MOST POWERFUL WARSHIPS IN AFRICA 2017

If you are wondering about the military strength of African countries, here is an article to help you decide. African Military Blog has compiled a comprehensive list of the TOP 10 MOST POWERFUL WARSHIPS IN AFRICA. The criteria and parameters used by African Military Blog to rank this vessels include:

1. Firepower
2. Year of commissioning
3. Role (e.g guided missile, multipurpose e.t.c)

Note, this list doesn't include Aircraft carriers, Helicopter carriers, Submarine, Landing ships, Auxiliary ships or just plain big ships. Unless those ships carries enough firepower to meet the standard of a war-fighting vessel.

 No 1)The FREMM Multipurpose Frigate.

This is a class of Multipurpose frigates built by DCNS/Armaris.

Egyptian FREMM frigate

Type	Frigate
African Users	Egyptian Navy (Tahya Misr) Royal Morroccan Navy (Mohammed VI)
Displacement	6700 tonnes
Speed	27-29 knots
Range	6000-6700 NM
Weapons Carried
Main Gun	OTO Melera 76mm SR gun
Land-attack missiles	16-cell SYLVER A70 VLS for launching SCALP Naval land-attack cruise missile.
Anti-Air	16 cells SYLVER A43 or A50 for Aster 15
Anti-Ship	MM-40 Exocet block 3 missiles
Anti-submarine	2 X 2 WASS B-515/3 launchers for MU 90 torpedoes.

NO 2) MEKO  200

This is a frigate designed  by Blohm and Voss shiyard of Germany, its a part of the MEKO class family of ships. This is a new class of stealth (Low observable) ships.

MEKO  200

Type	Frigate
African Users	Algerian National Navy South African Navy
Displacement	3,400 tons
Speed	32 knots
Range	6,000 NM
Weapons Carried
Main Gun	127 mm MK-45 Mod 2 Naval Artillery Gun
Anti-Air	MK-41 Mod 5/ Mod 8 VLS foe ESSM and Sea Sparrow SAM
Anti-Ship	8X Harpoon missile
Anti-submarine	2X triple 324 mm MK-32 Mod 5 tubes

NO 3) Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate

Oliver Perry class Frigate

This is a class of guided missile frigates named after the American Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry and built by Bath Iron Works.

Type	Guided missile frigate
African Users	Egyptian Navy (4 units)
Displacement	4,100 tons
Speed	29 knots
Range	4,500 NM
Weapons Carried
Main Gun	OTO Melera 76mm gun
Anti-Air	MK 13 launching SM-1MR Missiles
Anti-Ship	Harpoon anti-ship missile
Anti-submarine	Mark 46/Mark 50 torpedoes

No 4) Knox Class Frigate

Knox Class Frigate

This warship was originally built by Todd Shipyard, Settle and San Pedro for the U.S Navy. It initial role is an ocean Destroyer Escort. 

Type	Guided missile frigate
African Users	Egyptian Navy
Displacement	4,260 tons
Speed	27 knots
Range	4000 NM
Weapons Carried
Main Gun	MK-42 5-inch gun
Anti-Air	RIM-7 Sea Sparrow
Anti-Ship	Harpoon Missile
Anti-submarine	Mark 46 torpedoes

No 5) MEKO 360 class frigate

 A single vessel of the MEKO 360H1 variant was produced for the Nigerian Navy known as the Aradu, it is one of the largest vessels of that navy. Although this particular class of ship is designated a frigate by the manufacturers but Jane's Fighting Ships and the Argentinian Navy classifies it as a destroyer. However this ship is inoperable and has been left in bad condition for years now.

A MEKO 360 class frigate

Type	Multi-role Frigate
African Users	Nigerian Navy
Displacement	3,360 tons
Speed	30.5 knots
Range	6,500 NM
Weapons Carried
Main Gun	OTO Melara Otobreda 127/54 Compact, 8 x Bofors 40 mm gun
Anti-Air	24 x Aspide SAM in octuple launcher
Anti-Ship	8 x Otomat Mk 1 SSM
Anti-submarine	6 x torpedo tubes, 1 depth charge rack

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No 6) C28A Class Corvette

 This is a new breed of stealth corvette built by CSSC in Hudong-Zhonghua shipyard in China. With a displacement of about 3000 tons when fully ladened, this can be classified as HEAVY CORVETTES or unofficially as a LIGHT FRIGATES.

