General Purpose Frigate (Canada)

The Brock Report was released in 1961 and identified the need for a ship capable of replacing the Tribal-class destroyers for the Royal Canadian Navy, especially their ability to provide naval gunfire support, along with being capable of carrying a helicopter. The need for further dedicated anti-submarine warfare (ASW) surface platforms was questioned due to the planned addition of submarines. A new design was needed to maintain Canada's surface capability.^[3] However, the ships would retain some ASW capability.^[4]

At the same time NATO had developed a new defence plan, implemented in 1954, that called on Canada to have a force capable of fielding 43 ships. Among the plan's suggestions was the need for Canadian ships to be forward deployed, capable of operating in regions under the threat of Soviet air attack. In response, Canadian naval planners sought to aim for a balanced fleet. This would require an air-defence element, one that was being lost with the jettisoning of the F2H Banshee aircraft.^[3]

The argument supporting the need for the GPFs were based on Canadian foreign policy at the time. Canada's destroyers had been the first Canadian military units deployed to the Korean War in 1950 and the Royal Canadian Navy had carried a Canadian battalion to Egypt following the Suez Crisis.^[5] It was argued that a GPF should then be capable of being deployed on United Nations missions.^[6] The Conservative government also sought to support the Canadian shipbuilding industry, with a plan to build the eight planned frigates in several yards with subcontracting to Canadian businesses. This was done partially for political expediency and because by 1961, the Canadian shipbuilding industry was in need of work following the collapse of the Canadian merchant shipping fleet in the 1950s.^[7]

The GPFs were included as part of the 1961 building program of the Royal Canadian Navy after being presented to the Chiefs of Staff in May. The costing for the program was included in the annual estimates. The building program recommended the construction of eight GPFs which was agreed to by the Cabinet of Canada on 19 March 1962.^[8]

On 11 April 1962, the program was announced in the House of Commons by the Defence Minister and indicated that construction would start by the end of 1963.^[9][10] The original cost per ship was estimated at C$31 million, however, the design was not finished and by June 1962, the cost had risen to $46 million per ship.^[11] By December 1962 the keel laying had been postponed.^[9]

The design called for a versatile platform, capable of fulfilling several capabilities, such as naval gunfire support, troop lift, and guided missiles.^[12] The vessels would also be able to carry a helicopter and have the speed to catch nuclear-powered submarines.^[11] The dimensions of the design resembled the later Iroquois-class destroyer, as the destroyers were based on the General Purpose Frigate design.^[13] Gardiner, Chumbley and Budzbon claim that the GPFs would have had the same displacement and dimensions as the Iroquois class, displacing 3,551 tonnes (3,495 long tons) normal and 4,700 tonnes (4,626 long tons) at deep load. They would have been approximately 423 feet (128.9 m) long overall with a 50-foot (15.2 m) beam and a 14-foot-6-inch (4.4 m) draught.^[1] However, Milner states that the Iroquois class's beam were wider after a design change.^[13]

The class was to be powered by two shaft geared steam turbines creating 36,000 shaft horsepower (26,845 kW). This would give the frigates a designed speed of 30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph).^[1] They were intended to be armed with one twin semi-automatic 5-inch (127 mm)/54 calibre Mk 42 gun and one RIM-24 Tartar surface-to-air missile system and the anti-air MIM-46 Mauler missile system.^[1][11][a] They were also to be equipped with ASW torpedo tubes.^[1][14]