French frigate Courbet
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History | |
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Name | Courbet |
Namesake | Admiral Amédée Courbet |
Laid down | 15 September 1993 |
Launched | 12 March 1994 |
Commissioned | 1 April 1997 |
Homeport | Toulon |
Identification | MMSI number: 228731000 |
Honours and awards | Flies the FFL jack in honour of the battleship Courbet |
Status | In active service |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | La Fayette-class frigate |
Displacement | |
Length | 125 m (410 ft 1 in) |
Beam | 15.4 m (50 ft 6 in) |
Draught | 4.8 m (15 ft 9 in) |
Propulsion | 4 SEMT Pielstick 12PA6V280 STC2 diesel engines, 16,000 kW (21,000 hp) |
Speed | 25 knots (46 km/h; 29 mph) |
Range | 7,000 nmi (13,000 km; 8,000 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph) |
Complement |
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Sensors and processing systems |
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Electronic warfare & decoys |
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Armament |
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Armour | On sensitive areas (munition magazine and control centre) |
Aircraft carried | 1 × helicopter (Panther or NH90) |
Courbet is a general purpose stealth frigate of the French Navy (Marine Nationale) of the La Fayette class. She is the third French vessel named after the 19th century admiral Amédée Courbet.
Construction and career
Courbet took part in Opération Baliste. On 3 October 2006, an Israeli fighter aircraft penetrated her 2-nautical-mile (4 km) defence perimeter without responding to radio calls, triggering a diplomatic incident. Israel apologised after official protests from the French government. Throughout September the ship was involved in anti-piracy operations off the coast of Somalia, helping to recapture a yacht taken by pirates on 2 September.
In December 2009 Courbet escorted the French Navy cruiser Jeanne d'Arc on her final voyage. This was last trip of the helicopter carrier that served as a floating embassy and symbol of the French Navy for 46 years. Jeanne d'Arc's last voyage in company with Courbet included visits to Africa, South America including Rio de Janeiro to Buenos Aires, the French Antilles, the United States including New York City, and Canada. The voyage was completed sometime in May 2010.[3]
In June 2020, while on patrol to counter alleged arms smuggling to Libya, France claimed that Turkish frigates illuminated Courbet three times with their fire control radar, a claim which was denied by Turkish officials.[4]
On her first operational deployment after her mid-life upgrade, Courbet, operating in the Gulf of Guinea in conjunction with the helicopter assault ship Mistral, was involved in the seizure of just under 2 tons of drugs in May 2022.[5]
Upgrade
Courbet was the first ship of her class to begin a mid-life upgrade in October 2020. The upgrade is designed to permit the frigate to operate through the 2020s and into the 2030s and incorporates the addition of hull-mounted sonar, improved point air defence systems as well as the latest variant of the Exocet anti-ship missile.[6] The frigate returned to sea in June 2021 following her upgrade.[2] She is projected to remain in service until 2032.[7]
In future it is also planned to incorporate the CANTO anti-torpedo countermeasures system in the frigate.[8]
References
- ^ "First Upgraded la Fayette-class Frigate back into the French Fleet". 18 October 2021.
- ^ a b Groizeleau, Vincent (15 April 2021). "Première FLF rénovée, la frégate Courbet remise à l'eau". Mer et Marine (in French). Retrieved 22 June 2021.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "French Warship on Last Trip Delivers Books to NYC Students" (PDF) (Press release). Consulate general of France NYC. 10 March 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 July 2011. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
- ^ "Libya crisis: France suspends Nato mission role amid Turkey row". BBC News. 2 July 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2021.
- ^ "New Drug Seizure By The French Navy In The Gulf Of Guinea". Naval News. 25 May 2022. Retrieved 27 May 2022.
- ^ "Naval Group starts renovation and upgrade of French Navy Courbet La Fayette-class frigate". Navy Recognition. October 2020. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Groizeleau, Vincent (2 January 2021). "Marine nationale : les programmes qui vont façonner la future flotte française". Mer et Marine (in French). Retrieved 15 April 2021.
- ^ Manaranche, Martin (31 July 2021). "Video: French Navy's La Fayette-Class Frigate Mid-Life Update". Naval News. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
External links
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