Carabiniere (F581)

Il_Signor_Regio · June 30, 2025, 10:08pm

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Description: The Alpino class was a frigate class of frigates ordered in 1959 by the Italian Navy to increase the number of anti-aircraft/submarine frigates within the Italian fleet. Carabiniere was the second unit of the class and was, by all accounts, identical to the first ship, Alpino. If briefly compared to the previous class, the Bergamini, it is possible to notice the increased number of guns, a total of six 76/L62 cannons (the Bergamini initially had 3, later reduced to only 2), for increased anti-ship and anti-air capabilities. The ship was also provided with a sonar suite for better effectiveness in ASW operations, while the radar suite and ASW armaments (two triple 324 mm tubes for MK44 torpedoes and the Menon mortar) were retained from the previous class, as they were probably deemed sufficient enough. She also had a helicopter hangar that could store up to two AB212 ASW helicopters, further enhancing the ASW capabilities of the ship. Carabiniere entered service in 1965, and, like her sistership attended to various missions across the Mediterranean and in other parts of the planet. She was also used as a school ship for a brief period of time in the seventies. In the early nineties the ship was decommissioned, but her life didn’t end yet, as she was deemed worthy for the role of test ship. She was stripped of much of her initial equipment since there was simply no need to have it on board (the gas turbines, the Menon mortar, five guns, two fire control radars, and its variable depth sonar). The removal of all these parts modified various parameters of the ship, like the speed, which was reduced to just 20 knots after the gas turbines were disembarked. It was decided then to fit the ship with the massive EMPAR radar on the flight deck (thus also making that part unusable for its initial purpose). In the bow, before the cannon, an eight-cell Sylver 50 VLS launcher was installed for testing Aster 15 and Aster 30 Block 0 medium- and long-range air-to-surface missiles. Between the Aster launcher and the superstructures, a double missile rail was also installed for the MILAS anti-submarine version of the Otomat (capable of using also the standard OTOMAT block 2 and block 4). The refit was finished after two years and in 1994 the ship was recommissioned, ready to test the previously mentioned new missiles. She was finally decommissioned in 2008 after 14 years of tests (unfortunatly she wasn’t kept as a museum ship).

Specifications

Riepilogo

Displacement:
standard 2,400 t
normal load 2,550 t
full load 2,689 t
Dimensions:
Length 113.30 m; pp 106.4 m
Beam: 13.30 m
Draft: pc 3.76 m
Engine:
4 diesel engines
2 gas turbines CODAG system
2 propellers
Power:
max diesel engines – 17,035 hp
max gas engines – 15,210 hp
max total – 32,245 hp
Speed:
max 29 knots
cruising 24 knots with diesel only
Fuel:
270 tons of naphtha
Autonomy:
4,000 miles at 18 knots
Armaments:
1x 76/L62 mm gun
8x Aster 15 or 8x Aster 30 block 0
2x Milas or 2x Otomat Block 2 or Block 4
Crew:
264 (standard crew, the number of personnel she had during the test period is unknow).