HDMS Niels Juel underway in the Red Sea, April 2019 | |
Class overview | |
---|---|
Builders |
|
Operators | Royal Danish Navy [2] |
Preceded by | Niels Juel-class corvette [3] |
Subclasses | Arrowhead 140 frigate (Type 31 frigate) |
Cost | US$325 million per ship [4] [5] |
Built | 2008–2011 |
In commission | 2012–present |
Planned | 3 |
Completed | 3 |
General characteristics | |
Type | Air defence frigate |
Displacement | 6,645 t (6,540 long tons) (full load) |
Length | 138.7 m (455 ft 1 in) |
Beam | 19.75 m (64 ft 10 in) |
Draft | 5.3 m (17 ft 5 in) |
Propulsion |
|
Speed | 28 knots (52 km/h; 32 mph) |
Range | 9,000 nmi (17,000 km; 10,000 mi) at 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph) [7] |
Complement | 165 |
Sensors and processing systems |
|
Electronic warfare & decoys |
|
Armament |
|
Aircraft carried | 1 × MH-60R |
Aviation facilities | Aft helicopter deck and hangar |
The Iver Huitfeldt class is a three-ship class of air defence frigates that entered service with the Royal Danish Navy in 2012 and 2013. [8] [9] [10]
The class is built on the experience gained from the Absalon-class frigates. By reusing the basic hull design of the Absalon class, the Royal Danish Navy has been able to construct the Iver Huitfeldt class considerably cheaper than comparable ships. [11]
The frigates are compatible with the Royal Danish Navy's StanFlex modular mission payload system used in the Absalons, and they are designed with slots for six modules. Each of the four StanFlex positions on the missile deck is able to accommodate the Mark 41 8-cell Harpoon launcher module, or the 12-cell Mark 56 Evolved SeaSparrow Missile (ESSM) Vertical Launching System (VLS). [12]
The Absalon-class ships are primarily designed for command, support, and ASW roles, with a large ro-ro deck. The three new Iver Huitfeldt-class frigates are equipped for an air defence role with Standard Missiles, as well as the potential to use Tomahawk cruise missiles, [13] a first for the Royal Danish Navy.
The ships were constructed in blocks in Estonia and Lithuania. These blocks were then towed to the Odense Steel Shipyard where they were assembled. [1]
Most of the weapons for the three ships were reused from the previous Niels Juel-class corvettes and the Flyvefisken-class patrol vessels. Other components were reused to keep the cost at a minimum.
These ships share their anti-air warfare suite with the Royal Netherlands Navy's De Zeven Provinciën-class frigates and the German Navy's Sachsen-class frigates. The sensors of this suite include the long range surveillance radar SMART-L (passive electronically scanned array) and the multi-function radar APAR active electronically scanned array. [14]
The SMART-L and APAR are highly complementary in the sense that SMART-L is an L band radar, providing very long range surveillance. APAR is an I band radar, providing precise target tracking, a highly capable horizon search capability, and missile guidance using the Interrupted Continuous Wave Illumination (ICWI) technique, allowing guidance of 32 semi-active radar homing missiles in flight simultaneously, including 16 in the terminal guidance phase. [14]
The primary anti-air weapons are the medium-range ESSM [15] and the area defence SM-2 IIIA. The Mk 41 VLS is used to house and launch these missiles. Depending on the number of Harpoon launchers installed, up to 24 ESSMs and 32 SM-2 IIIAs or SM-6s may be carried.
Name | Number | Laid Down | Launched | Commissioned | Status | Badge |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Iver Huitfeldt | F361 | June 2008 | March 2010 | January 2011 | In service | |
Peter Willemoes | F362 | March 2009 | December 2010 | June 2011 | In service | |
Niels Juel | F363 | December 2009 | December 2010 | November 2011 | In service |
The builder's successor, OMT, suggested the type for the Procurement programme of the Royal Australian Navy's frigates, but built in Australia and modified for anti-submarine warfare. [16] They were suggested for the Royal New Zealand Navy, as they currently operate modified Anzac-class frigates similar to those of the Royal Australian Navy. However, OMT was not among the three warship designers shortlisted by Australia for the SEA 5000 frigate program in April 2016.
