged design carries 96 A50 cells for Aster 30, with 24 Mark 41 cells added forward and another 24 aft. Allocating 24 of the Mark 41 cells to quad-packed Sea Ceptor would add 96 interceptors and leave 24 cells for other weapons. Tomahawk is the first suggested use, followed by SM-3 for ballistic-missile defence and potentially ASROC. An alternative uses 16 cells for 64 CAMM missiles, leaving 16 for Tomahawk, eight for ASROC, and eight for SM-3. Together with the 96 Asters, that second arrangement provides 160 anti-aircraft missiles. These are hypothetical loadouts, and purchasing enough missiles to fill the enlarged magazine is recognised as expensive.
Notable Point · 2:01:21-2:03:30
How a larger Type 45 could divide its missile magazine
A hypothetical 96-cell Aster battery plus 48 Mark 41 cells allows several different balances of air defence, land attack, and other missile roles.