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Denmark – Patrol Ship (Frigate) Rewritten – November 2006 Latest News:
Program Status: Firm. The Danish Five-Year Defense Plan 2000 - 2004 authorized the detailed planning of the Patrol Ship (Frigate) derivative of the Flexible Support Ship (Absalon Class Support Ship) for the Royal Danish Navy (RDN). Initial indications under Defense Agreement 2000 – 2004 were for two frigates to be funded under Defense Agreement 2005 – 2009 and two follow-on units under Defense Agreement 2010 – 2014. When Defense Agreement 2005 – 2009 was released in June 2004, it authorized the construction of three new frigates for the RDN. On 22 June 2006, The Danish Ministry of Defense (MOD) announced the approval of funding for the three-ship class of the Patrol Ship Program (frigate). A total of DKR4.7B (US$800M) was approved for the ship’s construction as well as most of the equipment. Construction of the first unit will commence in 2007, and will commission into the RDN by 2011. Operational Requirement: The RDN has a requirement for a modern force of multi-purpose frigates, specifically to support North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Reaction Force missions. These multi-purpose ships will be capable of performing a range of warfare functions, including anti-air (AAW), anti-surface (ASuW), and anti-submarine (ASW) warfare, mine countermeasure (MCM) operations, and support to land operations. The three new Patrol Ships will replace the existing Niels Juel class corvettes. Program Background: In April 1996, the Danish Ministry of Defense established an expert committee (the Committee Concerning the Armed Forces’ Equipment) to evaluate the suitability of existing defense materiel systems, and to recommend what major materiel acquisitions should be made over the period 2000 - 2011. In August 1997, the committee completed its evaluation by submitting its 300-page report, The Report from the Committee Concerning the Armed Forces’ Equipment, to Parliament. The report recommended replacing the three Niels Juel class corvettes, four Falster class minelayers, and ten Willemoes class FACs with six units of a new design, referred to as the "Large Standard Vessel" (Stoerre Standard Skip – S3). Two of the Large Standard Ships would be Command & Support Vessels, later designated as Flexible Support Ships (Absalon class); and the remaining four units would be Patrol Ship variants. The original plan was to seek authorization for the construction of two Patrol Ships under Defense Agreement 2005 – 2009 and two additional units under Defense Agreement 2010 - 2014. However, with the authorization of three units under Defense Agreement 2005 – 2009, it appears unlikely that a fourth unit will be ordered, limiting this class to three. Program Acquisition Plan: NMC, in cooperation with the Danish shipbuilding industry and a number of foreign designers, initiated a pre-feasibility study for the two Flexible Support Ships authorized under Defense Agreement 2000-2004. An integrated part of the study was the derivative design for the Patrol Ship variants. Feasibility studies for the program, involving Direction Constructions des Navales International (DCNI) (now Armaris) and BAE Systems, were completed by the end of 1999. Three Danish shipyards (Oerskov Steel Shipyard, Odense Steel Shipyard (Lindoe Yard), and Danyard Aalborg Shipyard) were selected to submit detailed designs and prices by May 2001. Danyard Aalborg Shipyard declined to bid on this program. Tenders were returned in late June 2001, however, both were above the set price ceiling of US$110M (hull, mechanical, and electrical systems only). Of note, the US$110M does not include the weapon and equipment outfit. The Patrol Ship variant will probably cost an estimated US$267M for each vessel, which includes the entire package. On 03 August 2001, the NMC cancelled the tender activity and entered into parallel negotiations with the Oerskov and Lindoe yards. Several meetings were held to clarify the specifications, and to mitigate areas of risk and identify cost savings in order to reduce the overall price. On 15 October 2001, as a result of these negotiations, Odense Steel Shipyard was awarded the contract for the detailed design and construction of the first two ships (Flexible Support Ship variant) at a price within the design-to-cost limit. This contract included options for future Patrol Ship variants. The first patrol ship variant will begin construction in 2007 and will be followed by units two and three at one-year intervals. All three units will be commissioned by 2012. These three vessels will replace the Niels Juel class corvettes on a one-for-one basis. The following acquisition plan, for a potential buy of three units valued at US$267M each, is projected:
