TOMAHAWK Count - the TOMAHAWK missile is a primary attack missile from the Fleet Submarines in Royal Navy service and there are four or five of them on active service.    They are in all six remaining TRAGALGAR Class submarines (each with a weapon fit of 30) plus the ASTUTE (38) making a possible 188 weapons being required is these vessels were all to be fully armed, with no allowances for “reloads”.    The other weapon carried of these submarines is the SPEARFISH heavy torpedo which entered production in 1988 with deliveries completed in 2003.

In 1995, the first order for TOMAHAWK was announced with some 65 missiles purchased and a further 48 were ordered in 1997 which gave a fleet total of 113 units – 20 of which were fired 20 against targets in Serbia in early 1999 and replaced by a “buy” of 17 new units in 1998 – fleet total thus 110.     More missiles fired against Afghanistan in 2001 and presumably the 20 units that year were replacements for those expended.   Further missiles were launched against Iraq in 2003 and again the 22 purchased that year were replacements.    So far so good and the figure of 110 units held, though there must have been some attrition due to test firings if nothing else.  Assuming this was set at 10% a fleet total of 100 units can be arrived at.

In 2006 a second major purchase was made with 64 acquired (at a reported average cost of in the region of £600,000) of the new block IV type though whether these replaced the original units is not clear, but doubtful - making a fleet total of 164.     These new units entered service in 2008.   There were further missiles expended in Libya in 2011 and ASTUTE has just fired four units on sea trials for which replacements (if any) have yet to be ordered.    So that may mean we are now at a fleet total of say 150 TOMAHAWK units.   With AMBUSH on sea trials the need to maintain our TOMAHAWK fleet numbers is clear, and further orders can this be anticipated ?      It can thus be speculated that the attack outfit of these missiles would be along the lines of:

ASTUTE                                                           24

TRAFALGARs (Fully Armed) (3)                    60

TRAFALGAR   (Other)         (2)                      24

Storage/Overhaul/Maintenance/Reserves  42  (28%)

To put this into some context the US Cruise Missile Submarine FLORIDA (one of four) has the capacity to carry 154 TOMAHAWK cruise missiles, and during the Libyan campaign fired 90 missiles!!