The MEKO family of
warship
A warship or combatant ship is a naval ship that is built and primarily intended for naval warfare. Usually they belong to the armed forces of a state. As well as being armed, warships are designed to withstand damage and are usually faster a ...
s was developed by the German company
Blohm+Voss Blohm is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Hans Blohm C.M. (born 1927), photographer and author
* Hermann Blohm (1848–1930), German businessman and co-founder of German company Blohm+Voss
* Linn Blohm (born 1992), Swedish hand ...
. MEKO is a registered trademark. The
portmanteau
A portmanteau word, or portmanteau (, ) is a blend of words[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 ...](_blank)
s,
corvette
A corvette is a small warship. It is traditionally the smallest class of vessel considered to be a proper (or " rated") warship. The warship class above the corvette is that of the frigate, while the class below was historically that of the slo ...
s and ocean-going
patrol boat
A patrol boat (also referred to as a patrol craft, patrol ship, or patrol vessel) is a relatively small naval vessel generally designed for coastal defence, border security, or law enforcement. There are many designs for patrol boats, and the ...
s. Construction of MEKO ships began in the late 1970s with the design and later building of
Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...
's MEKO 360 H1. Vessels of similar classes use different weapons systems. For example, for the main gun, some MEKO 200s use the
Mk 45 Mod 2 gun, others use the
French 100 mm naval gun or
Otobreda 76 mm
The OTO Melara 76 mm gun is a naval gun built and designed by the Italian defence company OTO Melara. It is based on the OTO Melara 76/62C and evolved toward 76/62 SR and 76/62 Strales.
The system is compact enough to be installed on re ...
gun.
The latest variant is the "Combat Ship for the Littorals" or MEKO CSL. It has also been called a "Littoral Combatant Ship", but it is much smaller than the American
Littoral Combat Ship
The littoral combat ship (LCS) is either of two classes of relatively small surface vessels designed for operations near shore by the United States Navy. It was "envisioned to be a networked, agile, stealthy surface combatant capable of defeat ...
(LCS). There was speculation that this design would be of interest to
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
, but it was not. Ultimately however, Israel opted for four modified
K130 ''Braunschweig''-class corvettes, the first of which is expected to enter service in 2019. The new variant is dubbed the .
Four extended versions of MEKO A-100 light frigate vessels are planned to be supplied for the
Brazilian Navy
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, colors= Blue and white
, colors_label= Colors
, march= "Cisne Branco" ( en, "White Swan") (same name as training ship ''Cisne Branco''
, mascot=
, equipment= 1 multipurpose aircraft carrier7 submarines6 frigates2 corvettes4 amphibious warf ...
between 2025 and 2028. The consortium is formed by Germany's Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems, Embraer Defense & Security and Atech, a subsidiary of the Embraer Group. The construction of the vessels, which are more than 100 meters long, are planned for the Oceana shipyard in Itajaí.
Models
The following MEKO models are known to have been built, organized by lineage and delivery dates:
* MEKO 360 (1981) is the earliest MEKO ship.
* MEKO 140 (1985) is designed as a companion ship of MEKO 360, developed from the
João Coutinho.
* MEKO 200 (1987) is a frigate design. It evolved into the MEKO A-200 (2001) and the larger MEKO A-300 (planned for Greece and Poland).
* F123 (1994), F124 (2002), and F125 (2016) are a line of MEKO frigates developed for the German Navy.
* K130 (2008) is a corvette designed for the German Navy using some F124 technology.
** Isreli Sa'ar 6 (2021) is a heavily modified descendant.
* MEKO A-100 (2019) is a current design.
** The 2012 A-100 is a single corvette developed from the A-200. It is occasionally quoted as the same as the MEKO 100 RMN (2004).
** The current design is a family of three sizes (all heavier and longer than the 2012 A-100): corvette, light frigate, patrol corvette.
, the MEKO website showcases A-200, F125, and A-100 models. The following models are once mentioned on the website, but no examples are known to have been built:
* MEKO CSL (2012 website).
* MEKO D Corvette (2012 website).
* MEKO 100 patrol corvette (2012 website). Based on both K130 and MEKO 100 patrol vessel.
* MEKO A-300 frigate based on A-200 and F-125 offered Greece and Poland
Vessels
References
External links
Brandenburg-class@ Naval-Technology
Hydra-class@ Naval-Technology
MEKO A-class@ Naval-Technology
Sachsen-class@ Naval-Technology
* https://web.archive.org/web/20070927012203/http://www.hansa-online.de/print.asp?artikelID=274 (German)
{{Authority control
Shipbuilding
Ship types