Breaking news
Contract for Five More German Navy K130 Braunschweig-class Corvettes Awarded to Shipyards.
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Naval Forces News - Germany
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Contract for Five More German Navy K130 Braunschweig-class Corvettes Awarded to Shipyards
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| On September 12 2017, the procurement agency of the German Ministry of Defence Bundesamt für Ausrüstung, Informationstechnik und Nutzung der Bundeswehr (BAAINBw) awarded a contract valued at nearly 2 billion euros ($2.4 billion) to a consortium of shipbuilders for five additional Braunschweig class (K-130) corvettes to be delivered to the German Navy (Marine) from 2022 to 2025. | |||
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 German Navy Braunschweig class corvettes (K130) |
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| The ARGE K130 consotium, led by Fr. Lürssen Werft also includes ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS), and German Naval Yards. German Naval Yards (owned by the Privinvest holding) was not originally part of the consortium but was included in the construction plan for the new corvettes following some negotiations. Germany approved in November 2016 the procurement of five additional Braunschweig class (K-130) corvettes by 2023. This new procurement s is to answer new NATO requirements: NATO expects the German Navy (Marine) to provide a total of four corvettes at the highest readiness level for use in littoral operations from 2018. With the current five K130 class corvettes, the Marine can only provide two vessels. “The Bundestag has cleared the way for the German Navy to receive the urgently needed five K130 corvettes as quickly as possible. This proven and modern ship class will be available to us earlier than any new development could be, which is important to the essential growth of the German Navy" said Vice Admiral Andreas Krause, the Chief of German Naval Staff, back in May 2017. Early rumors indicated that there would likely be few differences between the first, existing, batch and this second batch. The reason being the newly built vessels need to be available as soon as possible. The existing corvettes were built by TKMS and Lürssen. During a recent naval defence event in Bremmen, Germany (UDT 2017) two German defence industry sources told Navy Recognition that they didn't expect the new batch of 5 corvettes to be significantly different compared to the baseline configuration K130. This, however, seems to have changed: The German Navy was optimistic to commission the five additional corvettes between 2019 and 2023, but informed sources in the German defense industry from the very beginning maintained that the first ship would enter service no earlier than 2021. Now, under the new contract, the delivery of all five corvettes is planned from 2022 to 2025. A possible reason for this delay is that the second batch of K130 corvettes will feature a number of modifications or improvements (contrary to the initial intentions of the German fleet). The existing K130 corvettes are equipped with Thales TACTICOS combat management system, Thales Mirador optronics sensors, a TRS-3D multifunction radar, two navigation radars and the UL 5000 K ESM/ECM suite. Their weapons include four launching tubes for Saab RBS-15 anti-ship missiles, two 21-cell RAM systems, an Oto Melara 76/62 gun and two Rheinmetall MLG 27 guns. Link to K130 Braunschweig Class Corvette technical datasheet |