29/03/2016 Par Michel Cabirol – LaTribune.fr

Alors que s'ouvre ce mardi le salon naval de défense de Doha (DIMDEX), tous les yeux sont rivés sur la compétition que se livrent DCNS et l’italien Fincantieri pour remporter le programme Protector évalué à 4 milliards d'euros.

Bataille navale épique dans le golfe persique entre Fincantieri et DCNS. Alors que s'ouvre ce mardi le salon naval de défense DIMDEX à Doha, les deux groupes navals européens s'affrontent très durement pour remporter un contrat, baptisé Protector qui est estimé à 4 milliards d'euros. Il permettra d'équiper la marine qatarie (Qatar Emiri Navy) de navires de guerre (frégates ou corvettes) disposant d'une capacité de défense antimissile balistique.

C'est le seul programme prioritaire cette année de Doha, Airbus Helicopters devra patienter pour la mise en vigueur du contrat portant sur la vente de 22 NH-90, des hélicoptères de transport. Le Qatar, qui avait été soutenu par la France pour organiser la Coupe du monde de football en 2022, souhaite disposer de ce système de défense aérienne pour protéger son territoire lors de cet évènement médiatique planétaire.

Une nouvelle FREMM à l'export

La marine qatarie, qui a évalué la proposition de Fincantieri il y a un mois environ, vient de finir les évaluations de l'offre de DCNS basée sur la toute nouvelle version des frégates multimissions, la FREMM Extended Range (4.000 tonnes) armées notamment de missiles Aster 30 (antiaérien et antibalistique) et Exocet (mer-mer). La marine qatarie, qui ne dispose que d'une flotte modeste dont le plus grand bâtiment est un patrouilleur de 56 mètres (4 patrouilleurs Barzan), ne voudrait pas de très gros navires.

En outre, les deux industriels, qui proposent des bâtiments disposant d'une défense antiaérienne et antibalistique (Missiles Aster), devront convaincre le Qatar de l'efficacité du système Anti-Air Missile (SAAM). Car le patron de l'Air Defence, qui conseille la marine sur ce volet, est réputé n'acheter qu'aux Américains.

Un gros combat entre l'Italie et la France

La guerre fait rage entre les deux compétiteurs et les deux pays. Les deux ministres de la Défense italien et français, Roberta Pinotti et Jean-Yves Le Drian, sont présents à Doha pour soutenir les offres de leurs industriels. Fincantieri, qui sponsorise DIMDEX 2016, aurait réussi étrangement à convaincre le comité de sélection tandis que DCNS, qui est étroitement associé à Thales (radars Herakles et Smartel) et au missilier MBDA, aurait la préférence du pouvoir. "C'est un choix politique", assure-t-on en France.

Mais les Italiens ont remonté leur cote auprès de Doha. Ils ont finement joué en soutenant un très grand projet de musée archéologique au Qatar auquel tient beaucoup l'émir Tamim ben Hamad Al Thani et dans lequel baignent notamment Fincantieri et Finmeccanica. Fin janvier, l'émir était à Rome où il a rencontré plusieurs grands patrons, dont ceux de Finmeccanica et Fincantieri. Certains s'interrogent sur la concomitance des deux projets...

De leur côté, les Français ne sont pas non plus restés inactifs en démontrant aux Qataris que l'offre italienne avec un radar basé à terre pour détecter la menace aérienne ne tenait pas la route. Ce dispositif aurait limité les missions des corvettes qataries au seul large des côtes de l'émirat. Les Italiens ont donc dû rajouter un nouveau bâtiment (un LHD?) aux trois corvettes de 90 mètres, qui ne peuvent pas intégrer un radar early-warning, pour compléter leur offre. Ce qui rend l'offre italienne beaucoup moins attractive.

Fincantieri et DCNS qui ont développé en commun la frégate multimissions FREMM, vont se rapprocher dans les bâtiments de surface (Crédits : DCNS)

11/09/2015 Par Michel Cabirol – LaTribune.fr

Les deux groupes navals ont signé un "Head of Agreement" (HoA) en vue de négocier un rapprochement à 50/50 dans les bâtiments de surface, selon nos informations.

C'est un coup de tonnerre dans l'industrie navale militaire européenne. DCNS et Fincantieri sont actuellement en train de négocier un rapprochement à parité dans les bâtiments de surface, selon des sources concordantes. Avec le soutien de Paris et de Rome et de leur conseil d'administration respectif, les deux groupes navals, qui ont développé en commun le programme de frégates multimissions (FREMM), ont secrètement signé cet été un "Head of Agreement" (HoA), un document non engageant pour encadrer leurs négociations après des discussions entamées depuis la fin de l'année dernière.

