Frag Out! Magazine
Issue link: https://fragout.uberflip.com/i/1150145
241 The vessel has been fitted with a CODAG (Combined Diesel and Gas Turbine) propulsion system which includes MTU 12V595TE90 diesel en- gines, with power output of 3240 kW each and they are coupled with a single General Electric Avio LM-2500 gas turbine, offering peak power of 25000 kW. MAAG Gear Zamech 3CODAG-285 gearbox couples the aforesaid elements together, transmitting the power to two shafts with two 5-blade adjustable propellers. Armament, electronics and remain- ing systems are powered from the auxiliary engine room with 4 MTU 12V183TES2 generators, with a power output of 600 kW each. 2 rudders coupled with an extendable Schottel azimuthal thruster are used to car- ry out the maneuvers. Ślązak also features active stabilizers and bilge keels ensuring a high level of stability for the vessel, also in case of high sea states. The propulsion system so complex has been used to allow to reach top speed exceeding 30 knots. CODAG configuration is quite common for surface combatants. However, in the recent years a trend has emerged to base propulsion systems only around the cheaper and more economical diesel engines. Approach as such has been adopted by the designers of the Danish Iver Huitfeldt-class frigates or the German K-130-class corvettes. The propulsion is compliant with the original multi-role corvette design. Unfortunately, this statement does not apply to the EW assets and weap- ons installed onboard. Within that scope the most relevant changes hap- pened, when compared to the original plans. What is even more import- ant, the armament and equipment configuration have changed multiple times over the years. Below the article outlines several variants that were being considered with regards to Ślązak. Technicalities Writing about the Ślązak OPV one should remember that the ever chang- ing concept and problems with the funding really created a dissonance between the original design and the final result: the vessel that is to be delivered to the Polish Navy. Ślązak's design has been derived directly from the 1980s MEKO concept of modular warship. MEKO has been developed by the German Blohm und Voss and has been used to create patrol vessels, corvettes or even frigates. As the years went passing by the design evolved. Currently it consists of two main branches - smaller MEKO A-100 and larger MEKO A-200. Gawron program from which the Ślązak OPV evolved assumed that the A-100 would be used. After the design was adopted to the Polish requirements a warship was created that is 95 meters long, 13.5 meters wide with draft of 3.6 meters. The vessel is to have 2100 tonnes full displacement. It is estimated that the warship would be able to carry out autonomous operations for 30 days, with a range of 4000 nm at the speed of 14 knots. At top speed the range drops down to 1000 nautical miles. The warship also has RAS (Replenishment at Sea) capability, meaning that it is able to recover its readiness at sea. The crew is to consist of 74 officers and sailors. www.fragoutmag.com