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Wielingen (F910)


Frigate Warship


Belgium | 1978



"The Wielingen F910 and her class were the first post-World War 2 warships to be built by Belgium."

Power & Performance
Those special qualities that separate one sea-going vessel design from another. Performance specifications presented assume optimal operating conditions for Wielingen (F910).
2 x Cockerill 240 CO diesel engines developing 6,000 horsepower with 1 x Rolls-Royce Olympus TM-3B gas turbine developing 28,000 horsepower driving 2 x Shafts in CODOG (COmbined Diesel Or Gas) configuration.
Propulsion
28.0 kts
32.2 mph
Surface Speed
4,510 nm
5,190 miles | 8,352 km
Range
Structure
The bow-to-stern, port-to-starboard physical qualities of Wielingen (F910).
159
Personnel
Complement
349.0 ft
106.38 meters
O/A Length
39.8 ft
12.13 meters
Beam
18.4 ft
5.61 meters
Draught
2,200
tons
Displacement
Armament
Available supported armament and special-mission equipment featured in the design of Wielingen (F910).
1 x 100mm Creusot-Loire Mod 68 Duel-Purpose (DP) main gun.
1 x Mk 29 RIM-7P "Sea Sparrow" Anti-Aircraft (AA) missile launcher (8 reloads).
1 x MM-38 "Exocet" Anti-Ship (AS) missile launcher (4 reloads).
2 x 533mm (21") ECAN Type L5 torpedo launchers (10 reloads).
1 x 375mm Bofors Anti-Submarine Rocker (ASR) launcher
Ships-in-Class (4)
Notable series variants as part of the Wielingen (F910) family line as relating to the Wielingen-class group.
Wielingen (F910); Westdiep (F911); Wandelaar (F912); Westhinder (F913)
Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 05/02/2019 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site; No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

When compared to neighbors France and Germany, Belgium is a relatively small nation. However, its geographical position is such that it provides critical access to the waterways of the English Channel via the all-important port city of Antwerp. This water access has always prompted the country to maintain some sort of blue water presence in the region providing a first-and-last line of defense from the sea and deterrence against a potential aggressor to its shipping.

The small Wielingen-class of fighting frigates was born as the first post-World War 2 Belgian Navy warship to be wholly constructed by the country (though its equipment came from various other parties). The types were classified frigates which characterized them as surface-going vessels outfitted with sensors, communications equipment, machinery, and weaponry suitable for force protection and Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW). For the Belgian Navy, this warship served in the escort ship and patrol roles. The decision to pursue a new design was made by the Belgian government in late 1970s with program approval being had in 1971. Formal design studies came in 1973. The Wielingen-class was to follow the outgoing Algerine-class which numbered eight for the Belgian Navy out of the 110 actually completed for it and other global naval forces.

The lead ship of the new class, Wielingen (F910), saw her keel laid down on March 5th, 1974 by builder Boelwerf and the hull was launched on March 30th, 1976. She was officially commissioned by ceremony on January 20th, 1978 and her sisters followed before the end of the year. The group included Westdiep (F911), Wandelaar (F912), and Westhinder (F913). Once in action, the class formed an important part of Belgian Navy capabilities during the latter stages of the Cold War.

The Wielingen displaced at 1,880 tons under standard load and 2,430 tons under full load. Her length measured 349 feet with a beam of 40.4 feet, and draught of 18.4 feet. She exhibited a low profile that concealed her stout smoke funnel aft of the main mast quite well. A turreted deck gun was fitted fore with the bridge superstructure directly aft of this installation. Interestingly Wielingen was not given any helicopter support facilities which simplified her design and operation some. Her entire crew complement numbered 159 and included up to fourteen officers.

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Her machinery was a COmbined Diesel OR Gas (CODOG) system configuration that saw a single Rolls-Royce Olympus gas turbine of 28,000 horsepower coupled with 2 x Cockerill 240 CO diesels outputting at 6,000 horsepower. This arrangement drove power to two shafts with the gas turbine coming into play for high speed dashes while the diesels drove the vessel during normal cruise functions. Speeds could reach 28 knots and operational range was out to 5,190 miles.

Due to the multirole nature of frigate warships in modern navies, Wielingen was given an armament collection to help counter most any at-sea threat. The armament suite was led by 2 x MM-38 "Exocet" Anti-Ship (AS) twin missile launchers for surface targets and an Mk 29 RIM-7P"Sea Sparrow" Anti-Aircraft (AA) octuple missile launcher for inbound aerial targets. Over the forecastle was a conventional naval artillery gun - a 100mm (3.9") Creusot-Loire Mod 68 Dual-Purpose (DP) deck gun system - in a traversing turret. Anti-Submarine actions were handled by a single 375mm Cruesot-Loire Anti-Submarine-ROCket (ASROC) launcher firing Swedish Bofors-made rockets. Additional firepower against undersea threats was managed through 2 x 533mm (21") torpedo launchers for the ten ECAN L5 torpedoes carried. At one point, the 30mm "Goalkeeper" Close-In Weapon System (CIWS) was to figure into the armament suite of Wielingen-class but this initiative was ultimately abandoned.

To accomplish the many roles assigned to it, Wielingen carried a collection of sensors and processing systems which included a Hollandse Signaal Apparaten DA-05 surface search radar, a Hollandse Signaal Apparaten WM-25 fire control radar, a Vigy 105 series optronic director, the Kelvin-Hugues "Scout" navigation radar, the SEWACO IV tactical data system, the Argos 900 ESM, a pair of MK 36 SRBOC chaff launching devices, the SLQ-25 series "Nixie" Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) decoy suite, and the AN/SQS-510 model search/attack sonar fitted to the bow. These systems, combined with a well-trained and experienced crew along with the vessel's standard armament, made the Wielingen and her class formidable warships considering their relatively compact sizes.

Wielingen led a long and healthy service life for the Belgian Navy, spanning from 1976 to 2007. With the end of the Cold War and the end of the Soviet Union as the primary European threat, the vessel was decommissioned in 2006 and sold off to Bulgaria in 2008 where she has continued her career as the "Verni" ("Faithful"). Two of her sister ships were given the same fate - all transitioned via sale to the Bulgarian Navy. Only Westhinder was scrapped (in 1993).

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Operators
Global operator(s) of the Wielingen (F910). Nations are displayed by flag, each linked to their respective national naval warfare listing.
National flag of Belgium National flag of Bulgaria

[ Belgium; Bulgaria (as the Verni) ]
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