History
France
NameSecond-Maître Le Bihan
NamesakeMarcel Pierre Marie Le Bihan
BuilderArsenal de Lorient, Lorient
Laid down1 November 1976
Launched13 August 1977
Commissioned7 July 1979
Decommissioned2002
Identification
FateSold to Turkey, 2002
Turkey
NameBafra
NamesakeBafra
Acquired26 June 2002
Commissioned24 July 2002
IdentificationPennant number: F-505
StatusActive
General characteristics
Class and typeD'Estienne d'Orves-class aviso
Displacement
  • 1,100 t (1,100 long tons) standard
  • 1,270 t (1,250 long tons) full load
Length
  • 80 m (262 ft 6 in) oa
  • 76 m (249 ft 4 in) pp
Beam10.3 m (33 ft 10 in)
Draught5.3 m (17 ft 5 in)
Propulsion
Speed23.5 knots (43.5 km/h; 27.0 mph)
Range4,500 nmi (8,300 km; 5,200 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph)
Complement90
Sensors and
processing systems
  • 1 Air/surface DRBV 51A sentry radar
  • 1 DRBC 32E fire control radar
  • 1 Decca 1226 navigation radar
  • 1 DUBA 25 hull sonar
Electronic warfare
& decoys
  • 1 ARBR 16 radar interceptor
  • 2 Dagaie decoy launchers
  • 1 SLQ-25 Nixie countermeasure system
Armament

Second-Maître Le Bihan (F788) is a D'Estienne d'Orves-class aviso in the French Navy. She was transferred to the Turkish Navy as TCG Bafra (F-505).

Design

Armed by a crew of 90 sailors, these vessels have the reputation of being among the most difficult in bad weather. Their high windage makes them particularly sensitive to pitch and roll as soon as the sea is formed.

Their armament, consequent for a vessel of this tonnage, allows them to manage a large spectrum of missions. During the Cold War, they were primarily used to patrol the continental shelf of the Atlantic Ocean in search of Soviet Navy submarines. Due to the poor performance of the hull sonar, as soon as an echo appeared, the reinforcement of an ASM frigate was necessary to chase it using its towed variable depth sonar.[2]

Their role as patrollers now consists mainly of patrols and assistance missions, as well as participation in UN missions (blockades, flag checks) or similar marine policing tasks (fight against drugs, extraction of nationals, fisheries control, etc.). The mer-mer 38 or mer-mer 40 missiles have been landed, but they carry several machine guns and machine guns, more suited to their new missions.

Its construction cost was estimated at 270,000,000 French francs.[3]

Construction and career

Service in the French Navy

Second-Maître Le Bihan was laid down on 1 November 1976 at Arsenal de Lorient, Lorient. Launched on 13 August 1977 and commissioned on 7 July 1979.

Service in the Turkish Naval Forces

The ship was purchased from France in 2002 and acquired after arriving in Turkey on 26 June 2002 after salvage work was carried out at DCN. She was later commissioned on the 24 July of the same year.

Citations

  1. 1 2 3 "Patrouilleurs: Les avisos français sur tous les fronts" [Patrol ships: French Avisos on all fronts.]. asafrance.fr (in French). 26 January 2017. Retrieved 6 June 2020.
  2. ↑ "Euronaval: First details of the Patrouilleurs Océanique (PO) platform unveiled". Naval News. 23 October 2020. Retrieved 17 September 2021.
  3. ↑ Quid 1996. p. 2036. ISBN 2-221-08055-6.
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