The Pakistan Navy (PN) has commissioned the second of two Yarmook-class multirole corvettes ordered from Dutch shipbuilder Damen in 2017.
Named PNS Tabuk (pennant number 272), the 91.3 metre-long ship, which the company says is based on a Damen Offshore Patrol Vessel (OPV) 1900, entered service in a ceremony held on 12 November at the Port of Constanta in Romania.
Launched in September 2019, the 2,300-tonne vessel was built at Damen’s facilities in Galati, Romania, just as first-of-class PNS Yarmook (271), which entered PN service in February this year.
The Yarmook class, which has an overall beam of 14.4 m and a hull draught of 4 m, is stated to be capable of performing “a variety of maritime operations in complex environments”. The ships can embark a medium helicopter and an unmanned aerial vehicle, carry two high-speed rigid-hulled inflatable boats – of 11.5 m and 6.5 m in length – and transport two twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) for special operations.
Each corvette is equipped with “state-of-the-art electronic warfare, anti-ship and anti-air weapons and sensors along with modern self-protection and terminal defence systems”, according to the PN.
Janes understand that the class, which has a crew complement of 138, has been designed to accommodate a 30 mm gun system in the ‘A’ position, several 12.7 mm machine guns, and the MR-36A I-band surface search radar. However, no further details have been provided about the other weapons and systems used by the class.
13 NOVEMBER 2020
Source : https://www.janes.com/defence-news/news-detail/pakistan-navy-commissions-second-and-final-yarmook-class-corvette