United Arab Emirates Navy Receives Second Gowind 2500 Class Al Emarat Corvette From The Naval Group
Last week, Naval Group, France’s leading shipbuilding company, delivered the second Gowind-class corvette, “Al Emarat”, to the United Arab Emirates Navy, successfully completing the agreement signed in 2019. The United Arab Emirates Naval Forces delegation, led by Naval Group’s Vice President of Surface Ships, Olivier de la Bourdonnaye, and Deputy Commander of the UAE Naval Forces, Brigadier General Abdulla Al Mehairbi, attended the delivery ceremony at the company’s Lorient shipyard.
In his speech at the delivery ceremony, Naval Group’s Vice President of Surface Ships, Olivier de la Bourdonnaye, stated, “I am very honoured to be with you on this symbolic day for Naval Group as we deliver the second Gowind Al Emarat to the UAE Navy. Naval Group has demonstrated its unwavering commitment to the success of the Bani Yas program, in close cooperation with the UAE Navy, and we are proud today to welcome our Emirati guests for the flag transfer ceremony of the Al Emarat corvette.”
Following the handover ceremony, the Al Emarat crew remained in France to complete operational shipboard training as part of the service solutions offered by Naval Group. The ship will depart for the UAE following crew training, which is expected to conclude in July. Al Emarat, which is scheduled to arrive in Abu Dhabi in August, will join the “Bani Yas” corvette, the first ship of its class, which was delivered in November 2023, and will assist the UAE Navy in conducting naval operations such as surveillance, surface and submarine warfare, protection, etc.
Built in accordance with the operational requirements of the UAE Navy, Gowind 2500 class multi-purpose corvettes have a length of 102 meters, a width of 16 meters and a displacement of 2800 tons. The ships can cruise for 21 days without resupply and can reach a maximum speed of 25.5 knots thanks to a combined diesel/electric or diesel engine (CODLOD) hybrid propulsion system. The ships, which have a crew capacity of 95 personnel, also include two inflatable boats and a helipad for the use of helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles.
The Gowind-2500 Class corvettes are equipped with one Oto Melara 76/62mm naval gun, two 20mm remote-controlled weapon systems, sixteen MICA VL air defense missiles, eight anti-ship missiles, two triple torpedo launchers, and the RIM-116 RAM system. Aside from the main weapon systems, the corvettes feature an innovative Panoramic Sensor and Intelligence Module (PSIM) integrated mast that houses all sensor systems such as radars, electro optics, electronic warfare suites, communication antennas, ship weather systems, and so on.