The Vasco da Gama class is a class of frigates of the Portuguese Navy. Named in honor of the Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama, the ships are based on the German MEKO 200 design, and are Portugal's major surface ships. Portugal operates three ships of this class, which were built in Hamburg by Blohm + Voss (B&V) and by Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft (HDW) in Kiel, using modular construction techniques.
The project for the construction of three frigates of this class was authorized by the Portuguese Government in 1985, five years after the request of the Portuguese Navy for the acquisition of new surface ships. According to Conway's, 60% of the funding for these ships came from NATO military aid. Similar ships have been built for the navies of Greece, Turkey, Australia and New Zealand.
| Vasco da Gama class frigate | |
|---|---|
| Type: | Frigate |
| Displacement: | 2,920 tons standard 3,200 tons full load |
| Length: | 115.9 m (380 ft) |
| Beam: | 14.8 m (49 ft) |
| Draught: | 6.2 m (20 ft) |
| Propulsion: | 2 shaft CODOG, controllable pitch propellers 2 MTU 20V 956 TB92 diesel-engines, 8.14MW each 2 General Electric LM2500 gas turbines, 38MW each |
| Speed: | 32 knots (59 km/h) (gas turbines) 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph) (Diesel only) |
| Range: | 4,000 nautical miles (7,400 km; 4,600 mi) at 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph) |
| Complement: | 180 19 officers 40 petty-officers 102 enlisted 13 air crew 6 boarding team |
| Sensors and processing systems: |
|
| Electronic warfare and decoys: | 1 APECS II/700 ESM Countermeasures: SRBOC launcher |
| Armament |
|
| Aviation facilities: | Hangar for 2 Super Lynx Mk.95 helicopters |
