The Type 45's later problems arose after Britain's departure from the Horizon project. The planned class fell from twelve ships to six, leaving far less depth than the air-defence requirement demanded. Its combined power arrangement also pursued savings despite contemporary objections that a more redundant turbine and generator layout was needed. The ongoing repair programme addresses that engineering weakness, but it cannot restore the missing hulls. The absence of Mark 41 cells and a separate point-defence battery illustrates how fitted-for-but-not-with decisions can save money initially while narrowing later options.
Chapter · 46:00-47:35
Type 45 class cuts, power choices, and missile space
The Type 45 shortfall is traced to domestic choices to halve the planned class, economise on propulsion, and omit launch capacity rather than to the earlier Horizon split.