The Dutch Navy, or Koninklijke Marine, is engaged, like all of the country's armies, in a major and rapid effort aimed at repairing the consequences of the "benefits of Peace" years and the lack of credits that they have generated, and responded to, the evolution of the security threat in Europe.
It has thus launched the replacement of almost all of its major naval units in the next fifteen years, ranging from its Walrus submarines to its Tripartite mine hunters, including its De zeven Provincien and Karel Doorman frigates, its LPD Rotterdam and Jan de Witt, and his Holland-class OPVs.
At the same time, several drone programs, particularly surface drones, have been launched, to expand the performance and operational capabilities of its ships, from the medium missile-carrying USV to the light submarine-hunting USV. marine, offering real opportunities for cooperation at European level, especially for France.
In this section:
Submarines, Frigates, Amphibians: the Dutch Navy is rapidly modernizing
Launched in 2019, the modernization of the Dutch Navy should allow it, by the mid-2030s, to renew its entire front-line fleet, sometimes to expand it, with giving it back the capabilities which were the his during the Cold War, all things considered.
6 large mine warfare ships from the rMCM program
Chronologically, this began with the award of a €2 billion contract, co-financed with the Belgian partner and neighbor, for thea design and construction of 12 large mine warfare ships, six per Navy, as well as drone systems which will be used for mine clearance operations.
It was the ECA groups, having since merged with the French IXblue to become Exail, and Naval Group, brought together for the occasion in the Belgium Naval & Robotics consortium, which won the rMCM competition.
The first of the large mine warships, the M940 Oostende, intended for the Marine Component, was launched on March 29, 2023 in Concarneau, while the second ship, the M840 Vlissingen bound for the Dutch Navy, followed a few months later in Lorient.
These ships, built by the Kership group, are due to enter service in 2024 and 2025 respectively. The last of the class, the M845 Schiedam, will join the Koninklijke Marine in 2030. Note that in October 2023, France has joined this program, as part of its MMCM/SLAMF program.
It will also build six large RMCM mine warfare ships, with some variations compared to the Dutch and Belgian models, particularly in terms of launching drones, or defensive armament. Paris, The Hague and Brussels are thus renewing the partnership which gave birth, more than forty years ago, to the very successful Tripartite mine hunters.
2 M-Fregat anti-submarine warfare frigates
Concomitantly with the rMCM program, the Belgian and Dutch navies launched the development and construction of a new class of anti-submarine frigates, intended to replace the M-fregat (M for Multimission) of the Karel Doorman class. Each Navy plans to acquire two such ships.
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