The Iver Huitfeldt-class frigate was a contender in the Canadian Single Class Surface Combatant Project. [2] It has been claimed that due to concerns over the fairness of the bidding process, two European shipbuilders, possibly Germany's ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems and Odense Maritime Technology, declined to submit bids. [17]
In late May 2018 a consortium of Babcock International, BMT Group and Thales Group announced the "Arrowhead 140" design, based on the hull of the Iver Huitfeldt-class frigates, for the Royal Navy Type 31e frigate programme. [18] In September 2019, it was announced that the Arrowhead 140 design had been selected for the Type 31 frigate. [19] [20] [21]
In March 2019, a variant of Denmark's Iver Huitfeldt class emerged as a front-runner for the Indonesian Navy's US$720 million two-frigate acquisition programme. [22] The Indonesian Navy expected to purchase two Iver Huitfeldt-class frigates, with a budget plan of US$720 million for its MEF Phase 3 in 2020–2024. Indonesian officials and Ministry of Defense officials held multiple meetings about the ships. By 14 March 2019 there was discussion between the Indonesian Ministry of Defense and Odense Maritime Technology about the technical issues and potential cooperation. Denmark offered a scheme of "transfer of technology" (ToT) to Indonesia, such as modular frigate building designed by BUMN PT PAL. [22]
In February 2020, a defense delegation from Indonesia visited Denmark, and toured Niels Juel. According to Indonesian media, the deputy of the Indonesian Ministry of Defense Sakti Wahyu Trenggono said in March that Indonesia's PT PAL was tasked to develop a design for two ships over five years, for Rp1.1 trillion (or US$720 million) in collaboration with Denmark, for the Indonesian Navy. [23] [24] In April 2020, representatives from the Indonesian Ministry of Defense, PT PAL shipbuilders and PT Sinar Kokoh Persada, an Indonesian agent for the Danish Odense Maritime Technology (OMT) company, agreed to an opening contract for the procurement of the Danish frigate. Points in the contract include workshare arrangements that will be made after the effective (actual) contract can be realized. [25]
In September 2021, Indonesia signed a contract with Babcock for the purchase of the Type 31 frigate design license, which based on the Iver Huitfeldt design, in order to construct 2 frigates locally in Indonesia. [26]
A frigate is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied.
The SAMPSON is a multi-function dual-face active electronically scanned array radar produced by BAE Systems Maritime. It is the fire control radar component of the Sea Viper naval air defence system. The Sea Viper system is also known as PAAMS(S) to denote the use of the SAMPSON radar and to distinguish it from the PAAMS system on the Franco-Italian Horizon-class frigate.
HNLMS De Zeven Provinciën (F802) is the first ship of the De Zeven Provinciën-class air defence and command frigates in service with the Royal Netherlands Navy (RNLN). There are three other ships in this class, HNLMS Tromp, HNLMS De Ruyter, and HNLMS Evertsen. De Zeven Provinciën is the eighth ship in the Royal Netherlands Navy to carry this name. The name refers to the original seven Dutch provinces which together formed the Union of Utrecht.
The RIM-162 Evolved SeaSparrow Missile (ESSM) is a development of the RIM-7 Sea Sparrow missile used to protect ships from attacking missiles and aircraft. ESSM is designed to counter supersonic maneuvering anti-ship missiles. ESSM also has the ability to be "quad-packed" in the Mark 41 Vertical Launch System, allowing up to four ESSMs to be carried in a single cell.
A stealth ship is a ship that employs stealth technology construction techniques in an effort to make it harder to detect by one or more of radar, visual, sonar, and infrared methods.
The F124 Sachsen class is the German Navy's latest class of air-defense frigates. The design of the hull is based on that of the F123 Brandenburg class but with enhanced stealth features designed to deceive an opponent's radar and acoustic sensors. The class incorporates an advanced multifunction radar APAR and a SMART-L long-range radar which is purported to be capable of detecting stealth aircraft and stealth missiles.
