Corvette LÜBECK Rheinmetall Celebrates First Ship Christening

Rheinmetall marks a key milestone in German naval shipbuilding with the christening of the corvette LÜBECK.

With the christening of the fifth corvette of Class 130 second batch, a significant milestone has been reached today in one of the current shipbuilding programmes for the German Navy. In the presence of representatives from politics, industry and the Bundeswehr, Huong Nguyen, partner of Lübeck City President Henning Schumann, christened the approximately 89 metre (approx. 292 ft) long vessel at Rheinmetall’s Hamburg site Blohm+Voss with the name LÜBECK. The christening ceremony took place in the presence of Vice Admiral Axel Deertz, Deputy Inspector of the Navy and Commander of the Fleet and Support Forces, Jürgen Giefer, Director at the Federal Office of Bundeswehr Equipment, Information Technology and In-Service Support, and Lübeck’s Mayor Jan Lindenau.

Armin Papperger, Chief Executive Officer of Rheinmetall AG: “The ship christening is also a special milestone for us and for me personally. After all, it is the first ceremony of this kind for us at Rheinmetall. Together with our new Naval Systems division, we are taking a leading role in this and in other important shipbuilding projects and assuming responsibility for the defence capability of our country and our NATO partners. My thanks go to all employees and our partners who are working with great commitment on the completion of these technically demanding naval units.”

Following the christening, the LÜBECK will be fully outfitted and commissioned in Hamburg as planned and will subsequently undergo all necessary functional tests and acceptances in coordination with the relevant departments of the public client and the German Navy.

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Tim Wagner, CEO of Rheinmetall’s Naval Systems division: “With the christening of the last corvette of the second batch, we have reached an important stage in the overall project. Our focus is now on the upcoming milestones, which will reach their highlights this year with the delivery of the two corvettes EMDEN and KÖLN to our customer.”

The new units are designed in particular for near-coastal operations and are therefore suitable for reconnaissance and engagement of sea targets, especially in the North Sea and Baltic Sea.

Jan Lindenau, Mayor of the sponsor city Lübeck: “It is an honour for us that the corvette bears the name of our city and at the same time a sign of our connection with our armed forces, which perform an important service for the security of our country and peace in the world. I am pleased that the Navy represents the name of our Hanseatic city and thus also acts as an ambassador for a traditional and cosmopolitan port city.”

The new corvettes are being built by the ARGE K130 consortium under the leadership of Rheinmetall’s Naval Systems division in cooperation with TKMS and German Naval Yards Kiel.