What are the 2 second-hand frigates offered by France to Greece worth?

The French offer made to Greece Yesterday about the modernization of the Hellenic Navy caused a stir, especially in Greece. The superiority of the FDI Belharra over its declared competitors, in particular over the American MMSCs or the Dutch Sigma, hardly gives rise to debate. Even the question of the number of anti-aircraft missiles, with 16 Aster 30 missiles and 16 Mica VL NG missiles for the FDI, and up to 64 ESSM missiles for the Sigma, now seem to have been well assimilated by commentators on the subject, as the The operational potential of the Aster 30 / MICA VL NG pair far exceeds that of the American ESSMs. On the other hand, the offer made concerning the standby solution, based on the anti-submarine frigate Latouche-Tréville and the anti-aircraft frigate Jean Bart, seems more misunderstood, and many are those who, in Greece, consider that a rental of Lafayette class Light Furtive Frigates would have been preferable.

It is above all the imminent withdrawal of these two ships from the French Navy that worries the Hellenic observers. Indeed, if the French Navy is withdrawing these ships from service, it is very likely that they now have limited operational capacities, one might think. But the reality of the facts is quite different, and in this article, we will try to show what is the real potential of these two ships, and the determining role that they can play to strengthen, in the short and medium term and up to the entry into service of the 4 IDFs, in particular to control the ramp-up of the Ankara Navy.

The Latouche-Tréville anti-submarine frigate D646

As its NATO code D646 indicates, the Latouche-Tréville is not considered by the alliance as a frigate, but as a destroyer, like all ships of the T70 Georges Leygues class, of which it is the last ship. Launched in 1988, it entered service in July 1990, with the function of escorting naval units of the French Navy, particularly in anti-submarine warfare, which is its favorite field. 139 meters long for a loaded tonnage of nearly 5000 tons, the Latouche-Tréville has a full armament, with a 100 mm DCN 100 gun, 8 Exocet MM40 Block anti-ship missiles, an anti-ship system. -air CROTALE EDIR with 8 missiles + 18 in bunkers, 2 SADRAL short-range anti-missile systems each equipped with 2 Mistral missiles, as well as 2 20 mm F2 guns. For anti-submarine warfare, the ship has 2 torpedo tubes for L5 heavy torpedoes or for Mu90 light torpedoes.

75% of this article remains to read,
Subscribe to access it!

The Classic subscriptions provide access to
articles in their full version, and without advertising,
from 6,90 €.

Newsletter subscription