Braunschweig class corvette
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| Braunschweig class corvette | |
|---|---|
 Corvette Magdeburg (F 261) |
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| General characteristics |  |
| Displacement: | 1,840 tonnes |
| Length: | 89.12 m |
| Beam: | 13.28 m |
| Draft: | 3.40 m |
| Speed: | 26 knots |
| Range: | 4,000 nautical miles at 15 kn[1] |
| Endurance: | 7 days; 21 days with tender |
| Complement: | 65 |
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 used but not particularly well suited for this mission.
They feature reduced radar and infrared signature ("stealth" beyond the Sachsen class frigate) and should have been equipped with two helicopter UAVs for remote sensing. The UAV program has been delayed indefinitely, but the Braunschweig will be fitted with a small hangar and a helo pad nonetheless. The UAV is still planned and will probably be developed jointly by the German Navy and the German Army. The hangar is too small for standard helicopters, but the pad is large enough for Sea Kings, Lynx or MH-90s, the helicopters of the German Navy.
The planned program of the Polyphem missile system - optical fiber-guided missiles with a range of 60 km - was canceled in 2003. Instead, the RBS 15 is mounted. While the RBS15 has a much greater range (200 km, after upgrade up to 400 km) it lacks the ECM-resistant video feedback of the Polyphem and is also just too large (and too expensive) for most targets.
The German Navy is seeking a replacement for the Polyphem missile and also has ordered the RBS 15 Mk. 4 in advance, which will be a future development of the Mk. 3 with increased range and a dual seeker.
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[edit] Specifications
- Sensors
- Communications: Link 11 and Link 16
- Armament
- 1 Otobreda 76 mm gun
- 2 MLG 27 mm autocannons
- 2x 21 cell RAM launcher
- 2x 2 cell launcher with RBS-15 Mk. 3 surface-to-surface missiles
- mine laying capability
- Countermeasures
- Helopad and Hangar (too small for manned helicopters)
- Complement: 1 commander, 10 officers, 16 chief petty officers, 38 enlisted
[edit] Ship list
| Pennant number |
Name | Shipyard | Laid down | Launched | Commissioned |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F260 | Braunschweig | Blohm + Voss | December 3, 2004 | April 19, 2006 | April 16, 2008 |
| F261 | Magdeburg | Lürssen-Werft | May 19, 2005 | September 6, 2006 | |
| F262 | Erfurt | Nordseewerke | September 22, 2005 | March 29, 2007 | |
| F263 | Oldenburg | Blohm + Voss | June 28, 2007 | ||
| F264 | Ludwigshafen | Lürssen-Werft | September 26, 2007 |
The ships aren't actually built at a single shipyard. Sections are constructed at different locations at the same time and later married. The table lists the yard, where the keel was officially laid down in a ceremony.
The five ships will form the Korvettengeschwader (corvette squadron) of the Einsatzflotille 1 (Flotilla 1) and their home port will be Warnemünde on the Baltic Sea.
A second batch with at least five ships (probably with varying equipment and armament) is planned from 2008 on.
[edit] Images
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[edit] References
- Korvette Braunschweig-Klasse @ Marine (official homepage of the German Navy)
[edit] See also
- Sea Shadow (IX-529)
United States - USS Independence (LCS-2) United States
- USS Freedom (LCS-1) United States
- Sea Fighter United States
- La Fayette class frigate
France - Visby class corvette
Sweden - F125 class frigate
Germany - Sachsen class frigate Germany
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