VESSEL REVIEW | HS Kimon – First ship in new multi-role frigate class for Hellenic Navy

Named after a famed Ancient Greek admiral and politician, Kimon has a displacement of 4,500 tonnes, a length of approximately 122 metres (400 feet), a beam of 18 metres (59 feet), a crew complement of 125 including aviation personnel, and a combined diesel and diesel propulsion arrangement that will deliver a maximum speed of 27 knots and a range of 5,000 nautical miles at a cruising speed of 15 knots.

The ship's armament includes Aster and RAM surface-to-air missiles, Exocet anti-ship missiles, MU90 torpedoes, a Leonardo/OTO Melara 76mm rapid fire naval gun, and two Oerlikon 20mm cannon fitted on Leonardo remote weapon stations.

Kimon and sister ship HS Nearchos, the second ship in the class, will initially be fitted with 16 surface-to-air missile launch cells each, similar to the baseline FDIs. Before the end of the decade, the two frigates will each have 16 additional launch cells for a total of 32, thus greatly expanding their air and missile defence capabilities.

Beginning with HS Formion, the third frigate, the FDI HNs will be built with 32 launch cells per ship from the outset.