En France, le ministre de la Défense Jean-Yves Le Drian, qui a déjà à son actif le rapprochement réussi entre Nexter et Krauss-Maffei Wegmann dans l'armement terrestre, suit le dossier de très près. Et pour cause, il est l'ancien maire de Lorient, le principal site concerné de DCNS. Interrogé par La Tribune, le groupe naval n'a pas souhaité faire de commentaires.

Des négociations qui vont être compliquées en France

Le PDG de DCNS, Hervé Guillou, s'est toujours dit prêt à participer à une consolidation du secteur : "Je ne peux faire aucune prévision concernant une éventuelle consolidation ou m'engager sur un calendrier mais je m'engage à être prêt si un tel  moment se présente". Mais pour pour celui, qui a la "foi du charbonnier", comme il l'a si souvent répété aux journalistes qui posaient des questions sur les alliances, la partie est toutefois compliquée à jouer.

Car il est également engagé dans une négociation très difficile avec les syndicats pour faire accepter son plan de performance qui prévoit une baisse de 1.000 postes sur trois ans, hors production, au travers de départs en retraite non remplacés et d'incitations au départ. De même, DCNS souhaite le déménagement de plus de 250 postes des sites d'Îles de France vers la province. Pas sûr que les syndicats lui accordent un blanc-seing pour cette négociation avec Fincantieri.

Morcellement de l'industrie navale européenne

Le morcellement de l'industrie navale militaire européenne se résorbe peu à peu grâce à une consolidation au niveau national autour de grands maîtres d'œuvre dans six pays avec BAE Systems (Royaume-Uni), DCNS (France), Fincantieri (Italie), ThyssenKrupp Marine (Allemagne), Navantia (Espagne) et Damen (Pays-Bas). Des groupes qui se retrouvent en concurrence frontale pour les marchés à l'export.

DCNS, détenu à 62,48% par l'Etat et à 35% par Thales, réalise plus de 90% de son chiffre d'affaires dans le militaire tandis que Fincantieri, qui est également très intéressé par STX, n'y enregistre qu'environ 25 % de ses ventes. Pour autant, le chantier naval italien, détenu à 27,5% par une une holding financière étatique (72,5% dans le flottant), est le principal constructeur militaire italien.

08 September 2014 by defenceWeb

Italian shipyard Fincantieri has delivered the Algerian Navy’s flagship amphibious warfare vessel Kalaat Beni-Abbes at its Muggiano Shipyard.

The delivery ceremony took place on 4 September and was attended by dignitaries that included General Malaoui, Head of the Supervisory Board of the Algerian Navy, General M L Haouli, President of the Acceptance Commission of the Algerian Navy, Alessandro Concialini, CEO of Orizzonte Sistemi Navali, Angelo Fusco, Executive Senior Vice President Italy of Fincantieri Naval Shipbuilding Division, and Ferdinando Tognini, the Riva Trigoso-Muggiano yard manager.

The Kalaat Beni-Abbes was ordered in July 2011 by the Ministry of Defence of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria from Orizzonte Sistemi Navali, a company controlled by Fincantieri in which Selex ES also holds an interest. The vessel was ordered at a cost of more than 400 million euros.

The 9 000 tonne vessel belongs to the BDSL class (Bâtiment de Débarquement et de Soutien Logistique - landing and logistic support ship), and developed from the Italian San Giusto amphibious class vessel. Fincantieri said its most important feature is an internal floodable dock, capable of accommodating a ready-to-go 20-metre landing craft; two landing craft of the same size can travel attached to the ship's deck, and can be deployed using a system of davits. If necessary, the dock can be emptied to accommodate other types of vehicles.

The vessel can accommodate 15 main battle tanks or 30 light tanks or armoured personnel carriers. Five medium helicopters can be carried in a hangar. Armament includes Aster 15 missiles, a single OTO Melara 76 mm gun at the bow and two 25 mm cannons. Electronics include Selex Sistemi Integrati EMPAR radar, SCLAR-H chaff/flare decoy launchers and Athena-C combat management system.

