F70ASM Frigate class, La Motte-Picquet (D645)

Mathll · May 27, 2026, 4:57am

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Hello everyone and welcome to this new suggestion.

Today, I’m presenting a ship of the F70 class: the La Motte-Picquet (D645).

Laid down at the Lorient naval shipyard in the late 1970s, the La Motte-Picquet was launched in 1985 before entering active service with the French Navy in 1988. The seventh and final unit of the Georges Leygues class, it benefits from the improvements made to the previous units and is primarily designed for anti-submarine warfare.

Upon entering service, the ship was integrated into the French high seas forces and participated in numerous NATO exercises in the North Atlantic and the North Sea. These deployments allowed it to strengthen its anti-submarine warfare and detection capabilities, while also improving its interoperability with allied navies, particularly those of the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands.

In the early 1990s, the La Motte-Picquet was involved in the Gulf War. Deployed in the Persian Gulf, it participated in naval operations of the international coalition, carrying out escort missions, maritime control, and surveillance of maritime approaches in a highly strategic area.

During the 1990s and 2000s, the ship was regularly deployed to the Mediterranean, the Indian Ocean, and the Atlantic. It participated in presence, surveillance, and international cooperation missions. It was notably involved in port calls and deployments in West Africa (Senegal, Ivory Coast), the Indian Ocean (Djibouti, Réunion, United Arab Emirates), as well as in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

The La Motte-Picquet was also heavily involved in counter-piracy operations off the coast of Somalia from 2008 to 2012. Integrated into international operations, it participates in patrols to secure trade routes and in several interventions against suspicious vessels, directly contributing to the reduction of piracy in the region.

In 2011, the ship took part in Operation Harmattan as part of the international intervention in Libya. There, it carried out maritime surveillance, arms embargo enforcement, and naval traffic control missions, in coordination with the NATO forces involved in the operation.

Throughout its career, the vessel has undergone several modernizations to maintain its operational capabilities. In particular, it retains strong anti-submarine warfare capabilities thanks to its sonar, weapon systems, and embarked helicopter, while adapting to missions increasingly focused on crisis management and maritime security.

After more than three decades of service, the La Motte-Picquet was finally decommissioned in 2020. It leaves behind a long operational history, marked by engagements in several major theaters of operation and a strong presence in strategic areas for France.

The ship is named after Toussaint-Guillaume Picquet de La Motte, an 18th-century French naval officer renowned for his courage and naval actions during the American Revolutionary War.

Characteristics

Length : 139 m
Width : 15 m
Draft : 5.5 m
Mass : 4,500 tons

The vessel is powered by a 26,000 hp Rolls-Royce Olympus TM3B gas turbine engine, complemented by two 5,000 hp SEMT Pielstick 16PA6 diesel engines. This allows it to reach a speed of 30 knots with the gas engines and 15 knots with the diesel engines. Its range is 8,000 nautical miles at a speed of 15 knots.

The crew consists of 240 sailors.

Equipment

Radar :
- DRBV 15A global surveillance radar
- DRBV 26A air search radar
- DRBC 33A fire control radar
- DRBN 34 navigation radar
IRST :
- DIBV 2A IRST
Sonar :
- DUBV 24C hull sonar
- DUBV 43B/C depth sonar
- DSBV 61 towed sonar
Decoys and threat detection :
- ARBB 36 jammer
- ARBR 16 radar interceptor (RWR)
- SQL 25 NIXIZ torpedo decoy
- 2 x DAGAIE decoy lancher
- 4 x Irvin Aerospace decoy launcher

Weapons

Guns :
- 1 x 100mm Mle 1968 DCN/GIAT
- 2 x 20mm F2 GIAT
Torpedos :
- 2 x Torpedo tude (L5 torpedo or Mu90)
Missiles :
- 4 or 8 x MM40 Exocet missiles
- 1 x Crotale EDIR (8 missiles)
- 2 x SIMBAD CIWS (2 x 2 Mistral missiles)

In addition to these weapons, the ship can carry a combat helicopter in its hangar and deploy it via the helipad at the stern. The model used is the Linx Mk4 until its decommissioning, then the NH90 until the ship’s decommissioning.

In game this ship would be the most powerfully armed French ship in terms of anti-submarine and anti-ship combat before the arrival of new generation ships with discreet coatings. This ship would therefore be a very interesting addition to the French tree, bringing a powerfully armed combat ship when adding similar ships in the game

Pictures