The bâtiments ravitailleurs de forces, or BRF, are a class of future

fleet tanker A replenishment oiler or replenishment tanker is a naval auxiliary ship with fuel tanks and dry cargo holds which can supply both fuel and dry stores during underway replenishment (UNREP) at sea. Many countries have used replenishment oilers. ...

s that are to replace the units in French Navy service. Until January 2019, the programme was known as ''Flotte logistique'' (abbreviated FLOTLOG in military parlance). First ship of the class completed the first stage of her sea trials in January 2023 and was formally delivered to the French Navy in March to continue her sea trials.

History

Replacement for the type has been considered by the French Navy since 2009, with the military procurement law for years 2009–2014. At the time, the concept was knows as "''flotte logistique''" ("logistical fleet", or FLOTLOG). The succession was envisioned to take place between 2017 and 2020. The replacement was motivated both by the age of the ''Durance'' hulls, and by their non-conformity with current safety standards, notably the lack of a

double hull A double hull is a ship hull design and construction method where the bottom and sides of the ship have two complete layers of watertight hull surface: one outer layer forming the normal hull of the ship, and a second inner hull which is some dis ...

. From 2010, Naval Group (the still named DCNS) proposed a project named BRAVE. This project was carried over to the following procurement law (2014 to 2019), delaying the order of the first unit to 2019. However, after STX France was purchased by Fincantieri, the project by Naval Group was abandoned and it was decided to base the new concept on the Italian fleet tanker , then being built by Fincantieri for the

Italian Navy "Fatherland and Honour" , patron = , colors = , colors_label = , march = ( is the return of soldiers to their barrack, or sailors to their ship after a ...

. The FLOTLOG programme was further confirmed in the new military procurement law. On 30 January 2019, OCCAR ordered four units from

Chantiers de l'Atlantique Chantiers de l'Atlantique is a shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France. It is one of the world's largest shipyards, constructing a wide range of commercial, naval, and passenger ships. It is located near Nantes, at the mouth of the Loire river and ...

and Naval Group for the French Navy. It is anticipated that the first two ships of the class, plus the fourth (''Gustave Zédé''), will be based in Toulon while the third ship of the class (''Émile Bertin'') will be based at Brest. RAM BRF PA-Ng FDI

Construction

The four units of the class are to be constructed in

Saint-Nazaire Saint-Nazaire (; ; Gallo: ''Saint-Nazère/Saint-Nazaer'') is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique department in western France, in traditional Brittany. The town has a major harbour on the right bank of the Loire estuary, near the Atlantic Ocean ...

, at Chantiers de l'Atlantique. Building of the first ship was initially planned for early 2020 for delivery in 2022, with the three further ships being delivered from 2013 through 2029. In 2021, it was indicated that delivery of the first ship had slipped to 2023. The steel cutting ceremony for the first ship took place on 18 May 2020. The ship was launched in April 2022 and sea trials began on 20 December 2022. She was formally delivered to the French Navy on 3 March 2023 to continue her sea trials. On 29 March, she carried out her first underway replenishment for the

aircraft carrier An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and facilities for carrying, arming, deploying, and recovering aircraft. Typically, it is the capital ship of a fleet, as it allows a ...

, having refueled the air defence frigate ''Chevalier Paul'' a few days earlier. These ships are among the largest units of the French Navy, second only to the ''Charles de Gaulle''.

Dimensions

* Length : * Beam : * Draught : * Displacement : empty, full load * Crew : 130 crew, with up to 60 passengers * Diesel-electric propulsion * Capacity : of fuel Four ships are scheduled to be commissioned in the French Navy as replacement for the ''Durance''-class tankers. On 18 May 2020, the navy published the names intended for the ships, which honour preeminent French naval engineers: Jacques Chevallier,

Jacques Stosskopf Jacques Stosskopf (27 November 1898 – 1 September 1944) held the post of deputy director of naval construction at the German-held Lorient U-boat arsenal, but was a member of the French Resistance and war hero killed by the Nazis. Military care ...

, Louis-Émile Bertin and Gustave Zédé. Defensive weapons will include the Simbad-RC system firing Mistral Mk3 surface-to-air missiles (for at least the first ship in the series) and two Thales/Nexter 40 mm RAPIDFire guns. The first guns of the type were installed on ''Jacques Chevallier'' in February 2023. In March it was confirmed that two Simbad-RC short-range SAM/SSM systems had been installed on the ship, on a platform located behind the bridge. This was said to represent the first deployment of the Simbad-RC system variant with the French Navy.

Ships of the class

Citations

External links