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by The Neue Kaiserliche Ordnung of Reorganisieren Reichregierung. . 49 reads.

FK 4-class cruisers

Class Overview


Name: FK 4-class cruiser

In commission: 2005-present

Building: 0

Ordered: 10

Planned: 10

Completed: 10

Active 10

General Characteristics


Type: Guided-missile cruiser

Displacement: 14,000+ tons

Length: 189m

Beam: 21m

Installed power: 2x D2W reactor

Propulsion: 2 shafts

Speed: 30+ kn

Endurance: Infinite

Armament:

  • 1x96 + 1x64 Mk 41 VLS

  • 4x4 RBS-15 Mk4 anti-shipping missiles

  • 2x1 RIM-116 SeaRAM CIWS

  • 2x1 127mm Oto Melara 127/64 LW

  • 6x1 Pantsir-M CIWS

  • 2x5 533mm TT

Aircraft carried: 2 helicopters

The Kriegsmarinecreated a series of fleet guided missile cruiser designs, designated Flottenkreuzer, in 1996 to supplement the planned Deutschland-class heavy nuclear-powered guided missile cruisers, design work on which began on 1995. They were intended to favor mass production over the heavy missile armament of the Deutschland-class, although the more powerful P-class cruiser would be produced in larger numbers. The design staff ultimately drew up five different designs: FK 1, FK 1a, FK 2, FK 3, and FK 4. The proposals ranged in size from 8,000 tons to 17,500 tons designed displacement and were armed with a main battery of between 128 and 196 VLS cells. Eventually, a somewhat modest proposal, FK 4, was selected for production.

Development



By 1996, at least 13 German light cruisers had to be scrapped due to obsolescence. To replace them, the Kriegsmarine ordered up to 10 new cruisers, to be built after the Königsberg-class. The next design, under the provisional name FK 1, or Flottenkreuzer, was prepared in 1996. The design, which emphasized mass production over combat power, was based on the Ticonderoga-class cruisers at the request of Kaiser Wilhelm III. A modified design, named FK 1a, was a slightly larger vessel. Over the course of the design process that continued through 1996, the size of the projected cruisers increased as the navy added new design requirements. This resulted in the FK 2, FK 3 and FK 4 designs. The FK 4 class that would eventually enter production was a compromise between the FK 2 and the FK 3 designs.

Radar picket cruisers were conceptualized by the Kriegsmarine during the post-Cold War period to provide intelligence information, electronic surveillance, and fighter aircraft interception control for forward-deployed naval forces. Unlike destroyers used as radar picket ships during World War Two, these cruisers are formidable surface combatants, with extensive flag suites and anti-ballistic missile capability. These cruisers would also act as a "mother ship" to provide destroyers long-range anti-surface, anti-aircraft and anti-ballistic missile targeting information.

Design



The FK 4-class cruisers are 189 m in length, with a beam of 21 m and a displacement of approximately 14,000 tons. The design of the FK 4 brings improved levels of radar signature reduction to the Kriegsmarine. Deck equipment and life rafts are concealed behind the ship's superstructure panels. Being a modern warship, the FK 4-class is not only shaped to reduce its radar signature, but also incorporates anti-acoustic measures.

The hull of the FK 4-class cruiser is constructed out of a yet-to-be revealed armor-grade austenitic stainless steel alloy. Austenitic stainless steel is one of the four classes of stainless steel by crystalline structure. Its primary crystalline structure is austenite, a face-centered cubic, and it prevents steels from being hardenable by heat treatment but makes them essentially non-magnetic. This structure is achieved by adding enough austenite stabilizing elements nickel, manganese and nitrogen. The hull is subdivided into 17 watertight compartments which can be sealed by bulkhead doors and a double bottom. It is rumored that the steel used to produce the keel of the FK 4-class cruisers is cold-worked, which increases the yield strength of austenitic steel alloys at increased cost.

Armament
1 group of 96 Mk 41 VLS cells is installed forward and another group of 64 VLS cells aft to accomodate the ship's air defense armament. The Mk 41 VLS can accomodate the RIM-66 SM-2MR Block IIIC, RIM-156B SM-2ER Block IVA, RIM-161 SM-3, RIM-162 ESSM (which is quad-packed) and RIM-174 SM-6. As the SM-3 and SM-6 are anti-ballistic missiles, and the sensor suite of the FK 4-class can handle detection, tracking and fire control, the FK 4-class can carry out the ballistic missile defense mission. Aside from carrying air and ballistic missile defense missiles, the Mk 41 VLS can carry the BGM-109 Tomahawk land-attack cruise missile and the RUM-139 VL-ASROC anti-submarine missile. Furthermore, adaptors have enabled the carriage of the R183 Pfeil hypersonic missile.

