- Yes
- No
Hello everyone, and welcome to this new proposal.
Today I present to you a new ship of the T53 class, the Tartu (D636).
Wishing to acquire anti-aircraft escorts with good combat capabilities to strengthen its fleet, decimated by the Second World War, France launched a major construction project for this type of ship in the late 1940s and early 1950s, thus giving rise to the three major classes of anti-aircraft escorts: the T47, T53, and T56 classes. The 16th of these ships and the penultimate of the T53 class, the Tartu features all the characteristic features of these ships: high speed, decent anti-aircraft armament, and modern equipment such as radar.
Built in the Nantes shipyards from 1954, the Tartu was commissioned into the French Navy in February 1958. The ship was quickly assigned to patrol missions in the Mediterranean along the coast of North Africa, allowing France to monitor the comings and goings of ships, particularly during the Algerian War. After this conflict ended, the Tartu conducted various exercises with the French fleet and its allies, before being assigned to overseas territories, where it spent many years. The ship was decommissioned in 1978 after 20 years of service and over 500,000 nautical miles covered on various seas and oceans. Once decommissioned, the Tartu served as a breakwater and then as a training target for testing various naval weapons. It was hit by GBU-12s and Exocet missiles during various exercises.
The ship is named in honor of Jean François Tartu, an 18th-century sailor from Brest who rose through the ranks of the Royal Navy and served under the command of great names in the French navy such as D’Orvillier, De Grasse, and La Motte-Picquet. He notably participated in the Battle of Chesapeake. Promoted, he became a ship’s captain and captured numerous prizes before dying of his wounds while fighting the English frigate Thames.
Characteristics
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Length : 128.60 m
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Width : 12.71 m
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Draft : 5 m
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Mass : 3750 tons
The ship is powered by a set of four boilers and three steam turbines connected to two fixed four-blade propellers, producing a power output of 63,000 hp, capable of reaching 34 knots under normal conditions (the maximum speed reached during trials was 38 knots). The ship has a range of 5,000 nautical miles at an average speed of 18 knots. Two turbo-generators and two alternators generate the electrical power required by the ship.
The crew consists of approximately 350 sailors.
Equipment
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Before 1970 :
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Radar :
- DRBV-22A air surveillance radar
- DRBV-31 sea surveillance and navigation radar
- DRBI-10B altimetry radar
- 2 x DRBC-30 fire control radar (front one for the 127mm guns and back one for 57mm guns)
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Sonar :
- DUBV-1B sonar
- DUBA-1B sonar
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After 1970 :
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Radar :
- DRBV-22A air surveillance radar
- DRBV-31 sea surveillance and navigation radar
- DRBI-10B altimetry radar
- 2 x DRBC-30 fire control radar (front one for the 127mm guns and back one for 57mm guns)
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Sonar :
- DUBV-1B sonar
- DUBA-1B sonar
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Tactical system :**
- Senit 2 tactical information system
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Weapons
- 3 x 2 127mm mle 1948 canons
- 3 x 2 57mm mle 1951 canons
- 2 x 1 20mm canons
- 1 x 375mm Mod 1972 x 6 anti-submarine rocket launcher
- 2 x 3 550mm torpedo tube
In-game this ship would be a very interesting addition to the French tree, bringing an anti-aircraft warship capable of also engaging naval targets and possessing modern weapons systems, thus intelligently completing the French offshore tree.
Pictures
