Naval gunfire support was considered an unnecessary role for frigates, as the extra space taken up by ammunition and the guns themselves was better spent on installing Mk41 and Mk61 VLS cells. (The larger often hypersonic missile carrying version with much larger cells capable of venting much larger volume and mass of exhaust gasses, along with carrying 60% larger missiles). Mk61 cells were dropped as they were considered unnecessary from the design, but were tested briefly on one vessel with a single set of 6 cells installed in the former X turret astern of the hangar. The use of heavy hypersonic Anti Ship missiles on a frigate was also potentially politically challenging, as their range and speed along with the proliferate UIS frigate fleet could turn the frigate to being too offensively capable for its peacetime roles. The Second Flight of the Type-18 series disappointingly share 45% commonality with the Flight 1 variant, down from an aimed 65%. However they lost 2 thousand tons of displacement. Ironically despite being classed as frigates in the UIS navy, the Type-18 originally displaced more than some destroyers in foreign navies, as the naval gunfire support role requires a larger platform with significantly more stable sea faring capabilities, along with ammunition safety regulations requiring increased weight in the form of magazine armour. The Flight 2 reduced the length by 12 meters, allowing it to not only dock in smaller ports, but also further align better with other foreign navy frigates in terms of length and displacement. Despite this, the Type-18-II will still be at the top end in terms of size and displacement for frigates. Notably, the Type-18-II does not have Multi Mission Module Capability, as the MMM being trialled in the UIS was neither ready for fleet deployment, nor was it designed for the platform, and would have required a far more significant redesign compared the already low 45% commonality of the Flight 2. Refits took 8 months per vessel, and started in September of 2025 for the now decade old Type-18. VLS was increased from 48 to 144, helicopter capacity reduced to 2 from 3 (deck holding was no longer possible due to the slight reduction in stability), a new inverted bow was installed to return some lost stability to the platform, and new dual gas turbines installed, with the power overhead now being 58% instead of the former 26%. The rest of the sensor suite has remained the same.
