Video: Keel Laying for French Navy’s New FDI Frigate

Naval Group laid the keel of the first FDI frigate (frégate de défense et d'intervention) for the French Navy (Marine Nationale). Naval News was on-site at the shipyard in Lorient to cover this important event.
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This step marks the beginning of the assembly of the first-in-class ship Amiral Ronarc’h in the construction hall. The frigate will be delivered in 2024. It is the first of a series of five ships to be delivered between 2024 and 2030.

On the same day, the Panoramic Sensors and Intelligence Module (PSIM), the integrated mast of the FDI, was also powered up. This important milestone symbolizes the start of the testing of the frigate’s complete combat system, several months before its final integration on the ship.

In our video coverage:

  • Pierre Éric Pommellet, Naval Group’s CEO, discusses this important milestone for the program.
  • We also show the metal sheets of the second FDI in the series which will likely be the FDI HN for the Hellenic Navy.
  • Yonec Fihey, frigate marketing manager at Naval Group, tells us about the PSIM integrated mast of the FDI.

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