IN Brief:
- PGZ Stocznia Wojenna has started construction of Huragan, the third and final Miecznik frigate for the Polish Navy.
- The programme is based on Babcock’s Arrowhead 140 design, adapted for Polish Navy requirements.
- All three frigates are now in the construction cycle, making Miecznik a major test of Polish serial warship production capacity.
Poland has cut steel for Huragan, the third and final frigate in the Miecznik programme, moving the Polish Navy’s largest modern surface-combatant programme deeper into serial construction.
The ceremony at PGZ Stocznia Wojenna in Gdynia marks the start of build work on the final vessel in the current three-ship series. The programme is being delivered by the PGZ-Miecznik consortium, with PGZ leading the programme, PGZ Naval Shipyard acting as technical lead, and Babcock International serving as the main project partner.
The Miecznik frigates are based on Babcock’s Arrowhead 140 design and adapted for Polish Navy requirements. PGZ lists the ships at around 138 m in length, approximately 20 m in beam, up to about 7,000 tonnes displacement, 28 knots maximum speed, and around 8,000 nautical miles of range.
The vessels are intended to perform air, surface, and underwater warfare roles, as well as protect offshore infrastructure, support allied operations, and secure maritime transport. Once delivered, they will form the core of Poland’s modern surface combatant capability in the Baltic.
From individual build to serial production
Huragan’s steel cut puts all three Miecznik frigates into the construction cycle. Wicher and Burza are already progressing, and the start of Huragan moves the programme from isolated milestone delivery toward a parallel shipbuilding rhythm.
Serial warship production requires stable design data, mature production planning, reliable steel processing, efficient block movement, disciplined welding, timely equipment delivery, and tight management of combat-system interfaces. Delays in one ship can consume space, labour, and crane availability needed for the next.
PGZ Stocznia Wojenna has been undergoing major investment to support the programme, with new halls, machinery, and production infrastructure intended to raise Polish naval construction capability. Miecznik is therefore both a fleet renewal project and an industrial transformation effort.
Systems integration and supply-chain control
The Arrowhead 140 baseline gives Poland a proven hull-design foundation, but the industrial challenge lies in integrating a Polish combatant around national requirements. Weapons, sensors, navigation systems, communications, mission systems, and ship-control equipment must be fitted into a platform that can be built repeatably and maintained through decades of service.
Large frigates place pressure far beyond the shipyard gate. Steel suppliers, cable manufacturers, electronics providers, propulsion specialists, HVAC contractors, combat-system integrators, and test teams have to align with a build schedule that now spans three vessels. Supplier coordination will be as important as hull construction.
Huragan will close the first Miecznik series, but the programme’s wider value will be measured by what it leaves behind: a Polish yard able to manage complex naval construction, a supply chain with live experience on modern combatants, and a production model that can support future surface-fleet decisions without starting from zero.
