France’s Naval Group has delivered the second of two Gowind-class multi-role corvettes ordered by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Navy in 2019.

The ship, Al Emarat, was handed over on 27 June 2024 during a ceremony at Naval Group’s Lorient yard attended by an official delegation of the UAE Navy that included its deputy commander, Brigadier Abdulla Al Mehairbi.

Launched in May 2022, Al Emarat began sea trials in October 2023, when the first UAE Gowind-class corvette, Bani Yas, was delivered.

For the moment the Al Emarat crew will remain in France for operational ship training provided as part of the contract with Naval Group, with the ship then beginning its transit to the UAE under the Emirati flag in July, with an expected arrival in Abu Dhabi in August.

“I am very honoured to be with you on this symbolic day for Naval Group as we deliver the second Gowind, Al Emarat, to the UAE Navy,” stated Olivier de la Bourdonnaye, Naval Group’s executive vice president for surface ships, at the handover ceremony. “Naval Group has demonstrated its unwavering commitment to the success of the Bani Yas programme, in close co-operation with the UAE Navy, and we are proud today to welcome our Emirati guests for the flag transfer ceremony of the Al Emarat corvette.”

Although built at Naval Group’s Lorient shipyard, the UAE Navy’s two Gowind-class corvettes incorporate equipment manufactured locally by UAE industry. As well as stepping up its relationship with the UAE Navy to best meet its future challenges, Naval Group is also developing its partnership with UAE industry to provide effective local maintenance support for the Gowind corvettes.

While Gowind-class corvettes vary in their specifications, the ones ordered by the UAE Navy are 102 m long, with an overall beam of 16 m and a displacement of 2,800 tonnes. The ships have a maximum speed of 25 knots (46.3 km/h), while their maximum range is 4,500 nautical miles at 15 knots, and they can accommodate a hangered helicopter and unmanned aerial system as well as two rigid-hull inflatable boats.

Featuring Naval Group’s SETIS combat system, the UAE corvettes’ weapon systems include a Leonardo (OTO Melara) 76 mm SR gun, 16 vertical launch MICA surface-to-air missiles, eight MM40 Exocet anti-ship missiles in two quad launchers, two triple launchers for MU90 lightweight torpedoes, a 21-cell Rolling Airframe Missile close-in weapon system, two remote weapon stations and several other machine gun mounts.

The UAE Navy’s Gowind corvettes also feature the Panoramic Sensors and Intelligence Module (PSIM) integrated mast, which includes almost all of the ship’s sensors, such as radars, optronics, an electronic warfare suite, communication antennas and a ship weather system.

In addition to the pair of corvettes for the UAE, Naval Group has sold four Gowind-class ships to Egypt and four to Argentina, while Malaysia is locally building five ships based on the Gowind-class design.