The United Arab Emirates ordered in 2019 two Gowind corvettes to be built in France by Naval Group at its Lorient shipyard. The corvette launched is named Bani Yas (P110). The second vessel is set to be launched next year.

In its press release, Naval Group explains that it will train the crews of the UAE Navy, from the basic use of the ship to its operational use. This training will start in France and will continue in the Arabian Gulf with collective training sessions on operational scenarios in the various fields of combat.

Alain Guillou, Naval Group Senior Executive Vice President Development said: “We are honored to welcome UAE officials to our shipyard to witness the launch of their first Gowind corvette. These two combat ships will provide the UAE Navy with new naval capabilities. This event marks a very important milestone for the program as the country approaches its 50th anniversary. The Bani Yas program illustrates Naval Group’s ability to provide state-of-the-art capabilities to meet specific customer requirements with the integration of weapons and sensors through its SETIS Combat Management System (CMS).”

It was previously announced that French company iXblue would supply its Marins navigation systems and Netans data distribution & processing units for these UAE Navy corvettes.

The Gowind 2500 corvette is 102 metres long with a maximum width of 16 meters and a draft of 5.4 meters. The displacement at full load is around 2,800 tons. The corvette is manned by a crew of 65 sailors and the accommodation on board can accommodate up to 15 special forces operators. The aviation installations allow the use of a 10-ton class helicopter.

The Combined diesel-electric and diesel-mechanical (CODED) propulsion system consist in two diesel engines (MTU) and two electric engines (Leroy-Somer) for a propulsive power of 10 MW. This allows the corvettes a maximum speed exceeding 25 knots. Their maximum range at 15 knots would be between 3,700 and 4,500 nautical miles.

The first customer of the Gowind type corvette is the Royal Malaysian Navy which awarded a contract in late 2011 to local shipbuilder Boustead Heavy Industries Corporation (BHIC) and Naval Group (then DCNS) for the local construction of six “Littoral Combat Ships”. The Maharaja Lela-class frigates (also known as Second Generation Patrol Vessel – SGPV) are an enlarged version of the Gowind type corvette.

SOURCE: NAVAL NEWS