Article Posted on : - May 20, 2011

The Gowind-class OPV. A DCNS photo

LORIENT (BNS): French Navy's first Gowind-class Offshore Patrol Vessel (OPV) has been floated out by DCNS.

The new ship, named L’Adroit, was launched on Wednesday just one year after construction work began on it.

From ‘first cut’ on 7 May 2010 to float-out on 18 May 2011 took just 12 months, DCNS said.

“The floating of Gowind-type OPV L’Adroit demonstrates DCNS’s ability to design and build a highly innovative ship on time – in this case less than 20 months – and on budget,” said Marc Maynard, the Group’s Gowind OPV programme manager.

L’Adroit will begin sea trials in the coming summer after installation of the main radome and electronic systems scheduled for next month.

The first Gowind-class OPV is built under a self-funded programme by the French naval company DCNS. Eleven companies are supplying systems and equipment for the ship free of charge.

In all, over 50 co-contractors are contributing to this showcase programme and will contribute further to the drive to promote the Gowind family and its systems and equipment.

DCNS plans to build and market the new class of OPVs for international customers.

The 87-meter long OPV with a range of 8,000 nautical miles and a top speed of 21 knots will be used for a wide range of government missions.

The OPVs will offer the users up-to-date assets for current and emerging missions from area surveillance to anti-piracy, counter-terrorism, fisheries policing, drug interdiction, environmental protection, humanitarian assistance, search and rescue at sea, and maritime safety and security.

The ships will have advanced key features including panoramic (360°) bridge visibility, covert deployment of fast commando boats in less than 5 minutes and full provisions for Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) operations. All are designed to optimise ship-based naval, commando and coast guard operations.

The vessels will also work for extended area surveillance, in conjunction with shore-based control centres and other networked ships. They will also be involved in automatic detection of suspicious behaviour by ships and other craft.