The eight F122 Bremen-class frigates of the German Navy was a series of frigates commissioned between 1982 and 1990. The design was based on the proven and robust Dutch but used a different propulsion system and hangar lay-out. The ships were built for anti-submarine warfare as a primary task although they were not fitted with towed array sonars. They were also equipped for anti-surface warfare, while having anti-aircraft warfare point defences. The Bremen class frigates replaced both the Zerstörer 1 class destroyers and the Köln class frigates.Gardiner, Chumbley and Budzbon (1995), pp. 144-145.Saunders (2015), p. 290.
This class of ship was one of the last to be constructed under post-war displacement limitations imposed by the WEU on West Germany.
All eight Bremen-class frigates were replaced by the . Prior to that the Bremen class served as the backbone of the German Navy.
Employment During the Cold War period, the ships' main war task was to escort convoys for reinforcement and resupply of allied forces in Europe in the Northern Atlantic. They frequently took part in NATO Standing Naval Forces. Since 1990, all ships have served in additional supporting missions such as the embargo operations against former Yugoslavia in the Adriatic Sea or Operation Enduring Freedom against the international terrorism.
During their lifetime, the ships' equipment has frequently been modernized and proven to be reliable platforms.
Notable actions
Karlsruhe successfully assisted an Egyptian freighter repel pirates on 25 December 2008 in the Gulf of Aden.
In 2012 Rheinland-Pfalz was reportedly used to gather intelligence on Syrian troop movements to be passed to the Free Syrian Army to assist in their attacks on the Syrian Army.
In December 2015 Augsburg joined the French aircraft carrier in the south-eastern Mediterranean Sea to go to the Arabian Sea as part of the intervention against ISIS in the Syrian Civil War.
Ships PennantNameBuilderLaid downLaunchedCommissionedDecommissionedFateF207Bremen Bremer Vulkan, Bremen 9 July 1979 27 September 1979 7 May 1982 28 March 2014 Scrapped, 2021F208Niedersachsen AG Weser, Bremen 9 November 1979 9 June 1980 15 October 1982 26 June 2015marine.de Scrapped, 2021-22F209Rheinland-Pfalz Blohm + Voss, Hamburg 25 September 1979 3 September 1980 9 May 1983 22 March 2013 Scrapped, 2017F210Emden Nordseewerke, Emden 23 June 1979 17 December 1980 7 October 1983 29 November 2013 Scrapped in Aliaga, Turkey, from 2021.F211Köln Blohm + Voss, Hamburg 16 June 1980 29 May 1981 19 October 1984 31 July 2012 Scrapped, 2016-17F212Karlsruhe Howaldtswerke, Kiel 10 March 1981 8 January 1982 19 April 1984 16 June 2017 Laid up in Kiel for blast testsF213Augsburg Bremer Vulkan, Bremen 4 April 1987 17 September 1987 3 October 1989 30 June 2019 Laid up in WilhelmshavenF214Lübeck Nordseewerke, Emden 1 June 1987 15 October 1987 19 March 1990 15 December 2022 Laid up in Wilhelmshaven
All ships were based in Wilhelmshaven. Together they formed the 4. Fregattengeschwader (4th Frigate Squadron) of the German Navy.
Gallery
See also List of frigate classes List of German Federal Navy ships List of naval ship classes of Germany
Equivalent frigates of the same era
References
Bibliography
Website for all active and retired Frigate F213 Seamen
naval-technology.com https://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/26/world/africa/26pirates.html?ref=world bbc.co.uk
Further reading
External links