MEKO

This article is about the warship design. For the chemical, see Methylethyl ketone oxime. For other uses, see Meko.

The MEKO family of warships was developed by the German company Blohm+Voss. MEKO is a registered trademark. The portmanteau stands for "Mehrzweck-Kombination" (English: multi-purpose-combination). It is a concept in modern naval shipbuilding based on modularity of armament, electronics and other equipment, aiming at ease of maintenance and cost reduction.

Hessen (F 221), a F124-class frigate (Sachsen-class frigate) of the German Navy.

MEKO ships include families of frigates, corvettes and ocean-going patrol boats. Construction of MEKO ships began in the late 1970s with the design and later building of Nigeria's MEKO 360 H1. Vessels of similar classes use different weapons systems. For example, for the main gun, some MEKO 200s use the Mk 45 Mod 2 gun, others use the French 100 mm naval gun or Otobreda 76 mm gun.^[1]

The latest variant is the "Combat Ship for the Littorals" or MEKO CSL. It has also been called a "Littoral Combatant Ship", but it is much smaller than the American Littoral Combat Ship (LCS).^[2] There was speculation that this design would be of interest to Israel,^[3][4] but it was not.^[5] Ultimately however, Israel opted for four modified K130 Braunschweig-class corvettes, the first of which is expected to enter service in 2019. The new variant is dubbed the Sa'ar 6-class corvette.^[6] Eight extended versions of MEKO A-100 frigate vessels are planned to be supplied for the Brazilian Navy. The consortium is formed by Germany's Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems, Embraer Defense & Security and Atech, a subsidiary of the Embraer Group. The construction of the vessels, which are more than 100 meters long, are planned for the Oceana shipyard in Itajaí.^[7]

Models

The following MEKO models are known to have been built, organized by lineage and delivery dates:

• MEKO 360 (1981) is the earliest MEKO ship.
• MEKO 140 (1985) is designed as a companion ship of MEKO 360, developed from the Portuguese João Coutinho class corvettes.
• MEKO 200 (1987) is a frigate design. It evolved into the MEKO A-200 (2001) and the larger MEKO A-300 (planned for Greece and Poland).^[8]
• F123 (1994), F124 (2002), and F125 (2016) are a line of MEKO frigates developed for the German Navy.
• K130 (2008) is a corvette designed for the German Navy using some F124 technology.
  • Israeli Sa'ar 6 (2021) is a heavily modified descendant.
• MEKO A-100 (2019) is a current design.
  • The 2012 A-100 is a single corvette developed from the A-200.^[9] It is occasionally quoted as the same as the MEKO 100 RMN (2004).
  • The current design is a family of three sizes (all heavier and longer than the 2012 A-100): corvette, light frigate, patrol corvette.^[10]

As of October 2021^[update], the MEKO website showcases A-200, F125, and A-100 models. The following models were once mentioned on the website, but no examples are known to have been built:

• MEKO CSL (2012 website).
• MEKO D Corvette (2012 website).^[11]
• MEKO 100 patrol corvette (2012 website). Based on both K130 and MEKO 100 patrol vessel.^[12]
• MEKO A-300 frigate based on A-200 and F-125 offered to Greece and Poland^[8]
• MEKO A-400 AMD^[13]

Vessels

Type	Class	Country	Number	Delivery	Weight	Length o.a. (m)	Beam (m)	Draught (m)	Main gun	SAM	ASM	Image
MEKO 360 H1	Aradu	Nigeria	1	1981	3,360 tons	125.80	15.00	4.30	Otobreda 127/54 Compact	Aspide	Otomat
MEKO 360 H2	Almirante Brown	Argentina	4	1983–1984	3,360 tons	125.80	15.00	4.30	Otobreda 127/54 Compact	Aspide	Exocet
MEKO 140 A16	Espora	Argentina	6	1985–2002	1,560 tons	91.20	11.00	3.33	Otobreda 76 mm	–	Exocet
MEKO 200 TN I	Yavuz	Turkey	4	1987–1989	3,030 tons	110.50	14.20	4.14	Mk 45 Mod 2 gun	RIM-7	Harpoon
MEKO 200 PN	Vasco da Gama	Portugal	3	1991–	3,400 tons	115.90	14.80	4.10	French 100 mm naval gun	RIM-7	Harpoon
MEKO 200 HN [14]	Hydra	Greece	4	1992	3,360 tons	117.00	14.80	4.10	Mk 45 Mod 2 gun	RIM-162	Harpoon
MEKO 200 TN II-A	Barbaros	Turkey	2	1995–	3,100 tons	116.70	14.80	4.10	Mk 45 Mod 2 gun	RIM-7, RIM-162	Harpoon
MEKO 200 ANZAC	Anzac	Australia  New Zealand	8 (Aus) 2 (NZ)	1996–2004	3,500 tons	118.00	14.80	4.10	Mk 45 Mod 4 gun	RAN: RIM-162, RNZN: RIM-7, Phalanx Block 1	RAN: Harpoon RNZN: None
MEKO 200 TN II-B	Salih Reis	Turkey	2	1998–	3,100 tons	118.00	14.80	4.30	Mk 45 Mod 2 gun	RIM-7, RIM-162	Harpoon
MEKO A-200 SAN	Valour	South Africa	4	2003–2004	3,700 tons	121.00	16.34	4.40	Otobreda 76 mm	Umkhonto	Exocet
MEKO 100 RMN	Kedah	Malaysia	6	2004–2010	1,850 tons	91.10	12.85	3.40	Otobreda 76 mm	–	–
MEKO A-100	ORP Ślązak	Poland	1	2019	2,150 tons	95.20	13.30	3.60	Otobreda 76 mm	Grom	–
Corvette 130 (K130)	Braunschweig	Germany	5	2008–	1,840 tons	88.75	12.80	3.40	Otobreda 76 mm	RIM-116	RBS-15
Frigate 123 (F123)	Brandenburg	Germany	4	1994–1996	3,600 tons	138.85	16.70	4.35	Otobreda 76 mm	RIM-116, RIM-7	Exocet, RBS-15
Frigate 124 (F124)	Sachsen	Germany	3	2002–	5,690 tons	143.00	17.44	4.86	Otobreda 76 mm	RIM-116, RIM-162, RIM-66	Harpoon
Frigate 125 (F125)	Baden-Württemberg	Germany	4	2016-	7,200 tons	149.52	18.80	5.00	Otobreda 127 mm	RIM-116	Harpoon
MEKO A-200 AN	Erradi[15]	Algeria	2	2016-	3,700 tons	122	16.3	4.4	Otobreda 127 mm	Umkhonto IR	RBS-15
(K130-based, no official model)[16][17]	Sa'ar 6	Israel	4	2020-[18]	2,000 tons	90.00	12.44	3.40	OTO Melara 76 mm	Barak-8, C-Dome	Harpoon
MEKO A-100 BR[19]	Tamandaré	Brazil	8	2024–	3,500 tons	107.2	16	5.2	OTO Melara 76 mm	CAMM	MANSUP
MEKO A-200EN	Al-Aziz[20]	Egypt	6	2022–2025	3,700 tons	120	14.8	4.3	Otobreda 127 mm	MICA NG	Exocet