Hellenic Navy’s Kimon frigate sails in the Saronic Gulf. Credit: ERT
The Hellenic Navy ship Kimon, the first FDI HN “Belharra” class frigate—out of a total of four that will join the navy of Greece in the coming years—sailed into the Saronic Gulf on Thursday, bound for the Salamis naval base.
Kimon was greeted at sea by historic and modern vessels, including the armored cruiser Georgios Averof, a replica ancient trireme, and six active ships of the Greek fleet. The arrival of Kimon marks the entry of the Hellenic Navy into a new era. The frigate has state-of-the-art digital air defense systems, such as Sea Fire radars, while it stands out for its anti-submarine capabilities.
Greece’s Navy boosted by Kimon frigate
Among the systems carried by Kimon, those that stand out include the Aster-30 anti-aircraft missiles for the A50 launchers mounted on the bow, the Exocet MM40 Block 3C surface-to-surface missiles, the MU90 torpedoes for anti-submarine warfare operations, the RAM missiles, the 76 mm Oto Melara cannon and the two 20 mm Lionfish remote-controlled machine guns.
Moreover, as both National Defence Minister Nikos Dendias and the chief of the Hellenic Navy General Staff, Vice Admiral Dimitrios – Eleftherios Kataras, have repeatedly pointed out, the Kimon is a ship capable of providing strategic deterrence and crucially upgrading the power of the Greek fleet in the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean.
On December 18, at the shipyards of the manufacturing company in Lorient, France, the naming ceremony of the frigate Kimon took place, along with the raising of the Greek flag, in the presence of Defense Minister Nikos Dendias. Since then, the Kimon and its crew of 128 personnel have set sail, initially heading to the port city of Brest. There, the vessel was equipped with its armaments, and the first full integration of its sensors, combat system, and weapon systems was successfully carried out under real operational conditions.
Subsequently, the frigate began its journey to Greece, and upon its arrival at the Salamis Naval Base, the internal process of its integration into the fleet will commence.
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, President of the Hellenic Republic Constantine Tassoulas and National Defence Minister Nikos Dendias attended the onboard welcoming ceremony of the F/G Kimon, the first Greek FDI HN “Belharra.”