The French Directorate General of Armament has placed an order for a new FDI frigate to be built by the Naval Group at its Lorient facilities.
The ship, which will be named Amiral Cabanier, will be the fifth FDI frigate to be acquired by the French Navy. Class lead ship Amiral Ronarc'h (pictured) was commissioned in 2025 while Cabanier and three other sisters are scheduled to enter service between 2027 and 2032.
All five FDI ships in French service will be capable of anti-air warfare, anti-surface warfare, anti-submarine warfare, and insertion and extraction of special operations forces. Each frigate can operate alone or as part of a naval task force and can be deployed long-term over long distances.
In French Navy service, the FDIs will complement the larger FREMM or Aquitaine-class frigates and replace the La Fayette-class ships that have been in operation since the 1980s. The introduction of the FREMM and FDI ships into service is in line with the French Navy’s goal of having a fleet of 15 vessels classified as “first-rate” frigates.
Upon completion, Cabanier will have a length of 122 metres, a beam of 17.7 metres, and accommodation for 125 crewmembers and 28 additional personnel. A combined diesel and diesel propulsion arrangement with a total installed power of 32,000 kW will deliver a top speed of 27 knots and a range of 5,000 nautical miles at a cruising speed of 15 knots.
The ship's armament will consist of Aster surface-to-air missiles, Exocet anti-ship missiles, torpedoes, an OTO Melara 76mm naval gun, two remotely controlled 20mm autocannons, and a torpedo decoy countermeasures launcher.
