The Israeli Navy first Sa’ar 6-class corvette, INS Magen, will arrive in Israel in December, the country’s MoD said on . Within the coming year, three more Sa’ar 6 ships will be transferred to Israel from thyssenkrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) Kiel shipyard, Germany.
The ship, which is supposed to arrive in December, will join the Israeli Navy’s fleet to reinforce the IDF’s naval assets, with an emphasis on defensive capabilities for important strategic assets and on offensive capabilities that have never been seen before in the eastern Mediterranean.
“About five years ago, ten engineers serving in the Israeli Navy were flown to Germany to take part in a special project. Their main mission was to return to Israel with brand new missile ships whose role would be to protect Israel’s strategic naval assets,” said Israeli Ministry of Defense.
The mission was deemed necessary after valuable natural gas reserves were discovered within Israel’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in the early 2000s. Since 70% of the electricity in Israel today comes from natural gas produced by Israel’s marine gas rigs, the discoveries called for a new way to protect Israel’s assets. Thus began the Israeli Navy’s initiative to bring new missile ships to Israel.
From the moment the Sa’ar 6 ship reaches Israel’s shores, the Israeli Navy will have to face the complex challenge of making the ship fully operational. Over 90% of the defensive systems that will be on the new Sa’ar 6 ships are Israeli-made combat systems.
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