Finnish Navy 🇫🇮

Overview

The Finnish Navy, known as "Merivoimat" in Finnish, is the naval branch of Finland's Defence Forces. Its primary role is to secure Finland's territorial integrity, especially its extensive coastline and numerous islands in the Baltic Sea. Given Finland's geopolitical situation and its proximity to Russia, the navy places a strong emphasis on coastal defense, anti-submarine warfare, and mine countermeasures. Finland is not a NATO member but has increasingly participated in cooperative exercises and agreements with NATO and EU nations.

One of the Finnish Navy's most distinctive features is its focus on shallow-water and littoral warfare, reflecting the unique maritime geography of the region, including the archipelago and the Gulf of Finland. The navy operates a variety of ships and crafts tailored for these environments. The surface fleet consists mainly of fast attack missile boats, mine countermeasure vessels, and patrol boats. The Hamina-class fast attack craft are one of the navy’s technological highlights, equipped with advanced sensors, anti-ship missiles, and torpedoes.

Minesweeping and mine-laying capabilities hold a significant role in the Finnish Navy's strategy. Given the confined and shallow waters of the Baltic Sea, mines can be highly effective in controlling sea lanes and harbors. As a result, the navy operates a fleet of specialized mine warfare vessels and is in the process of acquiring new capabilities in this area.

The Finnish Navy also has an air component, the Finnish Naval Aviation, which includes a variety of helicopters and drones for reconnaissance, transport, and search and rescue operations. However, the air component is relatively modest in size.

A key initiative for the Finnish Navy is the ongoing Squadron 2020 project, aimed at replacing several aging vessels with four new multi-role corvettes. These ships are expected to be equipped with anti-ship missiles, surface-to-air missiles, torpedoes, and naval guns, thus providing a significant boost to Finland's naval capabilities.

Key facts

Official Name	Finnish Navy
Country	🇫🇮 Finland
World rank	#14
Ships in service	200 (as of 2025)
Total ships	230
Naval ensign

Number of active ships by category

Ship category	Active
Amphibious ships	149
Support ships	40
Mine Warfare ships	18
Corvettes	12
Other ships	11

Compare this Navy

🇫🇮 Finland vs

Detailed inventory of Finnish Navy

Amphibious ships

Type	Class	Ship Name	Hull Number	Status	Year
Landing craft	G class		G98-99, G101–G135 (37 ships)	Active	2001
	Jehu	U-700 series	U701–U712 (12 ships)	Active	2014
	Jurmo	U-600 series	U601–U638, U639-U655 (54 ships)	Active	2000
	Uisko	U-200 series	U210–U211 (2 ships)	Active	1983
	Uisko	U-300 series	U301–U317 (17 ships)	Active	1983
	Uisko	U-400 series	U400–	Active	1983
	Jurmo		U639-U655 (17 ships)	Ordered	-
Transport vessel	Kewatec Work 1920		U501-U509 (9 ships)	Ordered	-

Corvettes

Type	Class	Ship Name	Hull Number	Status	Year
Missile boat	Hamina	Hamina	80	Active	1998
	Hamina	Tornio	81	Active	2003
	Hamina	Hanko	82	Active	2005
	Hamina	Pori	83	Active	2006
	Rauma	Rauma	70	Active	1990
	Rauma	Raahe	71	Active	1991
	Rauma	Porvoo	72	Active	1992
	Rauma	Naantali	73	Active	1992
Corvette	Pohjanmaa		(4 ships)	Ordered	-

Mine Warfare ships

Type	Class	Ship Name	Hull Number	Status	Year
Minelayer	Hämeenmaa	Hämeenmaa	2	Active	1992
	Hämeenmaa	Uusimaa	5	Active	1992
Mine countermeasure vessel	Katanpää	Katanpää	40	Active	2012
	Katanpää	Purunpää	41	Active	2013
	Katanpää	Vahterpää	42	Active	2016
Minesweeper	Kiiski	Kiiski 1	521	Active	1982
	Kiiski	Kiiski 3	523	Active	1982
	Kiiski	Kiiski 4	524	Active	1982
	Kiiski	Kiiski 5	525	Active	1982
	Kiiski	Kiiski 6	526	Active	1982
	Kiiski	Kiiski 7	527	Active	1982
	Kuha	Kuha 21	21	Active	1974
	Kuha	Kuha 23	23	Active	1974
	Kuha	Kuha 24	24	Active	1974
	Kuha	Kuha 26	26	Active	1974
Mine warfare vessel	Pansio	Pansio	90	Active	1991
	Pansio	Pyhäranta	92	Active	1992
	Pansio	Porkkala	91	Active	1992

Other ships

Type	Class	Ship Name	Hull Number	Status	Year
Cable layer	-	K410	K410	Active	2009
	-	K411	K411	Active	2010
Experimental craft	-	Isku	826	Active	1969
Pollution control vessel	-	Hylje	799	Active	1981
	-	Halli	899	Active	1986
	-	Louhi	999	Active	2011
Training ship	Fabian Wrede	Fabian Wrede	690	Active	2006
	Fabian Wrede	Wilhelm Carpelan	691	Active	2006
	Fabian Wrede	Axel von Fersen	692	Active	2006
	Heikki	H1	681	Active	-
	Lokki	Kajava	56	Active	-

Support ships

Type	Class	Ship Name	Hull Number	Status	Year
Command	Askeri	Askeri	241	Active	-
Transport	Hauki	Havouri	133	Active	1979
	Hauki	Hakuni	731	Active	1979
	Hauki	Houtskär	836	Active	1979
Tugboat	Haukipää	Haukipää	731	Active	1985
	Haukipää	Kallanpää	831	Active	1986
Transport	Hila	Hila	237	Active	-
	Hila	Haruna	238	Active	-
	Hila	Hästö	739	Active	-
	Hila	Högsåra	830	Active	-
	Kampela	Kampela 3	877	Active	1979
	L100		L101–106 L108–113 (12 ships)	Active	1985
	Lohi	Lohm	752	Active	-
Command	Syöksy	Jymy	511	Active	-
	Syöksy	Raju	512	Active	-
	Syöksy	Syöksy	531	Active	-
	Syöksy	Vinha	541	Active	-
	Träskö	Träskö	792	Active	-
Transport	Utö	Utö	U501	Active	2022
	Utö		U502	Active	2022
	Utö		U503	Active	2022
	Utö		U504	Active	2022
	Utö		U505	Active	2022
	Utö		U506	Active	2022
	Utö		U507	Active	2022
	Utö		U508	Active	2022
	Utö		U509	Active	2022
	Valas	Vaarlahti	722	Active	1979
	Valas	Vänö	723	Active	1979

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