Braunschweig-class corvette
Corvette Magdeburg (F 261)
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| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Operators: |
 German Navy
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| Built: | 2004–2007 |
| In commission: | 2008– |
| Planned: | 10 |
| Completed: | 5 (Batch 1) |
| Active: | 5 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Corvette |
| Displacement: | 1,840 tonnes (1,810 long tons) |
| Length: | 89.12 m (292 ft 5 in) |
| Beam: | 13.28 m (43 ft 7 in) |
| Draft: | 3.4 m (11 ft 2 in) |
| Propulsion: | 2 MTU 20V 1163 TB 93 diesel engines producing 14.8MW, driving two controllable-pitch propellers. |
| Speed: | 26 knots (48 km/h; 30 mph) |
| Range: | 4,000 nmi (7,400 km) at 15 kn (28 km/h; 17 mph) |
| Endurance: | 21 days; 63 days with tender |
| Complement: | 65 : 1 commander, 10 officers, 16 chief petty officers, 38 enlisted |
| Sensors and processing systems: |
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| Electronic warfare & decoys: |
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| Armament: |
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| Aircraft carried: | Helicopter pad and hangar for two Camcopter S-100 |
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 in service.
In May 2015 the Israeli Government ordered four Sa'ar 6-class corvettes, whose design by ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems will be loosely based on that of the Braunschweig-class corvette, but with engineering changes to render the baseline platform more militarily robust. In October 2016 it was announced that the German Navy will receive a second batch with five more corvettes from 2019-2023, probably with some modifications. The procurement was in response to NATO requirements expecting Germany to provide a total of four corvettes at the highest readiness level for littoral operations by 2018, and with only five corvettes just two can be provided.
They feature reduced radar and infra-red signature ("stealth" beyond the Sachsen-class frigates) and will be equipped with two helicopter UAVs for remote sensing. Recently, the German Navy ordered a first batch of 6 Camcopter S-100 UAVs for the use on the Braunschweig-class corvettes. Also the German Army plans to procure the Camcopter S-100 for land-based missions. The hangar is too small for standard helicopters, but the pad is large enough for Sea Kings, Lynx or NH-90s, the helicopters of the German Navy.
Originally the K130 class was supposed to be armed with the naval version of the Polyphem missile, an optical fiber-guided missile with a range of 60 kilometres (37 mi), which at the time was under development. The Polyphem program was canceled in 2003 and instead the designers chose to equip the class with the RBS-15. While the RBS-15 has a much greater range (250 kilometres (160 mi)), the current version mounted on the ships, Mk3, lacks the ECM-resistant video feedback of the Polyphem. The German Navy has ordered the RBS-15 Mk4 in advance, which will be a future development of the Mk3 with increased range (400 kilometres (250 mi)) and a dual seeker for increased resistance to electronic countermeasures. The RBS-15 Mk3 has the capability to engage land targets.
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Wikipedia