Braunschweig-class corvette

Corvette Magdeburg (F 261)
Class overview
Operators:  German Navy
Built: 2004–2007
In commission: 2008–
Planned: 10
Completed: 5 (Batch 1)
Active: 5
General characteristics
Type: Corvette
Displacement: 1,840 tonnes (1,810 long tons)
Length: 89.12 m (292 ft 5 in)
Beam: 13.28 m (43 ft 7 in)
Draft: 3.4 m (11 ft 2 in)
Propulsion: 2 MTU 20V 1163 TB 93 diesel engines producing 14.8MW, driving two controllable-pitch propellers.
Speed: 26 knots (48 km/h; 30 mph)
Range: 4,000 nmi (7,400 km) at 15 kn (28 km/h; 17 mph)[1]
Endurance: 21 days; 63 days with tender
Complement: 65 : 1 commander, 10 officers, 16 chief petty officers, 38 enlisted
Sensors and
processing systems:
Electronic warfare
& decoys:
Armament:
Aircraft carried: Helicopter pad and hangar for two Camcopter S-100

The K130 Braunschweig class (sometimes Korvette 130) is Germany's newest class of ocean-going corvettes. They supplement the Gepard-class fast attack craft that are currently in service.

In May 2015 the Israeli Government ordered four Sa'ar 6-class corvettes, whose design by ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems will be loosely based on that of the Braunschweig-class corvette,[4] but with engineering changes to render the baseline platform more militarily robust.[5] In October 2016 it was announced that the German Navy will receive a second batch with five more corvettes from 2019-2023, probably with some modifications.[6] The procurement was in response to NATO requirements expecting Germany to provide a total of four corvettes at the highest readiness level for littoral operations by 2018, and with only five corvettes just two can be provided.[7]

Technical details

They feature reduced radar and infra-red signature ("stealth" beyond the Sachsen-class frigates) and will be equipped with two helicopter UAVs for remote sensing. Recently, the German Navy ordered a first batch of 6 Camcopter S-100 UAVs for the use on the Braunschweig-class corvettes. Also the German Army plans to procure the Camcopter S-100 for land-based missions.[8] The hangar is too small for standard helicopters, but the pad is large enough for Sea Kings, Lynx or NH-90s, the helicopters of the German Navy.

Originally the K130 class was supposed to be armed with the naval version of the Polyphem missile, an optical fiber-guided missile with a range of 60 kilometres (37 mi), which at the time was under development. The Polyphem program was canceled in 2003 and instead the designers chose to equip the class with the RBS-15. While the RBS-15 has a much greater range (250 kilometres (160 mi)), the current version mounted on the ships, Mk3, lacks the ECM-resistant video feedback of the Polyphem. The German Navy has ordered the RBS-15 Mk4 in advance, which will be a future development of the Mk3 with increased range (400 kilometres (250 mi)) and a dual seeker for increased resistance to electronic countermeasures.[9] The RBS-15 Mk3 has the capability to engage land targets.[10]

Difficulty of classification

Vessels of this class do not have an executive officer (German: Erster Offizier). Traditionally, in the Germany Navy this was used as a rule to classify a vessel as a boat, not a ship. In a press release the German Navy states that these corvettes will be called ships nonetheless because of their size, armament and endurance.[11] The commanding officer wields the same disciplinary power as a German Army company commander, not that of a battalion commander as is the case with the larger German warships such as frigates.[12] However, in size, armament, protection and role these corvettes resemble modern anti-surface warfare (ASuW) frigates, the main difference being the total absence of any anti-submarine warfare (ASW) related sensors or weapons.

Technical problems

The new lightweight gearing of the corvettes has experienced severe problems. Until the Swiss contractor for the gearing, MAAG GmbH of Winterthur, Switzerland, for whom this was the first contract with the German Navy, can remedy the constructional deficiencies which have been identified early in the operation of the first vessels the commissioning of the three not yet commissioned corvettes has been delayed. They, as well as the first two already commissioned units, are currently laid up and unable to go to sea until the projected changes to the gearing have been effected. New issues have occurred with air conditioning system, gears, toxic exposition by the exhaust system and missile system. While the corvettes were originally projected to be commissioned between May 2007 and February 2009 operational capability is currently expected for 2014.[13]

Ships in class

The ships were not actually built at a single shipyard. Sections were constructed at different locations at the same time and later married together. The table lists the yard where the keel-laying ceremonies were held. Due to the decommissioning of the Gepard-class 5 addionally planned 2019-2023.[14]

Pennant
number		 Name Shipyard Laid down Launched Commissioned Status
F260 Braunschweig Blohm + Voss 3 December 2004 19 April 2006 16 April 2008 In active service
F261 Magdeburg Lürssen-Werft 19 May 2005 6 September 2006 22 September 2008 In active service
F262 Erfurt Nordseewerke 22 September 2005 29 March 2007 28 February 2013 In active service
F263 Oldenburg Blohm + Voss 19 January 2006 28 June 2007 21 January 2013 In active service
F264 Ludwigshafen am Rhein Lürssen-Werft 14 April 2006 26 September 2007 21 March 2013 In active service

Images

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Corvette Braunschweig Handed Over" (Press release). ThyssenKrupp AG. 30 January 2008. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
  2. ↑ "Korvette "Braunschweig"-Klasse (K 130)" (in German). German Navy. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  3. ↑ "K130 Braunschweig Class Corvette - German Navy". Navyrecognition. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  4. ↑ Azulai, Yuval (11 May 2015). "Israel signs €430m deal for German patrol vessels". Globes. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
  5. ↑ Israeli Navy Marks Milestones at German Shipyards, By: Barbara Opall-Rome, August 4, 2016
  6. ↑ http://www.faz.net/aktuell/politik/inland/fuenf-neue-korvetten-fuer-die-bundeswehr-14481903.html
  7. ↑ German Navy to Get Five More K130 Braunschweig-class Corvettes - Navyrecognition.com, 14 November 2016
  8. ↑ Archived May 20, 2009, at the Wayback Machine.
  9. ↑ Neue Aufgaben der Marine mit moderner Ausrüstung (in German). Germany Navy. 17 May 2004. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
  10. ↑ German Navy K130 Corvettes Ready for Saab RBS-15 Mk3 Anti-Ship Missiles - Navyrecognition.com, 8 June 2016
  11. ↑ Struckhof, Detlef (22 January 2009). "Warum Korvetten Schiffe und keine Boote sind (Why corvettes are ships and not boats)" (in German). Presse- und Informationszentrum Marine. Retrieved 3 February 2010.
  12. ↑ "Wehrdisziplinarordnung (WDO)" (in German). German Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
  13. ↑ "Milliardenprojekt Korvette 130: Pannenserie reißt nicht ab - Marineinspekteur fordert schärfere Kontrolle". PressPortal (in German). 20 June 2011. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
  14. ↑ http://www.n-tv.de/politik/Bundeswehr-soll-neue-Korvetten-bekommen-article18863466.html
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