Deputy PM attends launch of vessel in Italy's Palermo

At the presence of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Defence Affairs, Dr. Khalid bin Mohamed Al Attiyah, and Italian Minister of Defense, Guido Crosetto, the launching ceremony of “Al Fulk”, the amphibious vessel (LPD – Landing Platform Dock) ordered to Fincantieri by the Qatari Ministry of Defence within the national naval acquisition program, took place at the Palermo shipyard.

Qatar's Ambassador to Italy Khaled bin Yousef Al Sadah, Commander of the Qatar Amiri Navy Forces Staff Major General (Navy) Abdullah bin Hassan Al Sulaiti, Qatar's Military Attache in Italy Staff Major General (Navy) Hilal bin Ali Al Mohannadi and many high-ranking officers from Qatar Armed Forces attended the ceremony.

Fincantieri Chairman Claudio Graziano and a number of directors of the company also attended the ceremony.

The main mission of the vessel will be air defense. It will work in conjunction with the Al Zubarah-class air defense corvettes and share long range air picture with them. The LPD will be fitted with a Kronos multifunction radar (similar to the one fitted on the corvettes) as well as a new L-Band radar by Leonardo known as Kronos Power Shield. Naval News understands this radar was too large to be fitted on the corvette, this is why this solution (corvette + LPD) was proposed to fit the unique requirement of the Qatar Emiri Naval Forces.