The F123 Brandenburg class is a class of German frigate. They were ordered by the German Navy in June 1989, and then completed and commissioned between 1994 and 1996 to replace the Hamburg class destroyers. These frigates primarily carry out antisubmarine warfare, but they also contribute to antiaircraft warfare defenses, the tactical command of squadrons, and surface-to-surface warfare operations. Their design includes some stealth features.
Currently the F123 class is being upgraded under the auspices of the Fähigkeitsanpassung FüWES (FAF) project. The primary component being upgraded under this program is the Combat Management System, for which a version of the Thales Nederland TACTICOS system will be used. The ships will also receive an IFF upgrade, to the EADS MSSR 2000 I secondary radar system. However, its primary radars, specifically its long-range 2D search radar, the Thales Nederland LW08, and its medium-range 3D surveillance radar, the Thales Nederland SMART-S, are to remain.
General characteristics | |
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Displacement: | 4,900 tonnes |
Length: | 138.9 metres (456 ft) |
Beam: | 16.7 metres (55 ft) |
Draft: | 6.8 metres (22 ft) |
Propulsion: | CODOG (combined diesel or gas) two propeller shafts, controllable pitch propellers two MTU 20V 956 TB92 diesel-engines, 8.14 MW each two General Electric LM2500 gas turbines, 38 MW each two Renk BGS 178 Lo gearboxes |
Speed: | 29 knots (54 km/h; 33 mph) |
Range: | Over 4,000 nautical miles (7,400 km; 4,600 mi)at 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph) |
Complement: | 200 sailors and 20 aircrewmen |
Sensors and processing systems: | One Thales LW08 air search D band radar one Thales SMART-S air/surface surveillance F band radar two Thales STIR 180 fire-control radar two Raytheon Redpath I band navigation radar one STN Atlas DSQS-23BZ hull-mounted sonar one STN Atlas LFASS towed array sonar to be fitted |
Electronic warfare and decoys: | 1 EADS FL 1800S ECM suite two OTO-Melara SCLAR launcher four TKWA/MASS (Multi Ammunition Softkill System) decoy launcher (currently under procurement) |
Armament: |
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Aircraft carried: | Two Sea Lynx helicopters equipped with ASW torpedoes, or air-to-surface missiles Sea Skua, and a heavy machine gun. |