Germany's first Type 125 frigate begins sea trials

[Zarvan]

The German Navy's first Type 125 frigate, the future FGS Baden-Württemberg, has begun sea trials. Source: ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems

The German Navy's first Type 125 frigate, the future FGS Baden-Württemberg , commenced builders' sea trials on 6 April. The commencement of these trials represents a major milestone in the project.

The design and operational concepts for the ships mark a departure from preceding classes in the navy. In design terms, the ships feature a combined diesel-electric and gas turbine propulsion system (CODLAG). In operational terms, the ships are intended primarily to support stabilisation operations and to deploy at sea for up to two years at a time while using regular crew rotations.

The project, in its current form, got under way in 2004. A construction contract was awarded to a consortium - known as ARGE F125, and comprising ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems, Lürssen, and PeeneWerft (now part of Lürssen) - in June 2007. Ship deliveries originally were intended to take place between late 2014 and 2017. In the 2008 Bundeswehrplan, the overall level of investment in the programme was put at about EUR2.69 billion (USD3.08 billion).

Baden-Württemberg was christened in December 2013 and was floated for the first time in March 2014.

The builders' sea trials will take place in the North and Baltic sea areas and will test the new propulsion and platform systems. Delivery is now expected is mid-2017.

Second ship Nordrhein-Westfalen was launched in 2015, and is expected to be delivered in 2018. Delivery of ship three, Sachsen-Anhalt , is scheduled for early 2019, with fourth-in-class Rheinland-Pfalz following in early 2020.

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Germany's first Type 125 frigate begins sea trials | IHS Jane's 360

 

[MKC]

Now it became trend in big militaries to call cruisers as destroyers, destroyers as frigates, frigates as corvettes & corvettes as OPVs...
Japanese call everything as destroyers, who call a 7200 tonnes ship as frigates & 15000 tonne ship as destroyer, what will be size of cruisers?

 

[flamer84]

Now it became trend in big militaries to call cruisers as destroyers, destroyers as frigates, frigates as corvettes & corvettes as OPVs...
Japanese call everything as destroyers, who call a 7200 tonnes ship as frigates & 15000 tonne ship as destroyer, what will be size of cruisers?

They could have called it a corvette seeing it's payload.650+ million euros,7200 tonnes ship armed with only 2 RAM missiles for air defence.LOL

 

[MKC]

They could have called it a corvette seeing it's payload.650+ million euros,7200 tonnes ship armed with only 2 RAM missiles for air defence.LOL

Yes, I don't know why these costs this much, no SAM, no stealth, no ASW, 26kn max speed.
I thought why stealth Kamorta class with 3400 tonnes have weapon of just 1200 tonnes ship, then I saw this.
BTW this is made for just peacekeeping purpose so weapons are justified but cost...

 

[Penguin]

Now it became trend in big militaries to call cruisers as destroyers, destroyers as frigates, frigates as corvettes & corvettes as OPVs...
Japanese call everything as destroyers, who call a 7200 tonnes ship as frigates & 15000 tonne ship as destroyer, what will be size of cruisers?

Displacement:

• 24,300 tons standard
• 28,000 tons full load

Just remember, the UK's Invincible class light carrier started out as 6000 ton ' through deck cruiser' ...
an idea that t some extent derived from enlarge helicopter carrying destroyers such as the Italian two-ship 6500 ton Andrea Doria and one-ship 8850 ton Vittorio Veneto classes of helicopter cruisers and the 17500 ton Russian two-ship Moskva class helicopter cruisers. The latter was the precursor of the four-ship Kiev class cruisers with Yak-39 VTOL, which eventually evolved into the Kuznetsov class (2 ships) and Ulyanovsk carriers. The US also entertained the idea of the through-deck cruiser, based on the Spruance class hull and also came up with the Sea Control Ship when the Harrier became available. The Harrier was of course the one development that transformed the UKs through deck cruiser of - initially - some 6000 ton into the much larger Invincible class. The Japanese on the other hand, made their helicopter destroyers (7600 ton Haruna and Shirane classes), untill quite recently.

 

[Penguin]

They could have called it a corvette seeing it's payload.650+ million euros,7200 tonnes ship armed with only 2 RAM missiles for air defence.LOL

Electronic warfare
& decoys:

• TKWA/MASS (Multi Ammunition Softkill System)
• ECM

Armament:

• Naval guns:
• • 1 × 127 mm lightweight Otobreda naval gun with guided VULCANO ammunition for land-attack missions (range: more than 100 km (62 mi))
  • 2 × 27 mm MLG 27 remote-controlled autocannons
  • 5 × 12.7 mm Hitrole-NT remote-controlled machine gun turrets
  • 2 × 12.7 mm heavy machine guns (manually controlled)
• CIWS:
• • 2 × RAM Block II surface-to-air missile launcher/CIWS, 21 cells each
• Anti-ship missiles:
• • 8 × RGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missiles (interim solution until joint sea/land attack missile RBS 15 MK4 becomes available)
• Non-Lethal:
• • Water cannons

Aircraft carried: 2 × NH-90 helicopters (with anti-submarine and/or air to surface missiles (NFH version), 2x door gun)

And I would not half be surprised if the superstructure area between forward RAM and 127mm main gun is a ' space and weight reserved' area where you could fairly easily drop in e.g. a modular Millennium 35mm gun or a Mk-56 GWLS (2x3 cells, duo packed ESSM > 12 missiles). Or - better still (as it would not require a target illuminating radar for ESSM) - mount some (e.g. 2x2 r 2x3) Mk41 single cell launchers along the side of that superstructure, with quad packed active radar homing CAMM (16 to 24 misiles).

With Extensible Launch system ' canister'

CAMM test fired out of an ExLS module clipped into a MK41 standard launcher

UK Armed Forces Commentary: Vertical Launching Systems and the Type 26