The Type 103 Lütjens class was the last class of destroyers in service with the German Navy. The ships were US Charles F. Adams-class guided missile destroyers but with some modifications to meet German requirements.
They were replaced by the new Sachsen-class frigates, designated frigate even though they are much larger and more capable in all aspects than the Lütjens-class destroyers.
The three Lütjens destroyers were purchased from the US to provide air defence.[1]
For German use, they received the following modifications:
In turn, the new antennas and radar location meant that the funnels had to be modified. On the Lütjens the exhaust gases were emitted sideways with two pipes on the port and starboard side of each funnel.
The three ships in the class were commissioned in 1969 and 1970.[2] In service, they formed the 1. Zerstörergeschwader ("first destroyer squadron") based in Kiel.
The Lütjens class was upgraded to Type 103A in the 1970s with new digital fire-control computers and better missiles for the old Tartar SM1 missile system. The boilers were also converted to burn lighter oil for logistical reasons instead of the heavy fuel oil that needs to be preheated.
A second major refit was undertaken in the 1980s when the ships were upgraded to Type 103B. Missiles were upgraded with a single Modified Mark 13 missile launcher fitted able to fire the SM-1MR surface-to-air missile and Harpoon anti-ship missile. A typical balance was 32 of the former and 8 of the latter. Fire control was improved with upgraded computers and a new AN/SPG-60 radar which also provided illumination for the missiles.[2]
In the 1990s, the ships in the class each received two RIM-116 RAM launchers and Chaff launchers.
With the decommissioning of Lütjens (D185) on December 18, 2003 the age of steam ended for the German Navy. Mölders (D186) became a museum ship at the German Navy Museum in Wilhelmshaven.
Speeds over 30 knots (56 km/h) could be sustained for only a limited time due to the enormous fuel consumption. With two active boilers the ship could achieve speeds up to 27 knots (50 km/h). Three boilers made 30 knots (56 km/h) achievable. For any speed beyond 30 knots (56 km/h) all four boilers were needed.
All three ships were built by Bath Iron Works in the United States. They were named after famous German officers who died in World War II: Günther Lütjens who had commanded the Bismarck task group, the fighter ace Werner Mölders of the Luftwaffe, and Field Marshal Erwin Rommel.