Two sailors were injured in an explosion on the F-219 Sachsen frigate of the German Navy on Jun 21.
According toJoseph Dempseythe F-219 Sachsen frigate of the German Navy has conducted an SM-2 missile launch during Navy drills, but during the launch, there was a failure and the rockets exploded on the deck of the ship.
“Fortunately only two crew sustained minor injuries, this could have been a lot worse,” noted Joseph Dempsey.
The Sachsen-class frigate F219, also called Sachsen, is an air defence frigate built by ARGE F124, a consortium consisting of Blohm + Voss as the leading yard, Howaldtwerke-Deutsche Werft and Thyssen Nordseewerke. The first of class, FGS Sachsen (F219), built at the Blohm and Voss shipyard in Hamburg, was commissioned in November 2004.
The frigate is equipped with Raytheon-built SM-2 Block IIIA surface-to-air missiles. It is an all-weather, supersonic, ship-launched, medium to long-range fleet air defense missile providing defense for an entire fleet area.