Hellenic Navy Invests €500 Million to Modernize Four Hydra-Class Meko Frigates

The Hellenic Republic, in a significant move, has decided to allocate €500 million for the upgrade of its four Hellenic-class MEKO frigates. If this decision goes through, it will mark a significant development in the Hellenic Navy’s plans to upgrade two out of the four frigates. This substantial investment will enable the 3200-ton frigates, commissioned in the 1990s, to remain operational for 15 more years. Spending €500 million on such an upgrade means that the Navy’s budget will be raised to €1.5 billion, the sum required for the project, compared to the initially budgeted €1.7 million. A decision on this matter will be made before the end of the summer.

Should this decision be approved, it will be a departure from the plans of the Hellenic Navy to upgrade two out of the four frigates. However, it aligns with the plans of the National Defense General Staff to have a fleet of 12 frigates and 6 corvettes in the period up to 2034. France, Italy, the Netherlands, the UK, and the US have already expressed interest in Greece’s corvette procurement program. Recently, Germany and Israel have also joined in, offering their 6-class corvettes, or the Sa’ar 6-class corvettes, built in German shipyards. The 4 units were delivered in 2020 and 2021 and have been fitted with Israeli weapon systems.

The Hellenic Navy Hellenic-class MEKO Frigate HS Spetsai:
The Hellenic-class frigates are a group of four frigates in service with the Hellenic Navy. They were designed in Germany and are part of the MEKO group of modular warship designs, specifically the MEKO 200 design. The program was authorized in 1988 and covered the commission of six vessels. The first ship was built in Germany and commissioned in 1992 but suffered delays due to financial problems on the part of the Hellenic Shipyard’s compiling in the late 1990s which also led to limiting the total number of vessels to four.

The implementation of the so-called “Mid-Life Modernization Program” will allow the upgrading of the electronic combat systems, sensors, and radars, which are necessary to increase the combat power of the ships. According to reports of Greek defense magazine “PTISI,” the upgrade will include 12 basic subsystems of the ship, including a new CMS, a new 3D radar, a new navigation radar, new infrared-communication systems, new ESM, Link-16 tactical data link network, and the installation of a new Laser warning system. The shipyard that will win the contract for the construction of four frigates the interim solution will also modernize the four MEKO class frigates to ensure the commonality between the systems of the new frigates and the modernized MEKO class frigates.

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