Frigate 125 - Of goals and milestones, challenges and wishes

The first Class 125 frigate was commissioned just over two years ago. Time for an overview of the experience.

What about our "new" Frigates ordered? Several members of the Bundestag have recently been asking themselves this question. With their small question on the status of the project Frigate 125 (F 125) they emphasised the role of the project as one of the most controversially discussed topics in the armaments context. According to the questioners, a cross-section of current defence investment projects shows that these are often under pressure from rising costs and are usually only completed after a delay. Even with F 125 they see a gap between the delivery of a product and its actual readiness for use in the planned key tasks. Now, exceeding the cost and time frame for F125 In view of the current reporting, this is not a new realisation. But do the experiences from the operation of the new ships and the operational concept correspond? F 125 with the media perception of the project? What did we want to achieve with F 125, what did we get and what still needs to be done to meet the needs of the German Navy? Discussions with experts show that limiting the project to the construction programme of the four ships is not enough to grasp the overall context. Experience from the testing of the platforms, from the operational testing of the F 125 and from operational training allows us to make viable assessments of platforms, the crew model and the integration of the sea battalion from the user's perspective even before all units have been accepted and commissioned.