Anti-ship weaponry consists of 4 quadruple launchers for the RBS-15 Mk4 anti-ship missile placed amidships, while point defense is provided by 2 RIM-116 SeaRAM and 6 Pantsir-M CIWS. Both SeaRAM launchers are located on top of the rear blockhouse while the Pantsir-M systems are placed forward and amidships in pairs. Anti-submarine and secondary anti-ship weaponry consists of 2 quintuple banks of 533mm torpedo tubes for the DM2A4 torpedo or the RPK-6 "Vodopad" anti-submarine missile with a range of 100km.

Propulsion
Like previous cruisers, the FK 4-class is fitted with an advanced and innovative integrated electric propulsion system. Integrated electric propulsion seeks to supply all propulsion and ship's electrical load using alternating current at a high quality of voltage and frequency. This is achieved by computerised control, high quality transformation, and electrical filtering.

The FK 4-class ships all used two of the D2W reactors, each rated for a maximum thermal output of 165 megawatts. One reactor was located in the aft of the hull, the other in the fore. These reactors powered steam turbines generating between 30,000 and 35,000 shaft horsepower. These steam turbines power Siemens alternators, which in turn powers a Siemens high voltage system. Ship's services, including hotel load and weapons system power supplies, are supplied via transformers from the high voltage supply at 440 V and 115 V.

The high voltage supply is also used to provide power to 4 Siemens advanced induction motors with outputs of 20 MW (27,000 hp) each. These motors power four electromagnetic rim-driven propulsors. Each propulsor unit consist of a rotor that is basically a bronze ring with nine inward-facing scimitar-shaped skewback blades rotating within a nozzle with an integrated downstream stator. The rotor shaft and bearing system are supported in the stator hub, while an electric motor is integrated onto the rotor rim and the entire motor is embedded in the nozzle. Water drawn into the propulsors comes from hydrodynamically-quiet intakes near the keel, and is discharged through thrust vectoring capable pumpjet nozzles located at the rear of the ship.

Sensors and self-defense systems
The primary sensor of the FK 4-class is the AN/SPY-1E SBAR multifunction radar. The AN/SPY-1E is an 4-panel S-band radar providing precise target tracking, a highly capable horizon search capability, and missile guidance using the Interrupted Continuous Wave Illumination (ICWI) technique. This S-band solid state multi-function radar is a four-face phased array with over 25,000 S-band T/R modules whoch are deployed in many separate modules in each of the four antennas on a ship. That distributed design enables greater range and performance. The S-Band Advanced Radar has twice the range of the AN/SPY-1D (648 km; 166 km against sea-skimming missiles) and it detects smaller threats that pop up quickly. The system is also designed to operate close to shore, where it can see through the clutter of waves and sea mist, and distinguish between harmless fishing boats and high-speed missiles that skim along six inches above the water.

At first, a volume search radar with the desired specifications was not available, so a LW-08 search radar was installed, supplemented by an enhanced computer suite. This radar would later be replaced by the KRONOS Power Shield L-band radar, which would utilize the enhanced computer complement to provide radar picket and fighter direction duties. The Kronos Power Shield is an L-band active electronically-scanned array (AESA) radar that uses highly energy efficient gallium-nitride-based technology to remain both thin and compact, but still be powerful and accurate. They system can rapidly switch between broad, 360-degree area search and more focused tracking modes. There is also a "fence" functionality able to track short- and medium range ballistic missiles, but only in a very limited envelope. Leonardo says that the complete 430-square foot array offers a typical maximum search range of between approximately 930 and 1,240 miles, though this would be dependent on a host of environmental factors and the nature of the targets in question.

The sonar suite consists of the STB Atlas ASO hull-mounted sonar and the STN Atlas ACTAS towed-array sonar.The ASO is designed for active and passive operations in the medium frequency band with the main focus on surveillance of the underwater situation as well as the localisation of moored mines, and has the ability of different operational modes and parameter settings the systems are optimised for detection of targets from littoral to blue waters while ACTAS is a low-frequency ASW sonar system that operates simultaneously in active and passive detection modes and provides high-resolution target detection. Both systems can detect submarines, torpedoes and surface vessels including speed boats.

The ships are also equipped with the Diehl designed SIMONE infrared system. The system provides complete and permanent monitoring of the vessel's structure as well as it allows early and reliable detection of small objects, even very small suspicious objects such as inflatable rubber boats or persons swimming, enabling flexible and precise response. SIMONE provides of autonomous monitoring requiring no additional personnel. Automatic alarm with relevant data for the command and control system is generated in case of detected threats. Uncooled infrared detectors featuring longevity as well as 24/7 high image quality meet the requirement of permanent operational readiness.

