Oste-class fleet service ship

A52 Oste in 2006
Class overview
Builders	Flensburger Schiffbau-Gesellschaft, Flensburg
Operators	German Navy
Preceded by	Type 422 class
Succeeded by	Type 424 class
In commission	1988–present
Completed	3
Active	3
General characteristics
Displacement	3,200 tonnes
Length	83.5 m (273 ft 11 in)
Beam	14.6 m (47 ft 11 in)
Draught	4.2 m (13 ft 9 in)
Propulsion	2 diesel engines, 3,300 kW (4,400 hp) each
Speed	21 knots (39 km/h)
Range	More than 5,000 nautical miles (9,300 km)
Complement	36 + up to 40 mission specialists
Sensors and processing systems	ELINT/COMINT sensors
Electronic warfare & decoys	Electronic countermeasures^[specify]
Armament	None

The Type 423 Oste class are purpose built signals intelligence (SIGINT/ELINT) and reconnaissance ships of the German Navy.[1] Officially designated as "fleet service ships", they replaced the Type 422 class.

The Oste-class ships were designed as reconnaissance units during the Cold War. From the 1990s, the tasks were expanded to early warning and telecommunications reconnaissance in cooperation with other units of German and international armed forces. Civil officers of BND are working on the ships on a regular basis.

Accommodation for the crew was designed to meet civil standards, and the Oste class offers much more comfort for the crew than other ships in the German Navy.

The ships are set to be replaced from 2027-2029 when the new Type 424 is planned to come into service.[2] The three new ships will cost €3.3 billion (2023).

List of ships

Ship	Pennant number	Call sign	Launched	Commissioned
Oste	A52	DRHH	30 June 1988	30 July 1988
Oker	A53	DRHG		10 November 1988
Alster	A50	DRHF	14 November 1988	5 October 1989

The ships were built at Flensburger Schiffbau-Gesellschaft in Flensburg.

All ships are currently based in Eckernförde and belong to the 1st Ubootgeschwader (1st Submarine Squadron) stationed in Eckernförde. The vessels received the same name and pennant numbers as the three Type 422 class vessels they replaced. To avoid the confusion, the ship names are sometimes suffixed with II.

Oker (A53) was reportedly spotted near the Syrian coast in August 2012.[3] Later she was seen in Greenwich, UK in February 2017[4]

Replacement

In June 2021, the Bundestag approved the development and procurement of three fleet service boats as well as a training and reference reconnaissance facility (ARAA) for sea-based signal detection reconnaissance (ssA). As the main contractor, Lürssen was commissioned to develop the systems by February 2023. All services should be completed by 2029. The first of the three boats is scheduled to be put into service in 2027 and will mark the replacement of the fleet service boats Oker, Alster and Oste, which have been in use for over 30 years.[5]

The new building increased in price from 2.1 billion euros to 3.3 billion euros (2023).[5][6]

References

Notes

1. "Oste class". Military Today. Archived from the original on August 20, 2022. Retrieved August 20, 2022.
2. "Germany signs off on Type 424 AGI build contract". Janes. 11 July 2023. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
3. "Kein Spionageboot vor Syrien", tagesschau.de (in German), 19 August 2012, archived from the original on August 19, 2012
4. "Lookout – Events & Visitors". February 2015.
5. ES&T Redaktion (2023-07-10). "Weitere Mittel für neue Flottendienstboote freigegeben". esut.de (in German). Retrieved 2023-11-24.
6. Peters (NDR), Massimo Bognanni, Martin Kaul (WDR) und Nils Naber, Stella. "Kostenexplosion bei Spionageschiffen für die Bundeswehr". tagesschau.de (in German). Retrieved 2023-11-24.

Bibliography

• "Flottendienstboot OSTE-Klasse" (in German). Deutsche Marine. Retrieved 5 August 2008.