The steel of the new class of frigates for the Navy is already being welded. Since February 2026, the first of up to eight modern submarine hunters has been taking shape day by day in a shipyard in Bremerhaven. The unusual thing is that the Bundestag’s budget committee only approved the final financing of almost 6.3 billion euros for the first four ships of the major project on July 8, 2026, which is normally a prerequisite for the start of construction. A further four ships can be ordered under the option of the construction contract. The triggering of the option requires the approval of the budget committee as part of a 25 million euro proposal.
Initial considerations to introduce the MEKO A-200 DEU model from the German shipbuilder TKMS into the Navy have only existed since August 2025. The keel was laid in May 2026. And in December 2029, the first ship is to be handed over to the Bundeswehr. “This is record time,” confirms Jan G.*, the head of the project at the Bundeswehr Procurement Office, BAAINBw for short. Normally, the implementation of a shipbuilding project of this size takes about ten years instead of just over four, as in this case.
The reasons for the high speed are the tense security situation in Europe as well as problems with the ship projects that were supposed to give the navy the ability to hunt for submarines. This capability, which is called Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) in NATO jargon, is in absolute short supply in the Bundeswehr as well as in the entire alliance. However, it is urgently needed to monitor the movements of Russian submarines in the North Atlantic and to ward off dangers that could emanate from these submarines. The Inspector of the Navy, Vice Admiral Jan Christian Kaack, therefore says: “We need steel in the water, quickly and precisely specialized in the ability to hunt for submarines.” The MEKO A-200 DEU project is therefore an important contribution to ensuring deterrence against Russia.