The Kalaat Beni-Abbes is 143 metres long with a 21.5 metre beam and has a full load displacement of about 8,800 tons. With two diesel engines, it can reach speeds of over 20 knots, and carry more than 430 soldiers, 12 flight service specialists and 152 crew, for a total of about 600 people.

It has a full-length flight deck, with two helicopter landing spots, fore and aft. It is also equipped with a 60-bed hospital and several operating theatres, to provide medical support to both troops and civilians during humanitarian operations.

The contract with Algeria also includes the provision of logistical support during crew training. Training of Algerian personnel by the Italian Navy has taken place since 2013 using the facilities of the Fincantieri Training Academy, a project initiated by Fincantieri in conjunction with the Italian Navy with the aim of training the crew of ships in the process of delivery.

Fincantieri Training Academy, which is already serving the United Arab Emirates Navy, is a positive example of cooperation between the armed forces and industry through which Italy's naval excellence is made available to Navies around the world, Fincantieri said.

The order has required Fincantieri not only to build the main vessel, but also to oversee the design and to manage and coordinate the local construction of three smaller Landing Craft Vehicle Personnel (LCVP) vessels, built at the Mers El Kebir naval shipyards in Algeria. These support vessels, known as chaland, are able to carry 140 men or a heavy tank, with a maximum weight of 30 tons, and are an integral part of the equipment of the Kalaat Beni-Abbes.

At the flagship’s launch in January this year, the Italian Navy said the vessel would be delivered in November, with full operational capability expected in early 2015.

The Italian-built corvette Abu Dhabi entered service in late 2012. A United Arab Emirates company, Etihad Ship Building, expects this year to open negotiations with the UAE Navy 'for a more developed' Abu Dhabi-class vessel, a company official said.

Mar. 24, 2014 - By AWAD MUSTAFA – Defense News

DUBAI — Having honed their skills on homegrown contracts, United Arab Emirates shipyards are seeking sales from their Arabian Gulf neighbors.

Over the past five years, the UAE has become the gulf’s leading hub for naval shipbuilding, as well as the maintenance, repair and overhaul of warships. Two of the biggest reasons are Abu Dhabi Ship Building (ADSB) and Etihad Ship Building (ESB), said Matthew Hedges, military analyst for the Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis (INEGMA), based here.

“The UAE naval industry is a leading player in the region, with ADSB and Etihad Shipbuilding contributing a large amount to indigenous capabilities,” he said. “Other [Gulf Cooperation Council] countries can’t match the UAE capabilities.”

Another growing company is Al Seer Marine, which is becoming known for its unmanned surface vehicles.

Now the companies are touting their wares to neighboring countries.

Potential regional customers for ADSB’s flagship Baynunah corvette include the Saudi Navy, which has embarked on a US $20 billion expansion program and is said to be considering the purchase of up to a dozen new warships.

ADSB also hopes for more sales to Kuwait. In February 2013, ADSB signed contracts to supply the Kuwaiti Navy with two 64-meter landing craft, one 42-meter landing craft and five 16-meter composite fast landing craft.

Established in 1996, ADSB initially focused on naval repairs and refits, then expanded to build sophisticated warships. Today, it handles the construction, repair and refit of naval, military and commercial vessels, and has an order book that tops $1 billion.

“Through partnerships with international players, the UAE has been able to construct some of the world’s most advanced ships, with the marquee product being the Baynunah-class corvette,” Hedges said.

The UAE launched the Baynunah class with a January 2004 order for a new class of multipurpose missile corvette. Two of six under contract have been delivered, the latest in February.

The 70-meter vessels were designed in collaboration with Constructions Mecaniques de Normandie (CMN) of Cherbourg, France, as a derivative of CMN’s BR70 70-meter corvette design.

The Baynunahs will mainly be used for patrol and surveillance, minelaying, interception and other anti-surface warfare operations in territorial waters and exclusive economic zones. The vessels are to be the world’s largest steel-hulled vessels that use waterjets for propulsion.

Built on a deep-V hard-chine hull, the corvette has a shallow draft and a stealthy superstructure, a helicopter landing deck and a hangar. It accommodates a crew of 55.

Etihad's Programs

Etihad Ship Building — established in 2010 as a joint venture between Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri, Al Fattan Shipyard and Melara Middle East — also is looking to build on a successful 2013.

“On different fronts, Fincantieri and Etihad Ship Building have started negotiations with different gulf countries, including Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Iraq,” said Achille Fulfaro, ESB’s general manager. “For Qatar, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia in 2014, the negotiations will start and we will go in to deep analysis of their requirements, and we hope to create the conditions for production.”

