Amiral Ronarc’h, the first frigate of the FDI (Fregate de Defense et Intervention) class, was launched In France. The frigate is intended for the French Navy.

On Monday, November 7, the frigate was floated out at the shipyard of the Naval Group in Lorient.

The ceremony took place in the presence of Sébastien Lecornu, French minister of the Armed Forces, and his Greek counterpart, Nikolaos Panagiotopoulos.

This is the first ship in the series. In total, the French Navy is to receive five FDI-class frigates.

They will replace the La Fayette-class ships that entered service between 1996 and 2001.

The new frigates are designed and produced due to a completely digital project – no paper documents are used.

The keel of the Amiral Ronarc’h frigate was laid in December 2021. The first sea trials will begin in 2023 and the ship will be delivered in 2024.

The remaining four ships in the series will be delivered until 2030. During this period, Naval Group will also produce three FDI frigates for the Hellenic Navy, with a fourth currently planned as an option.

The length of the FDI-class frigates will be 122 m, beam – 18 m, displacement – 4,500 tons. They will be able to develop a speed of up to 27 knots, a sailing range of 5,000 miles, autonomy of 45 days. Accomodation – 125-persons crew + 28 passengers.

Control of warships will be provided by the SETIS 3.0 system developed by the Naval Group. The arsenal of frigates includes anti-ship missiles, anti-aircraft missiles, 76-mm gun mounts, remotely controlled 20 mm guns and 324-mm torpedo tubes.

The frigate also provides the base for an unmanned aerial vehicle weighing up to 700 kg and a NH90 multi-role helicopter. Special attention is paid to the protection of ship systems from modern cyber threats and electronic countermeasures.

In July of this year, the French Naval Group began cutting steel for the second FDI HN-class multi-role frigate for the Hellenic Navy.