Today, with the christening of the fifth K130-class corvette (second batch), Rheinmetall have reached a significant milestone in one of current shipbuilding programs for the German Navy. The ceremony took place at Rheinmetall’s Blohm+Voss site in Hamburg and in the presence of representatives from politics, industry, and the Bundeswehr (The German Armed Forces), including Vice Admiral Axel Deertz (Deputy Inspector of the Navy and Commander of the Fleet and Support Forces), Jürgen Giefer (Director at the BAAINBw – Federal Office for Equipment, Information Technology and In-Service Support of the German Armed Forces), and the Mayor of Lübeck, Jan Lindenau. Lübeck’s City President Henning Schumann’s partner, Huong Nguyen christened the approximately 89-metre-long vessel with the name LÜBECK.
Jan Lindenau, Mayor of Lübeck said:“That the corvette bears the name of our city is both an honour and a sign of the close ties with our armed forces, who perform a vital service for the security of our country and for peace around the world. I am delighted that the Navy represents the name of our Hanseatic city and thus also serves as an ambassador for a historic and cosmopolitan port city.”
Tim Wagner, CEO of Rheinmetall’s Naval Systems division, said:“With the christening of the final corvette of the second batch, we have reached an important stage in the overall project. Our focus now turns to the upcoming milestones, which will culminate this year with the delivery to our customer of the two corvettes EMDEN and KÖLN.”
Following the christening, LÜBECK will be commissioned as planned after her final outfitting in Hamburg. She will then undergo all necessary functional testing and acceptance procedures in close coordination with the relevant departments from the contracting authorities and the German Navy. The new units are specifically designed for coastal operations and are therefore particularly suited for reconnaissance and anti-surface warfare, especially in the North Sea and the Baltic Sea. The new corvettes are being built by the K130 consortium (ARGE K130), led by Rheinmetall’s Naval Systems division in cooperation with TKMS and German Naval Yards Kiel.
The K130 Braunschweig class (sometimes Korvette 130) is Germany’s newest class of ocean-going corvettes. Five ships have replaced the Gepard-class fast attack craft of the German Navy. They feature reduced radar and infrared signatures (“stealth” beyond the capabilities of those of the Sachsen-class frigates), and will be equipped with two helicopter UAVs for remote scouting. The German Navy ordered a first batch of two UMS Skeldar V-200 systems for use on the Braunschweig-class corvettes, but the project was cancelled because the drones did not meet the required milestones. The hangar is too small for standard helicopters, but the pad is large enough for Sea Kings, Lynx, or NH-90s, the helicopters of the German Navy. In September 2017, the German Navy commissioned the construction of five more corvettes in a consortium of North German shipyards. Lürssen will be the main contractor in the production of the vessels. The contract is worth around 2 billion euros. In April 2018, the German government announced the specific arrangements under which the five new K130s would be built.