“We expect also to start negotiations [with the UAE Navy] on a new Abu Dhabi class, for a more developed new ship in that class,” he said.

Fulfaro said ESB will base its services and production at its facilities in Abu Dhabi.

“We consider Etihad Ship Building as the lead in the gulf region, so we are making the relevant investments to be ready to produce more vessels in 2014,” he said.

But Fulfaro said his company is open to discussing new joint ventures or other work-sharing conditions.

Last year, ESB delivered two Falaj-class stealth offshore patrol vessels and an Abu Dhabi-class stealth corvette to the UAE Navy. It also won a €100 million (US $138 million) contract for services, logistics and maintenance of combatant vessels in the UAE, Fulfaro said. Last year, the company signed a contract with the Iraqi Navy as well for the maintenance of four patrol vessels at ESB.

“We signed the services contract, and Fincantieri delivered the first Falaj-class and Abu Dhabi-class vessels within the right timeframe and budget,” he said. “The trials phase has been completed with the complete satisfaction of the client, and now we expect to close negotiations on further Falaj- and Abu Dhabi-class vessels” for the UAE Navy.

The negotiations on the Falaj program are expected to be completed quickly, he said.

Among ESB’s products is the Falaj-class patrol vessel. Based on the Italian Coast Guard’s Diciotti class, it can handle a variety of missions, including patrol, surveillance, and land and surface attacks. It is also equipped to fight off air and surface weapons.

Another is the Abu Dhabi-class corvette, based on the design of the Italian Navy’s four Commandante-class vessels. The Abu Dhabis are 88 meters long and displace 1,650 tons.

To be crewed by about 70, each vessel can reach 25 knots, or deliver a range of more than 3,000 nautical miles at 14 knots.

Weapons on the corvette include two 30mm Marlin weapons stations and a 76mm naval gun.

Unmanned Surface Vessels

Hedges, the INEGMA analyst, said Al Seer Marine has drawn international recognition for its three types of unmanned surface vessels (USVs).

Useful for ISR, border protection and port security, the first are expected to deploy in UAE ports this year, he said.

“There is a potential in the future to arm them to protect offshore rigs and illegal smuggling,” he said.

The three variants are called Sea Serpent, Oscar and Bravo.

Sea Serpent is a 3-meter, 320-kilogram vessel about the size of a large jet ski. It has a maximum speed of 50 knots and operates on one petrol engine. Used for security around VIP yachts, they also were designed for harbor surveillance and port security.

Bravo is a rigid inflatable boat based on the Finnish-built Boomeranger that can be operated either as a remote or a piloted boat.

Oscar, an 11-meter, 6,500-kilogram boat that runs on two 500-horsepower diesel engines with water jet propulsion, is used for security patrols and is equipped with computers, sensors and software to detect and process data.

“The boats are remote-controlled through a command-and-control station, which is on land or a mother ship at sea, and are fitted with some of the most advanced robotics and surveillance equipment,” Matthew Tracy, Al Seer Marine’s USV project manager, told local media.

“Three or four boats can be controlled and used by two operators at once instead of using between 12 and 16 crew,” Tracy said.

If fitted with satellite communications gear, he said, the boats can be controlled from anywhere in the world.

Jan. 31, 2014 - By TOM KINGTON – Defense News

ROME — Algeria’s defense spending spree shows no sign of abating as the North African country gets set for a September delivery of a new amphibious ship from Italy. Algeria is also reportedly preparing to receive three Chinese frigates in 2015 as well as buying a new Italian minesweeper.

In January, Italian shipyard Fincantieri launched the 8,800-ton, 143-meter-long landing platform dock (LPD) Kalaat Beni-Abbes at its Riva Trigosa yard, with handover to the Algerian Navy scheduled for September at the Navy’s Taranto base in southern Italy.

Based on the design of the Italian LPD San Giusto, the ship has been built by a joint venture of Fincantieri and Italy’s Finmeccanica.

The Algerian purchase is part of growing defense expenditures, which one analyst put at US $10.3 billion in 2013. “That’s up 14 percent year on year to about five percent of [gross domestic product],” said Francesco Tosato, a military analyst at the Italian Centro Studi Internazionali.

“About $1.5 to $2 billion of that goes on procurement since the total budget also covers wages for 350,000 personnel,” he added.