Design and Construction Considerations: The Patrol Ship is of similar design to the Flexible Support Ship, and both will include the successful STANFLEX concept. The Patrol Ship will have the same 137m/452ft long hull as the Flexible Support Ship but will probably be one deck lower. However, with its 6,000 tons full load displacement, it will be nearly the same as the Flexible Support Ship. The propulsion plant will be an all diesel arrangement (Combined Diesel and Diesel – CODAD) consisting of four MTU 8000 diesel engines for a maximum speed of 28 knots. Hull, Mechanical, and Electrical (HM&E): The Patrol Ship design will feature a number of STANFLEX container positions, one forward and at least three amidships. The STANFLEX containers are manufactured in Denmark by Promecon (a subsidiary of Monberg & Thorsen). They are 3m in length, 3.5m in width, and 2.5m in height. Containers are craned into wells in each ship, with standard interface connections providing access to ship’s services (power, communications, ventilation, water, and data). Installation of a single container is typically accomplished in about 30 minutes, and, depending upon the weapon/equipment being installed, system checks are generally complete within a few hours. If one or more container positions are left unoccupied, purpose-made hatch covers are fitted to seal the wells. The superstructure will be designed and constructed to enhance the ships’ stealth characteristics. A flight deck and hangar will be included to support flight operations for one EH-101 or two Lynx helicopters. Facilities for embarking and operating unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) will also be included. Combat Systems: Combat Management System (CMS): All three of the frigates will have the Terma C-Flex Combat Management System. C-Flex is the first CMS designed specifically for rapid reconfiguration. StanFlex 300 consists of three standard two-position multipurpose consoles on a data bus that also connects the consoles to modular weapons and sensors. The latter can be replaced in a 24 hour period, and the system reconfigured by software substitution. Up to three additional consoles can be added to control additional weapons or other systems. The system can support up to 30 workstations on a duplicated 1 GByte Ethernet. Modular application software is written in Java using a Windows 2000 operating system. A new common operating environment supports an intranet, to which containerized weapons are connected via subsystem interface units. Sensors and C3 servers are connected directly to the intranet. Anti-Air Warfare (AAW) Systems: The new frigates will have an integrated air defense system consisting of a surface-to-air missiles (SAMs) and a close-in weapons system (CIWS). In August 2006, Thales Naval Nederland (TNN) was selected as the preferred supplier for the major radar systems for the RDN Patrol Ship Program. TNN will supply the APAR air search/fire control radar for the three-frigate project. Additionally, the new class will have four eight-cell Lockheed Martin Mk41 VLS for Raytheon Standard SM-2 Block IIIA surface-to-air missiles (SAMs) as well as two twelve-cell Mk-56 ESSM launchers (24 missiles). As a last line of defense, the new frigates will utilize the Oerlikon Contraves-Millenium 35mm gun with Advanced Hit Efficiency and Destruction (AHEAD) air burst munitions. Anti-Surface Warfare (ASuW) Systems: The new frigates will have a combination of weapons that are utilized for surface engagements. It will have sixteen Boeing Harpoon surface-to-surface missiles (SSMs), launched from four VLS quad launchers. Additionally, the vessel will have a STANFLEX module containing one OTO Melara 76mm/62 Super Rapid gun and two 12.7mm machine guns. Sensors include the Saab Ceros 2000 fire control radar, the TNN Smart-L air/surface search radar, and a Furuno navigation radar. Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) Systems: The new class of frigates will be equipped with an Atlas Elektronik hull-mounted sonar. ASW weapons include two twin torpedo tubes for the Eurotorp MU90 lightweight anti-submarine warfare torpedoes. Electronic Warfare (EW) Systems: The frigates will be equipped with the Terma Elektronik Soft Kill Weapon System (SKWS) with two DL-12T twelve-barreled chaff/IR launchers. Additionally, the frigates will be equipped with an electronic support measures (ESM) and electronic countermeasures system (ECM). The likely ESM/ECM candidate will probably be the Thales Airborne Systems DR-3000 ESM/ECM suite. Integrated Platform Management System (IPMS): The new frigates will be equipped with an IPMS. The likely candidate will be the Rockwell Automation IPMS, which is also found on the Absalon class Flexible Support Ship. Integrated Bridge System (IBS): The new frigates will be equipped with an IBS. The likely candidate will be the Rockwell Automation IBS, which is also found on the Absalon class Flexible Support Ship. Integrated Communications Suite (ICS): The new frigates will be equipped with an ICS. The likely candidate will be the Infocom 2000 ICS, which is also found on the Absalon class Flexible Support Ship. Ship Characteristics:
Key Personnel: Royal Danish Navy
Royal Danish Navy Material Command (Defense Acquisition)
Raytheon Systems Company
OTO Melara
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