C28A CLASS CORVETTE

Type	Heavy Corvette
African Users	Algerian Navy
Displacement	2880-3000 tons
Speed	30 knots
Range	3000-3550 NM
Weapons Carried
Main Gun	NG-16-1 (76 mm) gun
Anti-Air	HQ-7 Short-range SAM
Anti-Ship	2 X 4 C-802 Missile
Anti-submarine	2 X 3 324mm Torpedo

No 7) Gowind-class corvette

The Gowind design is a family of steel monohull corvettes developed since 2006 by DCNS to conduct missions in littoral zone such as anti-submarine warfare (ASW). The Gowind family includes vessels with lengths from 85m to 102m and displacement from 1,000t to 2,500t.

The Gowind design can deploy Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USVs) and Underwater Unmanned Vehicles (UUVs). An aft deck has been provided allowing for a 10-ton class helicopter or Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) operations.

The Egptian Navy has production right for this class of vessel and will begin serial production soon.

GOWIND Class corvette

Type	Corvette
African Users	Egyptian Navy
Displacement	2,500 tons
Speed	25 knots
Range	3,700 NM
Weapons Carried
Main Gun	1 × OTO Melara 76 mm main gun
Anti-Air	16 × VLS for MICA VL
Anti-Ship	8 × Exocet anti-ship missile
Anti-submarine	2 × triple torpedo launcher

No 8) Sigma-class corvette

 The Sigma-class corvette is a Dutch-built family of modular naval vessels of corvette to frigate size with a blue water capability.

Sigma-class corvette

Type	Corvette
African Users	Royal Morrocan Navy
Displacement	1,692 tons
Speed	28-32 knots
Range	3600 NM
Weapons Carried
Main Gun	1 x Oto Melara 76 mm gun
Anti-Air	2 x quad MBDA Mistral TETRAL, forward & aft
Anti-Ship	4 x MBDA Exocet MM40 Block II
Anti-submarine	2 x triple B515 launchers for EuroTorp 3A 244S Mode II/MU 90

 No 9) P18N  (Type 056) Corvette

 The P18N is an export version of the original Type 056 corvette of the PLAN navy. It entered service in 2013. The Nigerian version has an enlarged hull for more classified equipments. Not much is known about the P18N due to the secretive nature of the Nigerian Government. All details listed here is based on the data provided for the original version (Type 056).

P18N (TYPE 0560 CORVETTE)

Type	Corvette
African Users	Nigerian Navy
Displacement	1,800 tons
Speed	25 knots
Range	3,500 NM
Weapons Carried
Main Gun	AK176 76mm gun
Anti-Air	1 X 8 FL-3000N SAM
Anti-Ship	2 X 2-cell YJ-83 anti-ship missile
Anti-submarine	2X triple 324 mm torpedoes

No 10)  Descubierta-class corvette

The Descubierta-class corvettes were a series of corvettes built for the Spanish Navy in the late 1970s and early 1980s. These ships were also sold to the Egyptian Navy and the Moroccan Navy. The ships were designed in cooperation with the German company Blohm & Voss, based on the João Coutinho-class corvettes which were designed in the late 1960s for the Portuguese Navy, by the Portuguese naval engineer Rogério de Oliveira.

Descubierta-class corvettes

Type	Corvette
African Users	Egyptian Navy Royal Moroccan Navy
Displacement	1,233-1,482 tons
Speed	25 knots
Range	4,000 NM
Weapons Carried
Main Gun	76mm gun 2 - 40 mm guns (2 × 1)
Anti-Air	1 - octuple Sea Sparrow SAM 1 - two barreled Bofors
Anti-Ship	8 - Harpoon anti-ship missile
Anti-submarine	6 X 12.75in Torpedoes, about 8X anti-submarine mortars

Dear African Military Blog Readers if you feel that this article missed a warship and you want the particular ship to be included in this list, Please feel free to suggest to us with a valid reason why your suggestion/recommendation should be accepted.