''Emden'' (F221) is the second ship of the s of the

German Navy The German Navy (, ) is the navy of Germany and part of the unified ''Bundeswehr'' (Federal Defense), the German Armed Forces. The German Navy was originally known as the ''Bundesmarine'' (Federal Navy) from 1956 to 1995, when ''Deutsche Mari ...

Design

The Type 120 or ''Köln''-class frigates were built as smooth-deckers and had very elegant lines. The very diagonally cut bow and the knuckle ribs in the foredeck made it easy to navigate. The hull and parts of the

superstructure A superstructure is an upward extension of an existing structure above a baseline. This term is applied to various kinds of physical structures such as buildings, bridges, or ships. Aboard ships and large boats On water craft, the superstruct ...

were made of shipbuilding

steel Steel is an alloy made up of iron with added carbon to improve its strength and fracture resistance compared to other forms of iron. Many other elements may be present or added. Stainless steels that are corrosion- and oxidation-resistant ty ...

, other superstructure parts were made of

aluminum Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. It has ...

. Due to the installation of

gas turbine A gas turbine, also called a combustion turbine, is a type of continuous flow internal combustion engine. The main parts common to all gas turbine engines form the power-producing part (known as the gas generator or core) and are, in the directi ...

s, large side air inlets were necessary, which could be closed by lamellas. The stern was designed as a round stern. The large funnel was sloped and skirted. Behind the bridge superstructure stood the tall

lattice mast Lattice masts, or cage masts, or basket masts, are a type of observation mast common on United States Navy major warships in the early 20th century. They are a type of hyperboloid structure, whose weight-saving design was invented by the Russian ...

with

radar Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance (''ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, w ...

and other

antennas In radio engineering, an antenna or aerial is the interface between radio waves propagating through space and electric currents moving in metal conductors, used with a transmitter or receiver. In transmission, a radio transmitter supplies a ...

. The hull was divided into 13 watertight compartments. On the forecastle was a 10 cm gun, behind it, set higher, a 4 cm twin gun. Behind it stood two quadruple anti-submarine missile launchers 37.5 cm from Bofors. A 4 cm Bofors single gun on each side of the aft superstructure and another 4 cm double mount at the end of the superstructure. There was a second 10 cm gun on the quarterdeck. In addition, there were two 53.3 cm torpedo tubes behind the front superstructures. They were used to fire Mk-44 torpedoes. Mine rails were laid behind the torpedo tubes and ran to the stern.

Construction and career

''Emden'' was

laid down Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a ship's construction. It is often marked with a ceremony attended by dignitaries from the shipbuilding company and the ultimate owners of the ship. Keel laying is one o ...

on 15 April 1958 and launched on 21 March 1959 at H. C. Stülcken Sohn in Hamburg, Germany. She was commissioned on 24 October 1961. On 23 September 1983, she was decommissioned and handed over to the

Turkish Navy The Turkish Naval Forces ( tr, ), or Turkish Navy ( tr, ) is the naval warfare service branch of the Turkish Armed Forces. The modern naval traditions and customs of the Turkish Navy can be traced back to 10 July 1920, when it was establi ...

. After a fire on board, the ship was decommissioned and scrapped in

Aliağa Aliağa is a town and a district of Izmir Province in the Aegean Region of Turkey. The town is situated at about north of Izmir. Aliağa has a large port, mainly for oil and bulk cargo. Its economic activity is based on tourism, shipbreaking, ...

from January 1994.Gardiner & Chesneau 1980, p. 407.Gardiner 1995, p. 469.

Gallery

File:Eckernförder Bucht F 221 1963a.jpg, ''Emden'' in 1963 File:Eckernförder Bucht F 221 1963.jpg, ''Emden'' in 1963 File:FGS Emden (F 221) 1982.jpg, ''Emden'' in 1982

References

*Prézelin, Bernard and A.D. Baker III. ''The Naval Institute Guide to Combat Fleets of the World 1990/1991''. Annapolis, Maryland, USA: Naval Institute Press, 1990. . *Robert Gardiner, Roger Chesneau, ''Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922-1946'', Conway Maritime Press, London, 1980, *Robert Gardiner, ''Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1947-1995'', 2nd Revised edition, Conway Maritime Press, London, 1995, {{DEFAULTSORT:Emden Köln-class frigates 1959 ships Ships built in Hamburg