The new Shark frigate, which is now entering service with the HCS Space Navy, is bringing real tactical flexibility to the fleet. It is replacing the Kalahati Tuul fleet which has served the HCS well for over a decade but while the KT and KT2 were useful general purpose ships they did not excel in specialist areas. The Shark has a modular multi-mission system (similar to Rome and Panther on the DDS side but not as plug & play) which means ships can be fitted out for specialist missions in just a few days.
One example, which has just been tested, is a geological survey module. In the past fitting out a KT for such a mission could take weeks with equipment being installed, calibrated and integrated. With the Shark the process is much quicker with all equipment having to adhere to Standard Mission Architecture (SMA) which is similar to the common platform elements of Open Architecture which the DDS have standardised in. The module does not have to be integrated or calibrated into the Shark's systems manually, everything occurs automatically greating cutting down on time spent at dock.
Other modules including a minesweeping module are in development. The 5th and 6th Sharks have just joined the fleet. Unfortunately for the HCS Kalahati Tuuls are leaving service faster than Sharks can be built to replace them meaning the HCS is facing a capability gap.