The electronic warfare suite includes the FL 1800S-II electronic support measures and countermeasures system, developed by DaimlerChrysler Aerospace, now EADS Systems & Defense Electronics. The system consists of several ESM-boxes, each of which contains two combined antenna faces. The antenna areas cover a frequency range from 0.5 to 18 GHz, with ten spiral antennas are available for each band. The system can be determined by the seven computer racks below decks the elevation and azimuth angles to an emitter and accurate count out the multipath. To disrupt enemy radars are four additional antenna surfaces which perform electronic countermeasures by passive phased signal legs with eight traveling wave tubes in the frequency range from 7.5 to 18 GHz. Each signal lobe can disturb a single target or linked together a radar.

The ships are also equipped with the MAIGRET S 5800 combined naval RESM, ELINT, CESM, COMINT and SIGINT system. This system combines RADAR ESM and COMMS ESM inputs in the frequency range of 10 kHz to 40 GHz, with the radar and communications signal data intelligence information being fused into a single tactical EW database. Also, special automatic threat warning filters are implemented to classify the signals into threat categories. Taking COMMS ESM and RADAR ESM in turn, the former has a frequency range of 10 kHz to 3000 MHz, features azimuth selective wideband search and occupancy detection, and digital map display. The frequency range of the RADAR ESM, however, extends from 2 to 18 GHz with the capability of extending it to as low as 0.5 GHz and as high as 40 GHz. For this purpose MAIGRET S 5800 offers a one-mast antenna solution with an outstanding sensitivity and bearing accuracy. Other key capabilities include automatic emitter activity detection, data reduction by emitter tracking, automatic emitter-type classification, manual signal analysis and the tracking of 512 emitters simultaneously. The system has an ELINT capability mode with high sensitivity (better than –80 dBm), extensive data collection, including intra-pulse parameters and no degradation of wideband characteristics while collecting ELINT data.

EW countermeasures are launched from Sagem NGDS multiple decoy launchers. NGDS is integrated in the ship's combat system's detection and warning system and can react automatically to current or emerging threats, in extremely short times. Each system is equipped with a single dual launcher including decoys (infrared, radar or acoustic) adapted to the threat to be neutralized. The NGDS system adapts to all types of munitions: electromagnetic or IR decoys, active offboard decoy, anti-torpedo decoy and/or laser jammer, deployed at short, medium or long range. The launchers are linked to a computer that selects the decoying best-suited technique. The Electronic Warfare Coordination Center provides the commanding officer with the ship’s tactical situation and coordinates the various Electronic Warfare tactics: threat evaluation, tactics optimization, coordination of decoys, radar jammer and more generally, electronic countermeasures Electronic Support Measures. The NGDS decoy launchers have been modernized recently with a LACROIX Defense SEALEM decoy launcher module, with IR countermeasures and corner reflector technology for AAW and ASW.

In addition to the NGDS decoy launchers, each ship is protected by Rheinmetall multi-ammunition softkill systems (MASS). The launcher is connected to the ship's sensors and protects ships from attacks by advanced, sensor-guided missiles, by launching decoys, that operate in all relevant wavelengths on the electromagnetic spectrum (ultra violet, electro-optical, laser, infrared and radar).

Anti-torpedo countermeasures include the DCNS CONTRALTO-V Torpedo Countermeasures soft-kill system and the Atlas Elektronik SeaSpider.

CONTRALTO-V is composed of several subsystems for an optimized defense against torpedoes: the reaction system, which calculates & suggests optimized evasive maneuvres and sets off the countermeasures, the deployment system (launcher) fitted to several types of launchers (mortar, pneumatic, rocket) and the CANTO-V countermeasure. CANTO-V is a broadband active acoustic countermeasure. It is designed to saturate the torpedo data processing system by emitting specific and smart acoustic signals covering the whole torpedo frequency band in both active and passive mode. Its mission consists in exhausting the threat by creating and constantly renewing hundreds of false targets on a 360-degree coverage area (5 sec deployment). This concept, called dilution/confusion, is the only one capable of defeating advanced torpedoes while consuming less munitions and it is efficient whatever the number of torpedoes or their types and doesn’t need to be deployed far from the threatened ship. The system offers a 95% escape probability against torpedoes detected at 3,000 meters.

SeaSpider is a dedicated anti-torpedo torpedo. The anti-torpedo torpedo is a defense system that actively targets the incoming threat torpedo independent of its type or homing functionality with the aim of destroying or disabling it by explosive and/or kinetic force before it completes its mission. According to the manufacturer, "it is the key element in the ATLAS ELEKTRONIK solution to provide both proven and deployed torpedo defence to the full functional chain from sensor to shooter". Exact specifications of this system are still classified.

Ships in class


Ship

Status

Brummer

Active in service

Dresden

Active in service

Wiesbaden

Active in service

Magdeburg

Active in service

Bremse

Active in service

Rostock

Active in service

Frauenlob

Active in service

Pillau

Active in service

Elbing

Active in service

Graudenz

Active in service

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