''Courbet'' is a general purpose stealth

frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and ...

of the

French Navy The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in t ...

(''Marine Nationale'') of the . She is the third French vessel named after the 19th century admiral

Amédée Courbet Anatole-Amédée-Prosper Courbet (26 June 1827 – 11 June 1885) was a French admiral who won a series of important land and naval victories during the Tonkin Campaign (1883–86) and the Sino-French War (August 1884 – April 1885). Early year ...

Construction and career

''Courbet'' took part in

Opération Baliste Opération Baliste was a French aeronaval operation off Lebanon aimed at securing citizens of the European Union in the context of the 2006 Lebanon War. Components Opération Baliste employed 1,700 men under Counter Admiral Xavier Magne. The ...

. On 3 October 2006, an Israeli

fighter aircraft Fighter aircraft are fixed-wing military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat. In military conflict, the role of fighter aircraft is to establish air superiority of the battlespace. Domination of the airspace above a battlefield ...

penetrated her defence perimeter without responding to radio calls, triggering a diplomatic incident. Israel apologised after official protests from the French government. Throughout September the ship was involved in anti-

piracy Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...

operations off the coast of Somalia, helping to recapture a yacht taken by pirates on 2 September. In December 2009 ''Courbet'' escorted the French Navy cruiser on her final voyage. This was last trip of the helicopter carrier that served as a floating embassy and symbol of the French Navy for 46 years. ''Jeanne d'Arc''s last voyage in company with ''Courbet'' included visits to Africa, South America including

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

, the

French Antilles The French West Indies or French Antilles (french: Antilles françaises, ; gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Antiy fwansez) are the parts of France located in the Antilles islands of the Caribbean: * The two overseas departments of: ** Guadeloup ...

, the United States including New York City, and Canada. The voyage was completed sometime in May 2010. In June 2020, while on patrol to counter alleged arms smuggling to Libya, France claimed that Turkish frigates illuminated ''Courbet'' three times with their fire control radar, a claim which was denied by Turkish officials. On her first operational deployment after her mid-life upgrade, ''Courbet'', operating in the

Gulf of Guinea The Gulf of Guinea is the northeasternmost part of the tropical Atlantic Ocean from Cape Lopez in Gabon, north and west to Cape Palmas in Liberia. The intersection of the Equator and Prime Meridian (zero degrees latitude and longitude) is in the ...

in conjunction with the helicopter assault ship , was involved in the seizure of just under 2 tons of drugs in May 2022.

Upgrade

''Courbet'' was the first ship of her class to begin a mid-life upgrade in October 2020. The upgrade is designed to permit the frigate to operate through the 2020s and into the 2030s and incorporates the addition of hull-mounted sonar, improved point air defence systems as well as the capacity to carry the latest variant of the Exocet anti-ship missile. The frigate returned to sea in June 2021 following her upgrade. She is projected to remain in service until 2032. In future it is also planned to incorporate the CANTO anti-torpedo countermeasures system in the frigate.

References

External links

Marine nationale, Frégate type ''La Fayette'' Presentation-''Courbet'' (F 712)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Courbet (F712) La Fayette-class frigates Frigates of France 1994 ships