According to reports in the UK Defence Journal, an alleged act of sabotage has occurred aboard the frigate HMS Glasgow, under construction for the British Navy, resulting in the disruption of outfitting work for several days. It is believed that disgruntled contractors, due to payment disputes, were responsible for intentionally cutting at least 60 cables on the ship.
BAE Systems’ shipyard, located on the River Clyde, discovered the cuts earlier this week and carried out an internal investigation in collaboration with its suppliers. All areas of the vessel were inspected, and necessary repairs were assessed. Although normal operations have resumed, the cause of the incident has not yet been definitively confirmed.
It is detailed that the frigate HMS Glasgow is required to incorporate around 23,000 cables in total, including electrical and data transmission cables.
HMS Glasgow is a powerful warship that was launched in a fjord off the west coast of Scotland late last year. It has been described in the UK by Defense Secretary Ben Wallace as “the world’s leading anti-submarine warship.” The frigate is the first of eight Type 26 frigates the British government plans to build. The Cardiff and Belfast, also from the Type 26 series, are already in the shipyard.
In November 2022, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak confirmed that a contract worth approximately $5 billion had been awarded to BAE Systems for the construction of five additional Type 26 frigates, in addition to the three already under construction.