Qatar Celebrates The Arrival of “Al Zubarah” Corvette
His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani attended this morning the reception ceremony of the "Al Zubarah" corvette and the "Msheireb" boat of the Qatari Emiri Naval Forces, at Umm Al Houl Naval Base.
The ceremony began with playing the national anthem of the State of Qatar, then reciting verses from the Noble Qur’an, after which a film was shown on the stages of manufacturing the ship and boat and the training of the crew working on them, all the way to the stage of their return to the country.
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Navy News, a British Royal Navy news website, published several reports on the specifications of the new Qatari ship, stressing that it features a sophisticated and powerful combat system with a full range of anti-aircraft, anti-ship, and submarine weapons, and can also be equipped with a lightweight torpedo set.
The Website also revealed that "Al Zubarah" will be able to operate high-speed inflatable boats, and the deck is designed to allow hosting a helicopter.
Ship Specifications
Designed in compliance with RINAMIL rules, the Zubarah is a highly flexible ship capable of performing a variety of missions, from surveillance with marine rescue capabilities to being a combat vessel.
Measuring approximately 107 meters in length and 14.70 meters in width, the vessel is powered by two twin main diesel engines, Kodad-controlled propellers, and a top speed of 28 knots (52 km/32 mph), and it will be able to accommodate 112 people on board.
The ship is equipped with a new generation combat management system that includes a multifunctional 3D radar, as well as advanced and customizable weapons systems and multiple sensors.
"Al Zubarah" operates with many defensive and offensive weapons, for example, it has an "Aster 30 Block" surface-to-air missile to meet the needs of medium and long-range air defense, in addition to "Exocet Block" missiles, which is the latest generation of portable anti-ship weapons. , in addition to anti-torpedo launchers.
The Qatari ship also features a close combat weapons system, which is a weapon to defend a specific point and to destroy incoming short-range missiles, and enemy aircraft that penetrated external defenses.
It also relies on the RAM Mk 49 guided missile launcher, which is an American and German-made rotating anti-aircraft missile with the ability to rotate 360 degrees.
Al Zubarah is also equipped with a remote-controlled Merlin-WS submachine gun, a highly accurate multi-role naval system particularly effective against multiple targets developed by the Italian company Leonardo to meet the requirements of modern naval warfare.
In a related context, the American magazine "Forbes" confirmed, in a previous report, that Qatar will become the first Gulf country to own submarines and an aircraft carrier after it signed a deal worth 5 billion euros with the Italian defense giant "Vincantieri" to build warships and advanced submarines and establish external naval base.
According to the Global Fire Power website, which specializes in monitoring military capabilities around the world, Qatar leads the Gulf countries in the number of naval vessels, owning 80 vessels, most of which are patrol ships, and ranks 31st globally.