In addition to the LPD buy, Algeria is understood to be acquiring a minesweeper built by Italian firm Intermarine, with training likely to be handled by the Italian Navy. Intermarine, which declined to comment about the buy, has built minesweepers for Finland, Thailand, the US, Italy and Australia.

A UK-based analyst said Algeria will meanwhile take delivery of three new frigates from China in 2015. “They have been built at the same yard as the F22 vessels sold by China to Pakistan and could be similar or slightly smaller,” said Christian Le Miere, a senior fellow for naval forces and maritime security at the International Institute for Strategic Studies.

The deals follow Algeria’s purchase of two Meko A-200 frigates from Germany.

While buying the LPD from Fincantieri, Algeria has also dispatched sailors for training by the Italian Navy, with 134 sailors arriving at the Taranto base in September and 30 more in January.

The Algerians will then move up to Fincantieri’s Muggiano yard, where the LPD is being fitted out, and where the Navy has another training center, an Italian Navy source said. By the end of May, the sailors will be onboard the vessel, he added. The Italian Navy, said the source, is working under a subcontract to the Fincantieri-Finmeccanica joint venture.

The vessel features an Italian-built EMPAR radar and is fit to carry the Italian AW101 helicopters Algeria has purchased separately. Some features derive from Fincantieri’s experience in the cruise ship business, including LED lights to save power.

A handover to the Algerian Navy will occur in September, although the ship will not immediately leave Italy, sailing south to Taranto at the end of 2014 for operational sea training and live-fire training of the ship’s 76mm gun.

An Algerian crew will work on a bridge and combat center simulator at Taranto before the ship sails to Algeria in the first half of 2015.

The source said the program was the most ambitious training program the Italian Navy had ever set up. “Training while the ship is built is an innovative, time-saving solution,” he said.

“These new procurement deals are part of a bid to reduce Algeria’s dependence on Russia for naval procurement,” Tosato said. “That said, having ships in service from Russia, Germany, Italy and China does raise questions about interoperability.”

Algeria is meanwhile due to receive two Russian-built Tigr corvettes, one this year and one in 2015, he said, and two Russian-improved Kilo 636 submarines in 2016-17 to add to the four it has.

Le Miere said he wondered if Algeria really needs a landing platform dock. “It is a large vessel, what is it for and will they need it?” he said. “It is of questionable value for a military focusing on internal counterinsurgency.”

Local Islamic militants, active in the country’s vast southern regions, have been increasing their attacks, notably with the attack on a gas facility near In Amenas in January 2013, during which hundreds of hostages were taken. As Algerian special forces raided the facility, at least 39 hostages were killed.

“Algeria turned down the [offer] of US and French help because accepting it would have been damaging to the reputation of the country’s armed forces, both regionally and internally,” said Marco Di Liddo, a second analyst from Centro Studi Internazionali.

To serve its land operations, Algeria has bought 1,200 Fuchs 2 armored vehicles from Germany, a deal that focuses on another Algerian requirement — technology transfer and job creation, Tosato said.

“The plant opened in Algeria to build these vehicles will also build Mercedes trucks,” he said.

But military spending is soaring for another reason, Di Liddo said. “Military spending nourishes the power of the armed forces at a time when they are in competition with the civilian government for influence and as the country’s president is seeking to strengthen politics at the Army’s expense,” he said.

“As long as it has gas revenue, a rivalry with Morocco, instability in neighboring Tunisia and Libya, militants in the south, the need to update an Army still equipped with Soviet-era equipment and the need to create jobs, defense spending in Algeria will continue to rise,” Tosato said.

July 5, 2013 Source: RIA Novosti

ST. PETERSBURG --- Russia and Italy have decided to optimize their joint next-generation diesel submarine project, a Russian naval design bureau said Friday.

The S-1000, a 1,000-ton diesel submarine, is a joint project begun in 2004 by Russian submarine builder Rubin and Italy’s Fincantieri. Russia and Italy presented a mockup model of the S-1000 at an international arms show in France in October 2006.

Andrei Baranov, deputy head of the Rubin Central Design Bureau, said that in its proposed configuration, the S-1000 is of “little interest” for potential clients, adding that a decision had been made to improve the project and target specific countries that need a submarine fleet.

The submarine was originally designed for anti-submarine and anti-ship warfare, reconnaissance missions, and transportation of up to 12 troops. It is 56.2 meters long, has a top speed of 14 knots and is equipped with a new fuel cell-powered Air Independent Propulsion (AIP) system developed by the Italian firm.

