The ''Fridtjof Nansen''-class frigates are a

class Class, Classes, or The Class may refer to: Common uses not otherwise categorized * Class (biology), a taxonomic rank * Class (knowledge representation), a collection of individuals or objects * Class (philosophy), an analytical concept used d ...

of frigates that are the main surface combatant units of the Royal Norwegian Navy. The ships are named after famous Norwegian explorers, with the lead ship of the class bearing the name of Fridtjof Nansen. Five ships were ordered from Spanish shipbuilder Bazan (now Navantia). The total projected cost for all five ships in 2009 was (about ). As of November 2018, four are in active service and one has sunk and was subsequently scrapped.

Design

The frigates were originally intended as a replacement for the aging s, with a primary focus on

anti-submarine warfare Anti-submarine warfare (ASW, or in the older form A/S) is a branch of underwater warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, submarines, or other platforms, to find, track, and deter, damage, or destroy enemy submarines. Such operations ar ...

(ASW). Eventually, the need for a robust anti-aircraft defense as well as the possibility of incorporating the Naval Strike Missile surface-to-surface missile produced by Norwegian company Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace led to a more multi-role design. The selection of Navantia as prime contractor led to the design being very similar to the Spanish Navy's s, including the incorporation of

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's AEGIS combat system.

Improvements

The ''Fridtjof Nansen''-class frigates are larger, and have more personnel and equipment than the ''Oslo''-class frigates. Compared to the ''Oslo''-class vessels, the new vessels are 35 meters longer, nine meters taller and two meters deeper below water. They are also five meters broader and have three times the water displacement of the old ships. The frigates operated six NFH NH90 helicopters, with the role as an extended "arm" of the frigates' anti-submarine and anti-surface capabilities but these will be taken out of services (2022) and returned to NH Industries. In 2023, Norway announced the acquisition of 6 MH-60R helicopters. While the helicopters would be prepared to be equipped for anti-submarine operations, they were initially to be deployed with the Norwegian Coast Guard. This meant that the replacement of helicopters specifically to operate off the ''Fridtjof Nansen''-class remained outstanding. The 2023 defence acquisitions plan indicated that the frigates would undergo technical upgrades beginning in 2025 in order to maintain their operational capabilities.

Service history

On 26 February 2009, the Norwegian government decided to deploy ''Fridtjof Nansen'' to the

Gulf of Aden The Gulf of Aden (; ) is a deepwater gulf of the Indian Ocean between Yemen to the north, the Arabian Sea to the east, Djibouti to the west, and the Guardafui Channel, the Socotra Archipelago, Puntland in Somalia and Somaliland to the south. ...

, thereby participating in the ongoing Operation Atalanta, the European Union's counter-piracy campaign in

Somalia Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continental Africa. The country is located in the Horn of Africa and is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, Kenya to the southwest, th ...

. ''Fridtjof Nansen'' joined the campaign in August 2009. ''Fridtjof Nansen''s engagement in Operation Atalanta was carried out without a permanently stationed helicopter. Mainly due to delays in delivery of the new NH-90, the ship was equipped with two fast RHIBs for its onboard contingent of maritime special operations forces ( Marinejegerkommandoen). In November 2009 she became involved in a firefight with suspected pirates after being attacked while inspecting a fishing vessel. In December 2013 HNoMS ''Helge Ingstad'' and the Danish support ship were sent to the

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

n port of Latakia to escort the Norwegian registered RoRo cargo ship and the Danish cargo ship , which transported Syrian chemical weapons to Italy where they were handed over to a

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

ship for destruction in international waters. On 8 November 2018, while returning from participation in Exercise ''Trident Juncture'', ''Helge Ingstad'' was involved in a collision with a Maltese-registered

oil tanker An oil tanker, also known as a petroleum tanker, is a ship designed for the bulk cargo, bulk transport of petroleum, oil or its products. There are two basic types of oil tankers: crude tankers and product tankers. Crude tankers move large quant ...

, ''Sola TS'', that severely damaged the frigate and caused a severe list that placed it in serious danger of sinking in spite of its position. The frigate first ran aground and then was successfully beached and tethered with wire cable to prevent it sinking and allow the crew to be evacuated. In the early hours of 13 November the vessel partially sank with only smaller sections of the superstructure remaining above water. The vessel was recovered but with the cost of repair prohibitive it has been decommissioned and was scrapped.

Ships in class

The ships are named after explorers Fridtjof Nansen,

Roald Amundsen Roald Engelbregt Gravning Amundsen (, ; ; 16 July 1872 – ) was a Norwegians, Norwegian explorer of polar regions. He was a key figure of the period known as the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration. Born in Borge, Østfold, Norway, Am ...

, Otto Sverdrup, Helge Ingstad and Thor Heyerdahl.

Future replacement of the ''Fridtjof Nansen'' class

In June 2023, the Norwegian Ministry of Defence published ''The Military Advice of the Chief of Defence 2023'', in which General Eirik Kristoffersen (Chief of Defence) recommended that Norway replace the RNoN's in-service ''Fridtjof Nansen''-class frigates and increase the force level to six ships. Delivering a new frigate likely will be central to the government’s long-term plan to build a new surface force structure within a wider fleet renewal programme. The government likely will emphasize the need to deliver the future frigate through partnership with close allies. In the New Norwegian Long Term Plan on Defence from April 2024, it is proposed to replace the class with five new frigates with the same focus (ASW) as the Nansen class.

Images

File:KNM Fridtjof Nansen-2006-06-01-side.jpg, View of the lead ship of the class, ''Fridtjof Nansen'' File:KNM Fridtjof Nansen 02.JPG, Close-up of superstructure of ''Fridtjof Nansen'' File:Nansen-oto75mm-2006-07-03.jpg, The OTO Breda 76 mm gun. Note the low-RCS design of both the gun house and the exposed part of the barbette. File:KNM Otto Sverdrup in Trondheim.jpg, ''Otto Sverdrup'' leaving Trondheim, Norway, November 2009. File:KNM Otto Sverdrup-2009-04-10-Haakonsvern.jpg, ''Otto Sverdrup'' at Haakonsvern Naval Base. File:KNM Roald Amundsen (F311) underway in the Atlantic Ocean on 16 February 2018 (180216-N-GC347-175).JPG, ''Roald Amundsen''. File:KNM Helge Ingstad.jpg, ''Helge Ingstad'' File:Nor F314.jpg, ''Thor Heyerdahl'' File:HNoMS Otto Sverdrup at South Quay, London.jpg, ''Otto Sverdrup'' moored at South Quay in London, December 2017

Notes

References

External links

Official Royal Norwegian Navy website on the class

Official Royal Norwegian Navy website on the class

Lockheedmartin:Spy-1F makes waves during debut, makes the furthest ESSM intercept ever, outstanding sea skimmer detection

Norway order Sting Ray mod 1 torpedo for frigates

Sea Protector remote weapon systems ordered (March 2009) for Nansen frigates

Norway ordering the AN/SSQ-62E DICASS sonobuoy acoustic emissions detection system (Jan 2010)

http://www.defpro.com/news/details/18513/ - Reutech radar installed aboard Norwegian frigate (Oct 2010)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fridtjof Nansen Class Frigate Frigates of Norway Frigate Frigate classes