The Mistral-class frigate is an upgraded version of the Wolf class, and at one time it was one of the objects of envy: a medium frigate with balanced combat capabilities.
One. Captain of the Wolf class 1132 meters, the width of the ship is 113 meters, draft 37 meters, standard displacement 2500 tons, full load displacement 2800 tons, the overall design is compact.
As an enlarged version, the Mistral-class captain 1227 meters, the width of the ship is 129 meters, draft 42 meters, standard displacement 3040 tons, full load displacement 3250 tons. The first ship was commissioned on 8 October 1974, launched on 29 July 1976 and commissioned on 7 March 1982.
Northwest Wind continues to adopt the short bridge building and flat deck ship type, the layout has been optimized, and the overall design is more stretched and elegant. Albatross ship-to-air missiles are arranged in front of the bridge, with 8 bombs in reserve;After that, it is a reloading device with 16 bombs. 4 anti-ship missile launchers, arranged on top of the hangar. In general, the center of gravity of the ship is lowered, which is conducive to improving the sailing performance.
There are a total of 8 ships of the same class, the last 7 of which were commissioned between 1983 and 1985, with the port number F570-577. Judging by the number of 8 ships built, it reflects the satisfaction of the Italian Navy.
Two. The division of labor of the Italian Navy in NATO, similar to that of Japan, takes anti-submarine escort as its core mission, and separates the east and west of the Eurasian island to contain the Soviet underwater fleet.
The same mission leads to convergence at the equipment level. Italy, which had been completely loosened by the United States, took the lead in making bold explorations and provided Japan with an object to imitate. For example, Italy pioneered *** cruisers, and Japan focused on *** destroyers.
Although the Wolf star has a good reputation, after all, it deviates from the anti-submarine mission. Therefore, as an upgraded and improved version, the Mistral Wind will undoubtedly highlight anti-submarine warfare. This prominence is mainly manifested as:
The first is to enhance aviation anti-submarine capabilities. The use of large fixed hangars improves the ability to provide higher uptime. The internal volume is large, which can park 2 AB-212 anti-submarine ***
The second is to improve the ability to search for potentials. DE1160B hull sonar is arranged in the bow and DE 1164 variable depth sonar (VDS) is arranged on the aft deck below the flight deck. The rear deck is surrounded by lightening holes, which better solves the problem of tight deck area. Since then, this design has become increasingly popular and has been copied directly from Japan.
The third is to improve the ability to attack potentials. In addition to two 324 mm anti-submarine torpedo launchers, two B-516 533 mm single-mount torpedo tubes were placed below the flight deck to launch A-184 ASW ASW heavy torpedoes – a tradition for Italian destroyers. The torpedo uses wire-guided technology, which can be used anti-submarine and anti-ship, and has a range of 36 kilometers at high speed of 17 knots.
For comparison, the Wolf-class frigate can only carry 1 *** sonar as the hull sonar.
Three. In the general understanding, only the Soviet Navy was enthusiastic about 533mm torpedoes after the war. There are two exceptions, one is France, the other is Italy, which is a product of Gaullistism – similar to the Asroc anti-submarine missile.
About the A-184 heavy dual-purpose torpedo of the Mistral class. Whether it is foreign language information or a few ** displays, the Mistral does have two single-mount torpedo tubes on the rear deck, which are arranged on both sides of the ship, and the launch direction is facing the stern. According to the general idea, a torpedo compartment was arranged at the rear end of the launch tube to accommodate heavy torpedoes, and the number of ammunition in reserve was unknown.
A-184 heavy dual-purpose torpedo.
Comparison before and after the removal of the torpedo tube in the tail of the lead ship.
The available evidence does not prove that all ships were armed with A-184 heavy dual-purpose torpedoes. Judging from the situation of the lead ship, it was initially equipped with torpedo tubes for mine equipment, and then dismantled. The reason for the dismantling was mainly due to the stability of the anti-submarine *** efficiency, and the transformation of the original space into a special aviation torpedo compartment.
Torpedo elevator on the left (toothed white line position).
In the original setting, ** mainly served as a search platform, and was attacked by Type 2 torpedoes. To reload the A-184, long elevators were set up on both sides of the Mistral class flight deck, which fed the tubes on each side. Below the elevator is the Reku. Judging by the situation of the two lifts, the two launch tubes correspond to two reegals.
With the maturity of anti-submarine ***, the tactical effectiveness of the two-plane search-attack is higher than that of heavy torpedoes. Since the two heavy mine magazines squeezed out the storage space of the anti-submarine torpedo, the two heavy mine launches and storage space were transformed into 324 mm torpedo storage space, which can adapt to the new tactical needs.
During the long service period, the task of the Mistral class was to carry out the ** embargo mission in the Adriatic Sea in the 90s, which failed to show its excellent anti-submarine performance.