The four De Zeven Provinciën-class frigates are air-defence and command frigates in service with the Royal Netherlands Navy. This class of ships is also known as "LCF". The ships are similar to the German Sachsen-class frigates in role and mission.
Active Phased Array Radar (APAR) is a shipborne active electronically scanned array multifunction 3D radar (MFR) developed and manufactured by Thales Nederland. The radar receiver modules are developed and built in the US by the Sanmina Corporation.
The Absalon class are frigates of the Royal Danish Navy, commissioned in 2005. The two ships in the class may be described as a hybrid between a frigate and military transport ship with multiple role capabilities, with the capacity to be transformed from a combat ship with the firepower of a traditional frigate to a hospital ship within a day.
The Rheinmetall Oerlikon Millennium Gun or Rheinmetall GDM-008 is a close-in weapon system designed by Rheinmetall Air Defence AG for mounting on ships. It is based on the 35/1000 revolver gun land-based air defense system and uses Advanced Hit Efficiency And Destruction (AHEAD) ammunition.
The Mark 41 vertical launching system is a shipborne missile canister launching system which provides a rapid-fire launch capability against hostile threats. The vertical launching system (VLS) concept was derived from work on the Aegis Combat System.
SMART-S Mk2(Signaal Multibeam Acquisition Radar for Tracking, S band Mk2) is a naval medium to long-range air and surface surveillance multibeam passive electronically scanned array 3D radar designed by Thales Nederland, formerly Hollandse Signaalapparaten (Signaal). While the original SMART-S radar was only produced in small numbers, SMART-S Mk2 is more successful with 30 systems were sold to navies all over the world within six years after being introduced. The radar transmitter/receiver (T/R) modules for the radar are purchased by Thales from the Turkish defence company Aselsan.
The Type 31 frigate, also known as the Inspiration class, and formerly known as the Type 31e frigate or General Purpose Frigate (GPF), is a class of five frigates being built for the United Kingdom's Royal Navy, with variants also being built for the Indonesian and Polish navies. The Type 31 is intended to enter service in the 2020s alongside the eight submarine-hunting Type 26 frigate and will replace the five general-purpose Type 23 frigates. The Type 31 is part of the British government's "National Shipbuilding Strategy".
The F110 class, also known as the Bonifaz class, are a multi-purpose, anti-submarine class of Aegis combat system-fitted heavy frigates under construction for the Spanish Navy. The project is being co-developed by the Spanish Ministry of Defence and the state-owned company Navantia. The construction of the first unit (Bonifaz) started in April 2022. Deliveries are scheduled to start in about 2025.
The Type 32 frigate is a frigate currently in development in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy. It was officially announced in November 2020 by Prime Minister Boris Johnson as a result of the Integrated Review. Built after the Type 26 and Type 31 frigates, the ship will be general-purpose and modular in its design and, after entering service in the 2030s, is expected to help grow the Royal Navy's surface escort fleet from 19 to 24 vessels.
HDMS Iver Huitfeldt (F361) is a Iver Huitfeldt-class frigate in the Royal Danish Navy. The ship is named after Iver Huitfeldt, a 17th-century Danish officer.
HDMS Peter Willemoes (F362) is a Iver Huitfeldt-class frigate in the Royal Danish Navy. The ship is named after Peter Willemoes, a 18-19th-century Danish officer.
HDMS Niels Juel (F363) is an Iver Huitfeldt-class frigate in the Royal Danish Navy. The ship is named after Niels Juel, a 17th-century Danish admiral.
The Future Air Defender (FuAD) was a joint program from the Dutch and German navies to find a common replacement for both the De Zeven Provinciën and the Sachsen-class frigate. The joint German-Dutch programme was cancelled in November 2023.
Euphemisms for 'frigate' have become the norm in Denmark – the frigate-sized Thetis class OPVs were dubbed Inspektionsskib and Absalon class support ships will never be called Transport Frigates in official use. However, it is hard to see the planned powerful, heavily-armed Patruljeskib as anything other than frigates.