.png)
The Norwegian Coast Guard christens the newest addition to its patrol fleet as construction is underway on warships for the Brazilian, Russian, and Indonesian Navies and a new class of US Army landing craft. A Turkish firm secures a contract for the build and delivery of surface combatants to the Royal Malaysian Navy. Lastly, Germany's parliament approves construction of new frigates.
Germany's ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS), via Brazilian subsidiary ThyssenKrupp Estaleiro Brasil Sul, has laid the keel of a new frigate slated for the Brazilian Navy. The ship, which will be named Jeronimo de Albuquerque, will be the second of the four-strong Tamandare-class.
Zelenodolsk Shipyard in Russia has launched the final Project 21631 or Buyan-M-class corvette ordered by the Russian Navy. Named Stavropol, the vessel will be assigned to the Russian Baltic Fleet upon delivery.
The 74-metre vessel boasts a low draught to enable operation in coastal waters. It is a variant of the Project 21630 or Buyan-class but with a slightly greater length and improvements that include launchers for Kalibr cruise missiles.
The corvette's other armament includes a 100mm naval gun, Oniks anti-ship missiles, surface-to-air missiles (SAMs), and 30mm close-in weapon systems. The SAMs are housed in launchers separate from the vertical launch cells that can house either Oniks or Kalibr missiles.
The Norwegian Coast Guard's third and last Jan Mayen-class offshore patrol vessel (OPV) was formally named in a ceremony at Vard's Langsten facilities on Wednesday, June 12. The future NoCGV Hopen and its two earlier sisters, including class lead ship NoCGV Jan Mayen, will replace the coast guard's 1980s-built Nordkapp-class vessels.
Turkish defence technology company STM has been selected for the construction of three littoral mission ships (LMS) in a series for the Royal Malaysian Navy. All three of the ships will be built in Turkey with STM as the prime contractor responsible for all phases of the project from design to delivery.
Indonesian state-owned shipbuilder PAL recently held a steel-cutting ceremony to mark the official start of construction of a new frigate ordered by the Indonesian Navy. The vessel will be a variant of the Type 31 or Inspiration-class that is being built for the UK Royal Navy by defence technology firm the Babcock International Group.
US shipbuilder Vigor Industrial has begun low rate initial production (LRIP) on the Maneuver Support Vehicle (Light) (MSV(L)) class of landing craft at its facilities in Vancouver, Washington. The MSV(L)s will replace the Vietnam-era Landing Craft Mechanized 8 (LCM-8) class of vessels in service with the US Army.
The German parliament's budget committee has approved the acquisition of two additional F126 frigates by the the German Navy. This will bring the total number of frigates on order to six.
The parliamentary approval also includes a condition requiring "fair balance" in the allocation of funding between the lead contractor and the subcontractors. The budget committee said that if the German Defence Ministry fails to achieve "a satisfying outcome," the approval of the additional ships will be considered void.
The first four F126 frigates are scheduled for delivery to the navy beginning in 2028. The four earlier ships will be built in fulfilment of an earlier contract awarded in June 2020 to a German-Dutch consortium that also includes Blohm and Voss and Thales.
