F125-class frigate

F222 Baden-Württemberg under construction, 2015
Class overview
Builders:	Thyssen-Krupp/Lürssen
Operators:	German Navy
Preceded by:	Bremen class
Cost:	ca. € 650 million per ship (can increase 3% p. a.)
Built:	2011-present
In service:	mid-2017
In commission:	November 2016
Building:	4
Planned:	4
General characteristics (Note that the final design may differ.)
Type:	Frigate
Displacement:	7,200 tonnes
Length:	149.52 m (490 ft 7 in)
Beam:	18.80 m (61 ft 8 in)
Draft:	5 m (16 ft 5 in)
Propulsion:	CODLAG 1 × 20 MW gas turbine 2 × 4.7 MW electric motors 4 × 2.9 MW diesel generators 3 × gearboxes: one for each shaft and one to crossconnect the gas turbines to them 2 × shafts, driving controllable pitch propellers 1 × 1 MW bow thruster
Speed:	20 knots (37 km/h) on diesel only, 26 kn (48 km/h) max.
Range:	4,000 nautical miles (7,400 km)
Boats & landing craft carried:	Submarine ROVs 4 × 11 m (36 ft 1 in) RHIB, capable of more than 40 kn (74 km/h)
Capacity:	Space for two 6.1 m (20 ft 0 in) containers
Complement:	190 (standard crew: 110)
Sensors and processing systems:	1 × Cassidian TRS-4D AESA radar 2(?) × navigation radars IFF diver and swimmer detection sonar (no anti-submarine sonar) Laser warning KORA-18 Combined RADAR and COMMS ESM from GEDIS Link 11, Link 16, Link 22 communications systems
Electronic warfare & decoys:	TKWA/MASS (Multi Ammunition Softkill System) ECM
Armament:	Naval guns: 1 × 127 mm lightweight Otobreda naval gun with guided VULCANO ammunition for land-attack missions (range: more than 100 km (62 mi)) 2 × 27 mm MLG 27 remote-controlled 5 × 12.7 mm Hitrole-NT remote-controlled machine gun turrets 2 × 12.7 mm heavy machine guns (manually controlled) CIWS: 2 × RAM Block II surface-to-air missile launcher/CIWS, 21 cells each Anti-ship missiles: 8 × RGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missiles (interim solution until joint sea/land attack missile RBS 15 MK4 becomes available) Non-Lethal: Water cannons
Aircraft carried:	2 × NH-90 helicopters

F125 is the project name for the Type 125 Baden-Württemberg class of frigates, currently in development for the German Navy by ARGE F125, a joint-venture of Thyssen-Krupp and Lürssen. The F125-class are officially classified as frigates but in size they are comparable to destroyers, since, with a displacement of more than 7,200 tons, they will be the biggest class of frigate worldwide. They are to replace the Bremen class.

In contrast to the Bremen class, which were built with Cold War-era scenarios in mind, the F125 will have much enhanced land-attack capabilities. This will better suit the frigates in possible future peacekeeping and peacemaking missions. For such reasons, the F125 will also mount non-lethal weapons.

Major design goals are reduced radar, infrared and acoustic signatures (stealth technology), something that was introduced to the German Navy with the Brandenburg-class frigate and was further developed with the Sachsen-class frigate and Braunschweig-class corvette.

Other important requirements are long maintenance periods: It should be possible to deploy F125 class frigates for up to two years away from homeports with an average sea operation time of more than 5,000 hours per year (that's nearly 60%) which includes operation under tropical conditions. For this reason, a combined diesel-electric and gas arrangement has been chosen for the machinery. This allows the substitution of large and powerful diesel engines for propulsion and sets of smaller diesel generators for electric power generation with a pool of med-sized diesel generators, reducing the number of different engines.