The French FREMM frigates that operate at the Red Sea need 160 crew in total to keep the vessel operational. The standard crew was determined as 96 in peacetime.
French FREMM frigates have a standard of 123 personnel on board 123, including the aircrew. As a result of the ongoing operation in the Red Sea against Houthis, there is a need for an additional 40 personnel to keep the vessel operational as it should be. The lemarin.ouest-france.fr marks the case as “A necessary reinforcement in the face of the extreme operational workload, with 12-hour shifts and regular recalls to combat posts.”
From the newly adjusted crew of 120, the French FREMM-class frigates will now reach 160 people. The increase does not include the aviation element of the vessel, such as technicians and helicopter crew. The increase will be related to the ship herself.
This development is considered necessary by the French Navy, as in the missions of the last months in the Red Sea of the frigates Languedoc and Alsace, where the readiness was continuous due to the threat of the Houthis.
The change will take place this summer, with the extra staff coming from abolishing two “transition and training” units at the naval bases in Brest and Toulon.
Reinforcement with more crew as a necessity is nothing new. Originally, the FREMMs were designed for a crew 96, but this proved insufficient despite extensive automation. So it went up to about 120, and now it goes up to 160.
French FREEMs Need to Almost Double Crew on Operations
