Feature 2 | GERMAN NAVAL PROGRAMMES German programmes roll forward
Aſter a relatively quiet 12 months, this year will see major progress in three major programmes for the German Navy.
cut in April with the keel of the first ship, FGS Baden-Württemberg, being laid down in November. At circa 7200tonnes these ships would be
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called destroyers if they had better anti-air warfare capability, but they possess only a point-defence rolling air frame (RAM) missile system with two launchers. Recent announcements show a change in sensor selection with the class becoming the launch customer for both the Cassidian (formerly EADS) TRS-4D/NR air-surface search radar with Diehl BGT Simone electro-optic sensor. Tey reflect a trend towards designing
ships less for conventional or Cold War operations and more to meet the challenges of littoral, asymmetric warfare. Tey will perform long-endurance crisis- management operations with the emphasis on supporting land operations through gunfire support and aid to Special Forces. Te design means they will be able to
deploy away from base for up to two years with a crew of 120 (including aviation detachment) who will be rotated every four months. Up to 50 Special Forces troops can be
embarked and they will have their own operations room. Tey can be deployed by helicopter or from four 11m high-speed rigid inflatable boats which will also be carried. They will be armed with the Oto
Melara 127mm (5inch) weapon with the Oto Melara Vulcano extended range ammunition as well as surface-to-surface missiles – possibly Harpoon or RBS Mk 15. Unusually, they will also feature non-lethal water cannon as well as the usual range of self-defence weapons including two MLG-27 27mm cannon, and five Oto Melara Hitrole NT remotely operated heavy machineguns. Te frigates will feature combined diesel-
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he programme for a new surface combatant, the Type 125 (F125) class ‘frigate’, will see steel being
The German Navy frigate Hessen, one of a number of Sachsen class F-124 frigates.
electric and gas (CODLAG) propulsion with a GE LM 2500 20MW gas turbine and four MTU diesels each rated at 3MW and two 4.5MW diesel generators. Tese will give a top speed of 26knots and a range of 4000nm at 18knots. The contract for their design and
construction was, as usual, placed in June 2007 with a consortium consisting of TyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) and Fr Lürssen Werſt. Te latter will build and outfit the bow module which will then be shipped to TKMS’ Blohm+Voss yard which will build and outfit the rest of the ship, assemble the modules, complete construction and conduct trials. Te first-of-class is scheduled to be commissioned in March 2016 and the last in December 2018. The other combatant programme
making progress will be the second batch of the Type 212A submarines, with the launching of the first boat, FGS U35, scheduled for June at Howaldtswerke- Deutsche Werſt (HDW) – although the German defence ministry is currently unable to confirm this. Tese boats will feature a redesigned sail
to accommodate a new communications mast and an OMS-100 electro-optical mast
that replaces the traditional periscope. Tere will be a new combat management system and sensors, the latter including a new EFAS flank sonar array, and there will also be improved communications including the Calypso buoy which will allow contact with the outside world even when the boat is deep. For Special Forces there will be a
built-in lock-out chamber, while for missions in tropical waters they will have air conditioning. Tey may also be the first boats to receive the Interactive Defence and Armament for Submarines (IDAS), a wire-guided missile based on the IRIS-T air-to-air missile and being developed specifically for these boats for use against ships, aircraſt and land targets which will give protection against aircraſt. Finally, the third of the Type 702 (EVS 702) underway replenishment ships, FGS Bonn will be launched this year. Te construction consortium, led by TKMS, who will complete assembly, includes Peenewerſt (who are building the hull) and Lürssen who are responsible for the superstructure. Te new ship will incorporate lessons
learned with her two circa 20,240tonne sister ships and will probably be slightly
Warship Technology May 2011
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