Iver Huitfeldt-class

A Danish air-defense frigate built to commercial-ship construction standards to keep cost low, giving it an unusually large weapons capacity for its price relative to comparable NATO frigates. It carries a large Mk 41 vertical launch system for SM-2 and ESSM missiles alongside Harpoon anti-ship missiles.

In service since 2011 · 1 operator countries

Compiled from public sources ·primary reference ↗ ·last verified 2026-07-02

6,645

9,000

nmi

VLS

100

crew

Procurement snapshot

Availability & export

National export licensing

Subject to Denmark export-control approval; verify eligibility with the manufacturer.

Channel: Direct commercial / G2G

Fielded & proven

Limited · 1 operator

In service since 2011. Status: active · ~3 built.

Lifecycle cost (est.)

No public unit price to model from.

Interoperability

Mk 41 VLS-class

Derived guidance from public data — export regime by country of origin, lifecycle from the GAO ~30% acquisition rule. Verify eligibility, pricing and offsets with the manufacturer and your acquisition authority.

Full specifications

Firepower

Armament, payload and guidance.

Main armament Primary weapon: main gun, cannon or missile type.: 1x 76 mm Oto Melara naval gun
VLS cells Vertical-launch missile cells on a warship — a proxy for magazine depth. Higher means more missiles before rearming.: 32

Stronger than 50% of warships

Physical

Dimensions, weight and crew.

Length Overall length including gun/probe where applicable.: 138.7 m

Naval

Displacement, speed, endurance and diving depth.

Displacement Standard displacement in tonnes — the ship’s size class. Larger hulls carry more but cost more and are less agile.: 6,645 t
Full-load displacement Displacement fully loaded with fuel, stores and munitions.: 6,645 t
Max speed Top speed in knots (surfaced, for submarines). Higher aids positioning and screening.: 30 kn

Stronger than 74% of warships
Range Cruising range in nautical miles. Nuclear vessels are effectively unlimited (fuel-wise). Higher means more reach without replenishment.: 9,000 nmi

Stronger than 89% of warships
Complement Crew size. Fewer eases manning cost; more may indicate a larger, more capable platform.: 100
Propulsion plant Machinery type — nuclear reactor, gas turbine (COGAG), CODAG, diesel-electric, AIP.: CODAD: 4x MAN diesel engines

Sensors & avionics

Radar, sensor suite and datalinks.

Radar Primary radar. AESA (active electronically scanned array) is the current state of the art.: Thales SMART-L / APAR

Program

Cost, production scale and operators.

Units built Total production run. Higher means proven manufacturing, mature logistics and spares availability.: 3

Stronger than 41% of warships
Operator countries Number of countries operating the system. More operators means broader support ecosystem.: 1

Stronger than 45% of warships

Specifications compiled from public Odense Steel Shipyard and reference sources ↗. Published defense figures are approximations — treat comparisons as directional. Last verified 2026-07-02.

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