Operators German Navy Completed 8 | Succeeded by F125-class frigate Retired 5 | |
Builders Bremer Vulkan
AG Weser
Blohm + Voss
Nordseewerke
Howaldtswerke Active Karlsruhe
Augsburg
Lübeck | ||
The eight F122 Bremen-class frigates of the German Navy were commissioned between 1982 and 1990. The design is similar to the Dutch Kortenaer class but uses a different hull and propulsion system. The ships were built for anti-submarine warfare as a primary task even though they are not fitted with towed array sonars. They are also suited for anti-aircraft warfare and anti-surface warfare.
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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 will be replaced by the planned F125-class frigates, starting probably around 2016. Until then, the Bremen class serves 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. 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 a further adaptation of combat systems is foreseen in the near future.
Notable actions
The Karlsruhe successfully assisted an Egyptian freighter repel pirates on December 25, 2008 in the Gulf of Aden.
In 2012 the Rheinland-Pfalz was reportedly used to gather intelligence on Syrian troop movements to be passed to the Free Syrian Army assist in their attacks on the Syrian Army.
In December 2015 the Augsburg joined the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle in the south-eastern Mediterranean to go to the Arabian Sea as part of the intervention against ISIS in the Syrian Civil War.
For more information on the makeup of French carrier battle groups: Carrier battle group § FranceShips
All ships are based in Wilhelmshaven. Together they form the 4. Fregattengeschwader (4th Frigate Squadron) of the German Navy.