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Australian Light Destroyer Project (Quickmatch-class)

In this alternate Cold War timeline, the Royal Australian Navy pushes forward and succeeds with it's indigenous destroyer program — the DDL project.

Historically this project started in the 1960's as a requirement for very small and simple destroyers to complement existing ships, being smaller than a frigate. The designs changed constantly, growing in scale and by the late 1960's and early 1970's the design had evolved into something resembling a small but capable guided missile destroyer intended to instead replace older ships with even the 1972–73 edition of Jane's Fighting Ships commenting favourably. Check out the Wikipedia article on the DDL project if you want to learn more.

In our timeline, the RAN’s ambitious Light Destroyer (DDL) program of the 1960s and 1970s ultimately failed due to mismanagement, inexperience and rising costs; leaving the service reliant on ageing WWII-era destroyers and foreign imports, eventually the OHP based Adelaide-class FFG ending up filling its role. But what if the project was managed much better, and the plan had succeeded?

This mod imagines a world where the DDL project bore fruit, resulting in the versatile Quickmatch-class destroyers. Early designs were rushed into production in the early 1970s to replace WWII-era vessels and with regional tensions running hot, these warships would strengthen and form the backbone of the RAN’s surface fleet through the height of the Cold War.

The class was never named historically and so the ships in my concept are named in honour of historic WWII and Korean war-era RAN destroyers, with notable names like HMAS Voyager returning to the service after the previous vessel sank in the tragic 1964 collision with HMAS Melbourne. Designed as multirole escorts, the Quickmatch-class offered a domestic solution to Australia’s maritime security needs — and would have marked the first time destroyer-based helicopter ASW was introduced to the RAN ahead of real-world timelines.

This is a fictional semi-kitbash with some additional custom modeling and custom textures based on the Type 22 model by Skyblazer

• 1975–Flight I (Original Configuration): Equipped with twin Mk42 5-inch gun mounts, Ikara ASW missiles, SeaCat point-defence systems, manually operated AA guns, and two embarked Wessex helicopters. Designed for general-purpose escort and ASW duties, but with weak air defence by late-Cold War standards.
  
  
• 1988–Flight I Refit: Major upgrade swaps SeaCat for NATO Sea Sparrow (RIM-7M) in a BPDMS launcher, replaces Oerlikon mounts with Phalanx Block 1 CIWS, the addition of Harpoon Block 1B AShM and improvements to surface search radar (SPS-10 → SPS-67). New ECM systems, improved ASW torpedoes (Mk 46 Mod 5), retaining the older Ikara system but adding towed array sonar and Nixie decoy system to bring it closer to the Flight II standard and keep the class effective into the late 1980s and throughout the 1990s-2000s.
  
  
• 1982–Flight II (Bataan Subclass): The Flight II designs, also known as the Bataan-subclass were a more advanced ship, which had a slightly longer development time to learn lessons from the Flight I designs. Enhanced weapons fit due to structural revisions makes this a guided-missile destroyer with the addition of a Mk13 ‘one-armed bandit’ launcher for SM-1MR (with maximum SM-1 load) missiles and quad-canister Harpoon Block 1 AShM launchers, upgraded sensors and fire control, deletion of Ikara, and adoption of lightweight Mk 45 guns. Wessex helicopters provide the only long range ASW but the vessels were fitted with improved bow sonar, the addition of towed sonar array & Nixie decoy and includes ECM.
  
  
• 1991–Flight II Refit: Mid-life modernisation brings a lethal SM-2MR Block IIIA capability with a STIR upgrade for missile guidance, improved Harpoon Block 1C, AN/SPS-49 long-range radar, and advanced SQS-53C sonar with SQR-19(V) towed array. CIWS upgraded to Block 1A. Wessex have been replaced by the S-70B-2 Seahawk. These refits keep the Bataan subclass viable into the 21st century as high-threat environment escorts.

While Ikara was phased out in real life by the early 1990's, this alternate path keeps it relevant longer. The SM-2 upgrade to the Bataan subclass is a rare example of a non-U.S. Navy vessel achieving compatibility with the more advanced Standard Missile, thanks to the updated sensors and STIR combo — bridging the gap between early Cold War doctrine and modern multirole combat requirements.


✅ A full evolution from Cold War-era destroyer to late-20th-century multirole escort.
✅ Indigenous design based on a stretched Type 22 hull, reflecting DDL intent.
✅ Multiple variants spanning nearly two decades of development, covering 1975-1991 with variations on the designs.
✅ Missile evolution: SeaCat → Sea Sparrow → SM-1MR → SM-2MR.
✅ Sonar suite progression from legacy SQS-26 to modern SQS-53C with towed arrays.
✅ Embarked Wessex helicopters for long-range ASW, with Seahawk on the 1991 Flight II vessels.


The Quickmatch-class represents a bold alternate path for the Royal Australian Navy — a capable, indigenous surface combatant fleet that helped sustain naval power projection in the Pacific. From Cold War convoy escort to modern strike and ASW operations, the class evolved into a true multirole workhorse — had history played out just a little differently. This also could have potentially led to more indigenous Australian warship building had this ambitious project succeeded.

• This is my interpretation based on line drawings and sketches I had seen of the DDL project, an early line drawing I saw resembled a Type 22 which is why I decided to use the hull as a base. The design really could have ended up being many appearances based on many other drawings but it was ultimately never built.
  
• The weapons fit on the Flight II reflects the best representation of what I had seen on line drawings and what I read about the project, with the Flight I ship being more of an early design bridging to the more modern destroyer design in my concept.

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Skyblazer for allowing me to use the Type 22 model as a base, the SeaCat model and for many many questions answered and loads of technical advice.

Petrouvis for allowing me to use the Ikara model in this mod.


S-70B-2 Seahawk with AGM-114 'Hellfire' Missiles - by Pog Frog (thank you for permission to make a light RAN re-skin)
^And a special mention for Jason Simpson of Simpson's Virtual Slipway who is the creator of the original Seahawk model

Westland Wessex(Early Release) - by Skyblazer
New Threat Upgrade - by nuclearstonk (modern weapons assets in the refit variants)

Please leave a bug report if there are any issues, I have tested it but it is a mod with a lot of work put into it so there could be something I have overlooked.


(You will need to look these up on YouTube, I am not sure if the automated content checker is still having issues with links)
Simple Install Guide by Skyblazer
Sealifter and Anchor Chain guide by Brothermunro