The De Zeven Provinciën class frigates are highly advanced air-defense frigates in service with the Koninklijke Marine (Royal Netherlands Navy). This class of ships is also known as LCF (Luchtverdedigings- en commandofregat, air defense and command frigate). These ships were built for air-defense but they also have weapons onboard to attack surface and submarine targets, for example: the Harpoon Missile and Mk. 46 Torpedoes. The ships are similar to the German Sachsen class frigates.
For anti-air the ships are equipped with several weapons. The primary weapon is the Mk41 Vertical Launch System, each with 32 Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile and 32 SM-2 IIIA. During ballistic missile tests in the Pacific ocean near Hawaii, the SMART-L long-range air and surface surveillance radar proved its range capability: 2000 km max. Because of these results, the Dutch Government has decided to equip all four ships with about 8 Standard SM-3 per ship. Plans to equip some of the Zeven Provinciën-class frigates with a total of 32 BGM-109 Tomahawk cruise missiles have existed but these were shelved in May 2005.

The ships are classified as frigates by the Netherlands Navy but internationally are classified as destroyers as this better fits their armament and role. In most Dutch websites and books they are referred as frigates but in international websites and books referred as destroyers.

List of ships

All ships were built at Royal Schelde's shipyard in Vlissingen, Netherlands.

Footnotes

External References

• @ naval-technology.com

• @ AMI International

• (Private page)

thumb|left|300px|HNLMS De Zeven Provincien (F802) outward bound from Portsmouth Naval Base, UK, on 21 September 2009.

Category:Frigate classes
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