Hellenic Navy commissions 6th Super Vita-class FAC

Hellenic Navy commissioned 6th Super Vita-class (Roussen-class) guided missile fast attacking craft “Karathansis (pennant number: P-78)” with a ceremony held at Scaramanga Naval Shipyard on 28th July. Greece Ministry of Defence, Chairman of the Permanent Parliamentary Defense and Foreign Affairs Committee of Parliament, Chief of Staff of the Greek Armed Forces and Chief of the Hellenic Navy attended the ceremony.

Greece Minister of Defence Nikolaos Panagiotopoulos emphasized the importance of naval power of Greece in the Aegean Sea and Eastern Mediterranean region.

“The powerful Armed Forces send a message to both enemies and allies: Although a peaceful country committed to the principles of international law and to the cooperation of peoples, Greece is able at any time to exercise its power over it. to defend its sovereign rights.” the minister said.

The ship got her name from an AB-212 helicopter pilot who lost his life during the Imia crysis between Turkey and Greece in 1996.

Roussen-class Fast Attack Craft :

The Roussen class is a seven-strong class of British-design fast attack missile boats improved and customized for the Hellenic Navy, also known as Super Vita.

The plans of the Roussen Class missile boats are based on smaller Vita class boats serving in the navies of Qatar, as well as similar size vessels built for Oman and other countries. The hull is made of steel and the superstructure is made of Aluminum, while the company Vosper Thornycroft (now BAE Systems Surface Ships) provides the electricity transmission system, the management board, electrical equipment and systems countermeasures.

The main armament of the ships are eight Exocet MM40 Block II/III anti-ship missiles with a range of up to 70/180 km respectively. They are complemented by an Otobreda 76 mm naval gun in the bow and two smaller 30mm cannons as secondary weapons located on the ships’ superstructure. The vessel’s primary anti-air and anti-missile weapon is the RIM-116 RAM missile system which comprises an on board Mk-31 launcher with 21 projectiles, as well as the DR3000 and AR900 electronic support measures systems and the Mk36 SRBOC decoy launcher. Apart from the previous ships, HS Karathanasis has Vigile-100 ESM system.

The sensor suite responsible for the timely identification and homing of surface and air targets includes the MW08 3D G-band surveillance radar, the Mirador electro-optical target tracker and the Scout MkII low probability of intercept radar which is being controlled by the TACTICOS combat management system.

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