The La Fayette class is a class of general purpose frigates built by DCNS in the 1980s and 90s, operated by the French Navy and three other navies. Derivatives of the type are in service in the navies of Saudi Arabia, Singapore, and Taiwan.
The French frigate Surcouf
The La Fayette type features very clean superstructures, as Courbet demonstrates
Superstructure of a La Fayette blends into the hull with only a slight change in inclination
Cable deck of Surcouf, covered to reduce the radar signature; seamanship evolutions are completed through openings in the hull
A frigate is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied.
A sailing frigate of 1802. The French Penelope.
Baden-Württemberg, lead ship of her class of frigates of the German Navy, currently the biggest frigates worldwide.
Light frigate, circa 1675–1680
Boudeuse, of Louis Antoine de Bougainville