During December 20, the Royal Saudi Navy celebrated the launch of its first Multi-Mission Surface Combatant (MMSC-1) frigate built by Fincantieri Marinette Marine in the United States, which will bear the name HMS Saud (820). According to official sources, the event was preceded by a ship blessing ceremony held less than a week before this milestone, attended by senior naval authorities from both countries, notably including the Chief of the Naval Staff, Lieutenant General Mohammed Al-Ghuraibi.
Expanding on some details, it should be recalled that the vessel had already been observed in October by local observers while being transferred from the construction site to the dock where it was recently launched, in a procedure that involved the new Syncrolift system integrated at the shipyard as part of a modernization process. In fact, the Saudi ship became the first to be launched using this method, employing a capability that had originally been intended for the Constellation-class frigates later canceled by the U.S. Navy.
Taking a broader look at Project Tuwaiq, through which Saudi Arabia aims to acquire four MMSC-class ships, it should be noted that the purchase was signed in 2017 under the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program. As described by Lieutenant General Al-Ghuraibi in his speech during the blessing ceremony, the project represents a strategic step for the country’s navy to consolidate a “modern and professional naval force based on the latest military technologies, together with advanced training and qualification programs for its personnel,” a key capability for ensuring the surveillance of maritime routes vital to Saudi commerce.
Specifically, the ships that the Royal Saudi Navy expects to incorporate are based on the U.S. Navy’s Freedom-class design, with Lockheed Martin as the prime contractor for the program, Gibbs & Cox responsible for the design, and Fincantieri Marinette Marine in charge of construction. As such, each vessel has a length of 118 meters and the same propulsion system as the referenced design, based on a combined gas and diesel arrangement, though they differ by abandoning the modularity concept that characterizes the original class.
In this regard, the Saudi MMSC vessels feature a complete multi-mission combat system, whose main asset is the eight-cell Mk.41 vertical launch system located just forward of the ship’s superstructure, from which MBDA Sea Ceptor missiles can be launched. In addition, the design includes a pair of Nexter Narwhal 20 mm remote weapon stations, as well as quadruple launchers for Harpoon anti-ship missiles. In terms of sensors and countermeasures, there are also variations compared to the Freedom class, the most notable being the integration of Saab’s Ceros 200 fire-control radar and Indra’s Rigel system.
Finally, it should be recalled that although Riyadh has celebrated the launch of this new ship, Project Tuwaiq has not been immune to delays and difficulties in its execution, which stand as yet another example of the challenges facing the U.S. naval industry in delivering its programs. Specifically, it is worth noting that under the original schedule, delivery of the ships to the office responsible for managing programs of this type for foreign customers (specifically PMS 525 within NAVSEA) was supposed to be completed by this time, something that could not be achieved due to personnel shortages and difficulties in implementing requested design changes.
Image credits: @modgovksa on X
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