Commandant Rivière-class frigate
Escort Commandant Bourdais on the Seine river in July 1989
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| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Commandant Rivière class |
| Builders: | Arsenal de Lorient |
| Operators: | |
| Preceded by: | Le Normand class |
| Succeeded by: | D'Estienne d'Orves class |
| Subclasses: | João Belo class |
| In commission: | 1962 - 1991 |
| Completed: | 9 |
| Laid up: | 1 (Uruguay) |
| Retired: | 6 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Frigate |
| Displacement: | 1,750 tons standard, 2,230 tons full load |
| Length: | |
| Beam: | 11.5 m (37 ft 9 in) |
| Draught: | 4.3 m (14 ft 1 in) |
| Propulsion: |
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| Speed: | 25 kn (29 mph; 46 km/h) |
| Range: | 7,500 nmi (8,600 mi; 13,900 km) at 16 kn (18 mph; 30 km/h) |
| Boats & landing craft carried: |
2 × LCP landing craft |
| Complement: | 166 |
| Sensors and processing systems: |
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| Armament: |
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The Commandant Rivière class was a class of frigates built for the French Navy in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Labeled "aviso-escorteur" (fr: "sloop-escort"), they were designed to perform the role of overseas patrol in peacetime and anti-submarine escort in wartime.
Four similar ships were built for the Portuguese Navy as the João Belo class.
The main gun armament of the Commandant Rivière class consisted of three of the new French 100 mm (4 in) guns, with a single turret located forward and two turrets aft. These water-cooled automatic dual-purpose guns could fire a 13.5 kg (30 lb) shell at an effective range of 12,000 m (39,000 ft) against surface targets and 6,000 m (20,000 ft) against aircraft at a rate of 60 rounds per minute. A quadruple 305 mm anti-submarine mortar was fitted in 'B' position, aft of the forward gun and in front of the ship's superstructure, capable of firing a 230 kg (510 lb) depth charge to 3,000 m (9,800 ft) or in the shore bombardment role, a 100 kg (220 lb) projectile to 6,000 m (20,000 ft). Two triple torpedo tubes were fitted for anti-submarine torpedoes, while the ship's armament was completed by two 30 mm Hotchkiss HS-30 cannon. The ships had accommodation for an 80-man commando detachment with two fast landing boats, each capable of landing 25 men.
While the previous French frigates of the Le Corse and Le Normand classes were powered by steam turbines, because a long-range was required for the overseas colonial role of the ships, the class was instead fitted with a 16,000 bhp (12,000 kW) two-shaft diesel powerplant, capable of propelling the ship at a speed of 26 kn (30 mph; 48 km/h), although 26.6 kn (30.6 mph; 49.3 km/h) was reached during trials.
Two ships of the class were fitted with modified powerplants. Commandment Bory was powered by Free-piston engines driving gas turbines, although it was refitted with a conventional diesel installation in 1974–1975, while Balney was fitted with an experimental CODAG (Combined diesel and gas) installation, with a 11,500 hp (8,600 kW) and two 3,600 bhp (2,700 kW) diesel engines driving a single shaft. The CODAG arrangement took up less space, allowing 100 tons more fuel to be carried and giving a range of 13,000 nmi (15,000 mi; 24,000 km) at 10 kn (12 mph; 19 km/h). Balny omitted one 100 mm gun turret to accommodate the revised machinery.
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Wikipedia