Bulgarian frigate Drazki

	Drazki in the Black Sea
History
Belgium
Name	Wandelaar
Ordered	October 1973
Builder	Boelwerf, Temse
Laid down	28 March 1975
Launched	21 June 1977
Commissioned	3 October 1978
Out of service	February 2004
Homeport	Zeebrugge Naval Base
Fate	Sold to Bulgaria in February 2004
Bulgaria
Name	Drazki
Acquired	February 2004
Identification	41
Status	in active service
Badge
General characteristics
Type	guided-missile frigate
Displacement	2,283 t (2,247 long tons) at full load
Length	106.4 m (349 ft 1 in) oa
Beam	12.3 m (40 ft 4 in)
Draught	5.6 m (18 ft 4 in)
Propulsion	CODOG; 2 kW (6,000 bhp); 1 Rolls-Royce Olympus TM3B gas turbine, 21,000 kW (28,000 shp);
Speed	28 knots (52 km/h; 32 mph)
Range	4,500 nmi (8,300 km; 5,200 mi) at 18 kn (33 km/h; 21 mph)
Complement	160
Sensors and ; processing systems	1 Hollandse Signaal Apparaten DA-05 surveillance radar; 1 Hollandse Signaal Apparaten WM-25 targeting radar; 2 EOMS IR/Video optical targeting cameras; 1 AN/SQS-510 sonar;
Armament	1 100 mm Creusot-Loire automatic cannon; 1 RIM-7 Sea Sparrow launcher with 8 missiles; 1 MM38 Exocet launcher with 4 missiles; 1 375 mm Creusot-Loire depth charge launcher; 2 ECAN Type L5 torpedo tubes with 10 torpedoes;

Drazki (

Belgian Naval Component as Wandelaar, the frigate was designed as a platform capable of multiple uses as an escort during the Cold War in the North Sea and English Channel. The vessel uses weapons and sensor technology from NATO

counterparts, which was one of the reasons the ship was acquired by the Bulgarian Navy in 2004. The frigate is currently in active service.

Design and description

The

Belgian government began studies in 1969 for a new type of escort that would meet the requirements of escort missions in the North Sea and English Channel during the Cold War. The design would also only be limited to weapon systems already in service with or under development by NATO navies. The design also emphasized seaworthiness, automation and watertight integrity.^[1]^[a] The weapons systems, with the exception of the Sea Sparrow surface-to-air missile (SSM) were French. The radar and tactical data systems were Dutch and the hull and machinery were constructed in Belgium. As part of the project, the Belgian government made Belgian shipbuilding participation mandatory in the construction of the new ships.^[1]

The frigates feature an action information centre between decks and the ships could be split into two independent gas-tight citadels in the case of

full load.^[1] By 2004, the light displacement had increased to 1,940 t (1,910 long tons) and to 2,430 t (2,390 long tons) at full load.^[3]

The ships are propelled by a two-

diesel alternators for electric production. They had a complement of 160 including 15 officers in Belgian service.^[2]

The Wielingen class were armed with four launchers for

electronic support measures and SLQ-25 Dixie torpedo decoy system.^[3]

Construction and career

In the Belgian Navy

The construction programme of four ships was approved by the Belgian government on 23 June 1971 and an order was placed with two Belgian shipyards in October 1973.

sand bank off the coast of Belgium, near Zeebrugge, as the third ship in the Wielingen class. The frigate was later commissioned on 3 October 1978 with the pennant number F912,^[2] Wandelaar was based at Zeebrugge.^[3]

In the Bulgarian Navy

Bulgaria joined NATO in 2004 and sought out options to replace their older Soviet-era fleet to fulfill their obligations with the organisation. In May 2004 the Bulgarian government agreed to purchase new equipment for the Bulgarian Navy.^[4] On 4 December 2004, a letter of intent was signed by the government and the first ship, Wandelaar was acquired. Approval of the purchase came only on 17 March 2005 and Wandelaar was transferred to Bulgaria in October 2005. The ship was renamed Drazki with the pennant number 41 and underwent refurbishment before entering service.^[5]^[6] In 2011 Drazki took part in NATO operations against Libya and since then, the vessel of the Wielingen class have participated in several naval exercises with Turkey.^[7]

Notes

^ Moore has the program approved on 23 June 1971 with design studies only commenced in July 1973.^[2]
^ Gardiner, Chumbley & Budzbon have the draught at 5.3 m (17 ft 5 in).^[1]
^ "/55 calibre" refers to the length of the gun in terms of calibres, or the bore diameter of the gun.

Citations

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h Gardiner, Chumbley & Budzbon 1995, p. 25.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h Moore 1980, p. 51.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Saunders 2004, p. 53.
^ Sanders 2015, pp. 75–76.
^ Saunders 2009, p. 90.
^ Wertheim 2013, p. 70.
^ Sanders 2015, pp. 76–77.

References

Gardiner, Robert; Chumbley, Stephen & Budzbon, Przemysław, eds. (1995). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1947–1995. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press.
ISBN 1-55750-132-7
.

Moore, John, ed. (1980). Jane's Fighting Ships 1980–81 (83rd ed.). New York: Jane's Publishing Incorporated.
ISBN 0-531-03937-4
.

Sanders, Deborah (Spring 2015). "The Bulgarian Navy After the Cold War: Challenges of Building and Modernizing an Effective Navy". Naval War College Review. 8 (62): 69–84.
JSTOR 26397836
– via JSTOR.

Saunders, Stephen, ed. (2004). Jane's Fighting Ships 2004–2005 (107 ed.). Alexandria, Virginia: Jane's Information Group Inc.
ISBN 0-7106-2623-1
.

Saunders, Stephen, ed. (2009). Jane's Fighting Ships 2009–2010 (112 ed.). Alexandria, Virginia: Jane's Information Group Inc.
ISBN 978-0-7106-2888-6
.

Wertheim, Eric, ed. (2013). The Naval Institute Guide to Combat Fleets of the World (16th ed.). Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press.
ISBN 9-7-815911-4954-5
.

[3] Moore has the program approved on 23 June 1971 with design studies only commenced in July 1973.^[2]

[4] Gardiner, Chumbley & Budzbon have the draught at 5.3 m (17 ft 5 in).^[1]

[6] "/55 calibre" refers to the length of the gun in terms of calibres, or the bore diameter of the gun.

[FOOTNOTEGardinerChumbleyBudzbon199525-1] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h Gardiner, Chumbley & Budzbon 1995, p. 25.

[FOOTNOTEMoore198051-2] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h Moore 1980, p. 51.

[FOOTNOTESaunders200453-5] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Saunders 2004, p. 53.

[FOOTNOTESanders201575–76-7] Sanders 2015, pp. 75–76.

[FOOTNOTESaunders200990-8] Saunders 2009, p. 90.

[FOOTNOTEWertheim201370-9] Wertheim 2013, p. 70.

[FOOTNOTESanders201576–77-10] Sanders 2015, pp. 76–77.

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v t e Wielingen-class frigates
Belgian Navy	Wielingen Westdiep Wandelaar Westhinder
Bulgarian Navy	Drazki Verni Gordi
Preceded by: Algerine class Followed by: Karel Doorman class
List of frigates of the Belgian Navy