A few days after the approval by the Budget Committee of the German Bundestag, the President of the Federal Office of Bundeswehr Equipment, Information Technology and In-Service Support (BAAINBw), Annette Lehnigk-Emden, and Tim Wagner, CEO of the NVL Group, signed the contract for the construction of the three new fleet service boats for the German Navy.
Following the completion of the joint design phase, this marks the start of the design and construction phase that is now beginning, right through to the acceptance of the Class 424 boats, including a training and reference system. Most recently, . In the view of the German Navy, the three identical boats represent “an indispensable component of national security provision”. A recent press release continues: “As a new construction project, these highly specialized units will be able to meet the high requirements of the entire reconnaissance spectrum for worldwide operations in a future-proof manner and ensure the uninterrupted maintenance of the German Navy’s sea-based signal intelligence capabilities.” The design and construction of the boats are based on civilian shipbuilding standards and will be carried out exclusively in Germany. The contract covers the implementation of the complete construction specification for the boats, which was drawn up cooperatively between the client and contractor during the design phase. Delivery of the training facility is scheduled for 2027, with the first of the three boats being made available to the German Navy two years later. They will gradually replace the Class 423 fleet service boats “Oker”, “Alster” and “Oste”, which have already been in service for over 40 years at this point.
