Open menu Search

Euronaval 2026: ‘I want to sell 31 Type 31s by 2031’ - CGO maps Babcock’s global push

5th November 2026 - 10:02 GMT | by Harry McNeil in Paris, France

RSS

The Royal Navy’s Type 31 frigate forms the basis of Babcock’s Arrowhead 140 export offering. (Photo: National Armaments Director Group)

Chief growth officer Sir Nick Hine tells Shephard how Babcock is lining up New Zealand, Chile, Denmark and the US for its Arrowhead 140 frigate, speaks on the hybrid navy offer and talks AUKUS.

UK defence company Babcock set itself a deliberately blunt target at Euronaval 2026: to sell 31 Type 31 frigates by 2031. The places Babcock was chasing for contracts show where some of the frigate demand is heading.

Sir Nick Hine, Babcock’s chief growth officer and chief executive of its marine business, told Shephard: “I want to sell 31 Type 31s by 2031. So we need to get cracking.”

Across a 20-minute conversation, Hine moved from New Zealand to Chile, Denmark, Australia and the US Navy. The thread running through each answer was the same: he wanted Babcock to be

Our news & analysis is now part of Defence Insight®

A Basic-level or higher Defence Insight subscription is now required to view this content.

LEARN MORE
Harry McNeil

Author

Harry McNeil


Harry McNeil is Shephard's Naval Reporter. Before joining, he spent almost two years as an …

Read full bio

Share to

Linkedin