THE hard work of Barrow's shipyard staff has shown off after the sixth Astute submarine was rolled out of Devonshire Dock Hall.

Crowds have been out on Michaelson Road Bridge as HMS Agamemnon emerged from the gates of the hall.

It comes 11 years after the first steel was cut on the 7,000-tonne fleet submarine at the shipyard. 

Agamemnon - named after the ancient Greek king - is the sixth of seven Astute submarines being built by BAE.

It will be launched before eventually undergoing sea trials and joining the Royal Navy's fleet of so-called hunter killer submarines.

At 97 metres long and weighing 7,400 tonnes, advanced nuclear technology means the Astute Class submarines never need to be refuelled.

They can manufacture their own oxygen and fresh water from the ocean and are able to circumnavigate the globe without surfacing.

Describing its functions, the Navy said Agamemnon will act 'both sword and protector' by being strike targets on land and beneath the waves.

It said the submarine 'will carry out a number of important roles, from covert surveillance to tactical strike', while weaponry will include the 'Spearfish heavyweight torpedo and the fearsome Tomahawk Block IV land-attack missile, which has a range of some 1,000 miles'.

The boat, which will be manned by 98 crew, was officially named in a ceremony at the shipyard in April.

The ceremony was attended by the Minister for Defence Procurement and included an address by the boat's Lady Sponsor, Lady SJ Sedwill, the wife of former UK National Security Adviser Lord Mark Sedwill. 

Agamemnon was then blessed and christened with a bottle of beer from Ulverston Brewing Company smashed against her hull.

BAE Systems is also developing the SSN-AUKUS programme, as part of the trilateral security pact between Australia, the UK and America.

Under the AUKUS agreement, Australia and the UK will operate a common submarine of the future, incorporating technology from all three nations, based on the UK’s next generation design, which BAE Systems is leading.