Saudi frigate Al Riyadh explained

Al Riyadh (812) is an of the Royal Saudi Navy.

Development and design

The frigate Al Riyadh, is an expanded anti-air version of the French, displacing about and extended to 133m (436feet) in length.^[1]

The ships' combat system, produced by Armaris (a Direction des Constructions Navales/Thales Group joint venture), is armed with Aster 15 surface-to-air missiles (SAM) launched from SYLVER vertical launchers (SYLVER - SYstème de Lancement VERtical). As with the La Fayette class, the primary offensive weapon is the anti-surface Exocet missile. The ships' main gun is the OTO Melara 76 mm super-rapid firing gun replacing the modèle 100 TR automatic gun of the La Fayette class. There are also four aft-mounted 533mm torpedo tubes, firing DTCN F17 heavyweight anti-submarine torpedoes. Al Riyadh is capable of a maximum speed of ~46km/h with a maximum range of 13000km (8,000miles).^[2]

Construction and career

Al Riyadh was launched on 1 August 2000 at the DCNS dockyard in Lorient and commissioned on 26 July 2002.

Al Riyadh-class frigates

Three Al Riyadh class frigates have been built:

Al Riyadh (812): the lead ship commissioned in 2002

Makkah (814): commissioned in 2004

Al Dammam (816): commissioned in 2004

Notes and References

1. Web site: Al Riyadh (F3000S Sawari II) Class, Saudi Arabia. 30 October 2015. www.naval-technology.com.
2. Web site: Al Riyadh (F3000S Sawari II) Class - Naval Technology. 2020-11-29. www.naval-technology.com.