Brandenburg-class frigate


The F123 Brandenburg class is a class of German frigate. They were ordered by the German Navy in June 1989, and then completed and commissioned between 1994 and 1996 to replace the s. These frigates primarily carry out antisubmarine warfare, but they also contribute to antiaircraft warfare defenses, the tactical command of squadrons, and surface-to-surface warfare operations. Their design includes some stealth features.
Currently the F123 class is being upgraded under the auspices of the Fähigkeitsanpassung FüWES project. The primary component being upgraded under this program is the Combat Management System, for which a version of the Thales Nederland TACTICOS system will be used. The ships will also receive an IFF upgrade, to the EADS MSSR 2000 I secondary radar system. However, its primary radars, specifically its long-range 2D search radar, the Thales Nederland LW08, and its medium-range 3D surveillance radar, the Thales Nederland SMART-S, are to remain. The ships were to receive low-frequency active sonars under the Franco-German LFTASS programme but the French withdrew in 2000 and are now using a derivative of the British Sonar 2087; Bayern received the prototype TASS 6-3 sonar but it seems unlikely that more units will be ordered in the current budget environment.

List of ships

All ships of the class are named after German Bundesländer and are based in Wilhelmshaven as 2. Fregattengeschwader of the German Navy.
PennantNameCall
sign		Laid downShipyardLaunchedCommissioned
F215BrandenburgDRAH11 February 1992Blohm + Voss28 August 199214 October 1994
F216Schleswig-HolsteinDRAI1 July 1993Howaldtswerke8 June 199424 November 1995
F217BayernDRAJ16 December 1993Nordseewerke30 June 199415 June 1996
F218Mecklenburg-VorpommernDRAK23 November 1993Bremer Vulkan23 February 19956 December 1996

Kiel Canal incident

On the morning of Wednesday 9 December 2015, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern was transiting the Kiel Canal when she was involved in a collision with the container ship Nordic Bremen causing damage to both vessels. Mecklenburg-Vorpommern suffered a gash along her bow at the level of the main deck, whilst Nordic Bremen fared better, having only to offload two damaged containers before continuing its voyage.

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