With the “Al Emarat”, the French shipyard Naval has delivered the second new corvette to the United Arab Emirates Navy. This means that the dozen orders for the Gowind type are almost complete.
The “Al Emarat” corvette, which was built at the naval site in Lorient, follows the “Bani Yas”, which was handed over last year.
The naval vessels were ordered in 2019. “Al Emarat” was launched in May 2022 and began her sea trials in October 2023, when the first corvette, “Bani Yas”, was delivered. The crew of the “Al Emarat” will now continue their operational ship training in France as part of the service solutions offered by Naval Group. The transfer is scheduled to start in July and the corvette is expected to arrive in Abu Dhabi in August.
The Gowind corvettes for the United Arab Emirates Navy were built at the Naval Group shipyard in Lorient, with the equipment being manufactured by the UAE industry. This is another way in which the French want to strengthen their economic and industrial ties with the Emirates. The maintenance of the two corvettes will take place in the United Arab Emirates.
For the Naval Group, the type is developing into what the shipbuilder itself calls a “great success”: eleven units have been selected by several navies to date. They are designed for use against air, sea and underwater threats. Most of them are built locally through technology transfer and partnerships with local industry, for example in Egypt, where three units are already in service with the Egyptian Navy.
Technical details of the Gowind corvette
- Overall length of the hull: 102 m
- Overall width: 16 m
- Displacement: 2,800 tons
- Maximum speed: 25.5 knots
- Crew: 95 persons
- Range: 21 days
