Command of the first Sa’ar 6-class corvette, a joint project of German Naval Yards Holdings and ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems, was handed on Wednesday to General Eli Sharvit, Commander of the Israeli Navy. The German flag was removed from the mast of the new ship, dubbed Magen (shield), and replaced with the Israeli flag.
The Israeli Navy is adding four new ‘Saar 6’ ships; Magen wil be followed by Oz (courage), Atzmaut (independence), and Nitzachon (victory) over the next few years.
The first ship to reach the shores of the Israel, Magen, was first launched in May 2019. When the ship arrives in Israel it will undergo installations of combat systems, the vast majority of which are made in Israel. At the end of this process, NS Magen will enter full-time operational service.
Construction cost of each Sa’ar 6-class ship is estimated at NIS 1.8 billion ($532 million). Israel pays for two thirds of the cost and the German Government subsidizes a third, as was the case with the Dolphin-class submarines, also purchased from ThyssenKrupp.
One of the new ships’ roles will be to protect natural gas platforms in the Mediterranean Sea against possible sea-borne or rocket threats. The Lebanese Hezbollah terrorist group claims that Israel’s gas fields lie in Lebanese waters, and has threatened to target Israeli gas platforms.