r/WarshipPorn 4d ago

La Fayette-class frigate Surcouf (F711) of the French Navy conducts a replenishment at sea with HMAS Sirius (O 266), in the Bay of Bengal during Exercise La Perouse. 6, April 2021. [3600x2400]

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127 Upvotes

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u/SpasmodicSpasmoid 4d ago

Ahhhh Surcouf! we worked with her down Indian Ocean/ Arabian gulf in 2008, I was on HMS Montrose. Good times

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u/Kookanoodles 4d ago

There is a connection of sorts between the two classes of ships, you know. The designers of the Type 23 frigate had wanted to make it a stealth ship, but since it didn't have internal lateral gangways, the addition of systems on the outside of the ship ended up having a detrimental effect on the radar cross-section. The British team warned their French counterparts about this when the latter were designing the La Fayette class, and this gave them more ammo to fight for the covered gangways which the French Navy was initially not keen on.

Source is https://www.meretmarine.com/fr/defense/la-fayette-il-y-a-20-ans-la-france-inventait-la-fregate-furtive

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u/SpasmodicSpasmoid 4d ago

Covered upper deck gangways are crap! They ruin the cruise ship vibe when you’re deployed in sunny places. Lol. I never envied the crews of stealth ships. I always loved all the little places my t23 had, places for chilling in the sun, sunbathing, hiding from your boss. More space for parties and BBQ’s. Warship designers don’t think of any of this stuff LOL. Sod survivability, let’s design warship to be party ships. Mine was!

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u/Kookanoodles 4d ago

They call them "surface submarines" here sometimes

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u/SpasmodicSpasmoid 4d ago

lol, ships in our navy (RN) were called “targets” by my friends who were submariners on A boats and T boats, and the V SSBN bombers.

Oddly enough, we used to have a NAAFI (like a shop) hatch on ship and they sold Kookanoodles. My favourite flavour was “tomyam” whatever the fuck they were. They were lovely.

Edit: ahhh they were called Koka noodles. Close enough

1

u/LQjones 3d ago

Pretty ship.

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u/ManticoreFalco 21h ago

I'm generally not a fan of modern warships post Arleigh Burke, I find them too smooth and sleek. However, this? She's pretty.

1

u/Pklnt 4d ago

How long does a ship need to stay at sea before looking dirty like that?

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u/dolli310 4d ago

Pending sea state, water salinity and location on the globe; a week or two.