The first Greek FDI frigate “Belharra” sailed from Naval Group’s premises
Kimon, the first FDI HN frigate for the Greek Navy, began the first maritime tests on May 21, in Lorian.
As the manufacturer Naval Group announced, the ship took advantage of the experience gained during the maritime tests of Amiral Ronarc’h, the first ship in the French Navy. The frigate, designed based on the demands of the Greek Navy, began its maritime tests by the Naval Group’s facilities in Lorian, Brittany. The tests will be attended carefully by the Navy representatives.
The first period at sea will be dedicated mainly to the test of platform systems, including propulsion and navigation systems, the announcement said. A second period at sea, a few weeks later, will be dedicated to battle systems and sea resistance.
According to Naval Group, in 2025 it marks a key milestone for the FDI program, with sea testing and the imminent tradition of the first frigate for the Eli Navy, along with the forthcoming foil of the third frigate, “Forms”. By 2026, the Navy will have three first -class FDI Frigates of multiple missions.
The FDI HN Frigate a ship capable of handling current and emerging threats. A multipurpose and durable offshore vessel will allow the Navy to secure its naval superiority in the Eastern Mediterranean thanks to its high level capabilities in all areas of the naval battle: anti -aircraft, anti -submarine, anti -submarine, anti -submarine, anti -submarine. It also benefits, as stated in the announcement, from Thales’ latest innovations on radar, sonar and electronic war.
Designed and made with state -of -the -art digital tools, they are the first frigates to benefit from a digital architecture on the boat, which will allow them to constantly adapt to technological and operational developments, allowing them to constantly face threats. The FDIs are also inherently protected by the cyber threat, with a surplus IT architecture based on two database centers that host a large proportion of the ship’s software in a virtually designed way.
In terms of operational innovation, the FDIs inaugurate the concept of a computers’ gateway dedicated to the fight against asymmetric threats. This system will make coordination and guidance of the fight against small, nearby and superficial threats, it is said by Naval Group.
Technical Specifications:
– displacement: 4,500 tonnes
– Length: About 122 meters
– Width: 18 meters
– maximum speed: 27 nodes
– Air Facilities: 10 -ton category helicopter, unmanned VTOL (UAV) Air Vehicle
Main weapon:
– 32 Aster missiles developed by MBDA
– 8 Exocet MM40 B3C Rockets developed by MBDA
– RAM rockets
– 76mm cannon
– 4 torpedo tubes with MU 90 torpedoes developed by Naval Group
– 2 Canto countermeasure launchers developed by Naval Group
[#Navgreek] ⚓🇬🇷 HS Kimon, first #FDI frigate for the @Navygrstarted her first sea trials on May 21st in Lorient, France.
The ship capitalized on the experience gained during the sea trials of Amiral Ronarc’h, the first of class for the @MarineNationale. pic.twitter.com/QEDA9ZAWwx— Naval Group (@navalgroup) May 23, 2025