Damen Shiprepair Amsterdam has this week handed the HNLMS Evertsen back to the Royal Netherlands Navy, after a six-week period of maintenance. The shipyard worked hard – together with its Dutch suppliers – to prepare the Air Defence and Command frigate for deployment on, among other things, the voyage of nearly 40,000 kilometres that she will soon be making to Japan together with the UK Carrier Strike Group. From May, HNLMS Evertsen will become part of the UK Carrier Strike Group under the command of the British aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth.
The maintenance works were carried out between 1 March and 13 April on behalf of the Royal Netherlands Navy’s Naval Maintenance and Sustainment Agency (DMI). These activities also engaged various Dutch companies such as Braspenning Coatings from Amsterdam, installation company FMJ NW from Amsterdam, ARP Valve Repair from Middelburg, BUKO Algeco (Beverwijk) and RBC Safety from Rotterdam. The maintenance of the propeller shafts was carried out by Damen Shiprepair Amsterdam under the supervision of Wärtsilä Nederlands.
HNLMS Evertsen (F805) is the fourth De Zeven Provinciën-class frigate of the Royal Netherlands Navy. The four De Zeven Provinciën-class frigates are highly advanced air-defence and command frigates in service with the Royal Navy of the Netherlands (Koninklijke Marine). This class of ships is also known as LCF (Luchtverdedigings- en commandofregat, air defense and command frigate). These ships were optimized for antiaircraft warfare and commandThe ships are similar to the German Sachsen-class frigates in role and mission.
De Zeven Provinciën-class frigate were optimized for antiaircraft warfare. The Mk 41 Vertical Launch System is used to house and launch these missiles. 32 Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile and 32 Standard Missile SM-2 Block IIIA are carried. They also have weapons on-board capable of attacking surface and submarine targets, for example: the RGM-84F Harpoon missile and Mk. 46 torpedoes. In a new defense Study published by the Dutch government in March 2018, it was stated the frigates will receive a new surface-to-surface missile to succeed the Harpoon Block 1D.