Although its exterior will stay as designed, there will be considerable changes to “what’s inside” the submarine, Baranov said, adding that the target regions for selling submarine would remain the Middle East and Southeast Asia.

He cited several reasons for the upgrading the sub, including to market it to the Russian and Italian navies. He said the S-1000 design was drawn up almost a decade ago and much has changed since then. And, he noted, such small submarines are currently in great demand in the world, and there is intense competition on the market.

“Countries that are actively looking for new submarines are setting some totally unexpected demands for those ships,” he said.

(Source: Fincantieri; issued June 29, 2013)

RIVA TRIGOSO, Italy --- Today Riva Trigoso (Genoa) shipyard celebrated the launch of the frigate “Carlo Margottini”, the third of a series of Fremm vessels - Multi Mission European Frigates - ordered from Fincantieri by the Italian Navy within the framework of an Italo-French program of cooperation.

Godmother to the ship was Ms. Stefania Portaccio, granddaughter of Captain Carlo Margottini. The frigate was named in honour of Captain Carlo Margottini, who was decorated for military valour after the sinking of Nave Artigliere in 1940.

Present at the ceremony were, among others, Roberta Pinotti, Italian Under Secretary of Defence, Claudio Burlando, Governor of Liguria, Admiral Luigi Binelli Mantelli, Chief of the Italian Defence General Staff, Admiral Giuseppe De Giorgi, Chief of the Italian Navy, and Giuseppe Bono, CEO of Fincantieri.

The vessel, which is due for delivery in early 2014 in Muggiano (La Spezia), will feature a high degree of flexibility, capable of operating in all tactical situations. 144 metres long with a beam of 19.7 metres, the ship will have a displacement at full load of approximately 6,700 tonnes. The “Carlo Margottini” will have a maximum speed of over 27 knots and will provide accommodation for a crew of 200.

The ships in the FREMM program constitute state of the art vessels of European and Italian defence in the Mediterranean and will replace the “Lupo” and “Maestrale” class frigates built by Fincantieri in the 1970s.

Participating in the initiative as prime contractor for Italy is Orizzonte Sistemi Navali (51% Fincantieri, 49% Finmeccanica) and, as prime contractor for France, Armaris (DCNS + Thales).

The cooperation has drawn of the highly positive experience of the previous Italo-French program “Orizzonte” under which two frigates were built for the Italian Navy, the ”Andrea Doria” and the “Caio Duilio”.

April 24, 2013 defense-aerospace.com

(Source: Italian navy; issued April 23, 2013)

(Issued in Italian only; unofficial translation by defense-aerospace.com)

Shipbuilding: Launch of the Third Ship for the United Arab Emirates

On 22 April, at the Fincantieri shipyards in Muggiano (La Spezia), was held the launching ceremony of the patrol vessel Salahah ordered by the Navy of the United Arab Emirates from the domestic shipbuilding industry.

Salahah is the second "Falaj2"-class patrol vessel delivered to the Navy of the United Arab Emirates, and the third ship overall.

The ceremony was attended by Ing. Ferdinand Tognini, Director of the Cantieri del Muggiano and Riva Trigoso, and by General Mohamed Ibrahim Salem, Chief of the Naval Forces of the United Arab Emirates. The launch was also attended by various representatives of the manufacturer, the Commander in Chief of the Naval Region of the Upper Tyrrhenian Sea, Admiral Andrea Toscano, the Head of the Preparation and Testing New Ships (MARINALLES La Spezia), Captain Paolo Pezzutti.

The vessel was assigned the recognition number P 252.

Salahah is 55 meters long and 8.60 meters wide; it has a maximum speed in excess of 20 knots and it can accommodate a crew of 28 people. Its main feature is the special geometry of its design, which makes it difficult to detect by radar.

Fincantieri, after completing the first phase of the contracted program in 2010, which called for the delivery of the 1,650-tonne anti-submarine corvette "Abu Dhabi" and two 550-tonne "Saettia-Stealth" patrol boats, will provide a support and familiarization program for United Arab Emirates crews, together by Marinalles, before being transferred to their homeland.

As evidence of the strategic importance assumed by the Middle Eastern market and the strong partnership started with the UAE, Fincantieri has formed the company Etihad Ship Building - a joint venture with Al Fattan Ship Industries and Melara Middle East - specializing in the design, production and sale of different types of civil and naval ships, as well as conducting maintenance and refitting of those under construction in Italy.