French ship Dupuy de Lôme (A759)

Career
Name: Dupuy de Lôme
Namesake: Henri Dupuy de Lôme
Launched: 27 March 2004
Commissioned: April 2006
Identification: IMO number: 9282156
Status: Active
General characteristics
Displacement: 3100 t (3600 t full load)
Length: 101.75 metres
Beam: 15.85 metres
Draught: 4.9 metres
Propulsion: 2 Mak 9M25 diesels
Speed: 16 knots
Range: 6300 km
Complement: 8 officers, 16 Warrant officers, 6 quarter-masters, 78 engineers
Sensors and
processing systems:
2 DRBN38A navigation radars
Electronic warfare
and decoys:

ARBR-21 radar detector
goniometer for satellite communication interception
goniometer for Elite communication interception

goniometer for Egide Naval communication interception
Armament: 2 x 12.7mm M2 Browing machine guns

The Dupuy de Lôme (A759), named after the 19th century engineer Dupuy de Lôme, is a ship designed for the collection of signals and communications beyond enemy lines, which entered the service of the French Navy in April 2006. In contrast to the Bougainville, the ship that she replaced, the Dupuy de Lôme was specifically designed for sea intelligence, pursuant to the MINREM project (Moyen Interarmées Naval de recherche ElectroMagnétique, "Joint Naval Resources for Electromagnetic Research").

Design

The Dupuy de Lôme was designed by Thales Naval France on civilian standards. She provides a 350-day-operational availability a year, out of which 240 can be spent at sea. The ship is operated by two Navy squads, each composed of 33 sailors and 33 technicians, and an optional complement of up to 38 specialists, depending on the mission. The specialised personnel operates under the Direction du renseignement militaire.

Sources and references