Further 3 Type 45 Destroyers

BAE SYSTEMS PLC
18 February 2002

FURTHER THREE TYPE 45 ANTI AIR WARFARE DESTROYERS CONFIRMED AND SHIPYARD
STRATEGY CONTRACTED

Following the announcement last year by UK ministers, BAE SYSTEMS is pleased to
confirm that its Type 45 Prime Contract Office has received an order for a
further three platforms for the Type 45 Destroyer, bringing the total number of
platforms now on order to six. The total contracted value of the Type 45
programme is now approximately £2 billion.

This order is concurrent with binding agreements concluded with the two
shipyards - BAE SYSTEMS Marine and Vosper Thornycroft - for their workshare in
respect of the Type 45 platform. These agreements give these shipyards a
guaranteed level of work to the end of the decade and enables them to make the
necessary new investment needed for such a complex ship.

Brian Phillipson, Group Managing Director, Sea Systems, said: 'I am delighted
with the confirmation of this order and the shipyard contracts. The agreements
set out a long-term future for warship building in BAE SYSTEMS and Vosper
Thornycroft and secures a major part of the future surface fleet for the Royal
Navy. It was crucial that we all reached agreement on a variety of complex
details which has now been achieved. We thus have in place solid foundations for
the future of military shipbuilding in the United Kingdom.'

Following a rigorous third Design Review, the ship's design has now reached a
degree of maturity which will provide a low risk basis for progression into
detailed systems and physical integration design activities.





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