Spanish shipbuilder Navantia has laid the keel of the future Menéndez de Avilés, the third F110-class frigate slated for the Spanish Navy.
Upon completion, the ship will measure 145 by 18 metres and will displace approximately 6,100 tonnes. Her armament will include those for anti-air warfare, anti-surface warfare, and anti-submarine warfare.
The new frigate's missions will also include escort and force projection.
The five F110-class frigates are scheduled for delivery between 2028 and 2032. They will replace the Spanish Navy's ageing Santa Maria-class ships that were commissioned between 1986 and 1995.
Class lead ship Bonifaz is meanwhile having her main systems installed and commissioned in preparation for her sea trials. Roger de Lauria, the second ship, is being prepared for launch by the early autumn of this year.
Navantia said Menéndez de Avilés' keel-laying was completed seven months ahead of the contractual date.
The ship honours Pedro Menéndez de Avilés, a Spanish Navy officer and explorer known for establishing one of the first European settlements in the United States in what is now St Augustine, Florida.