Esmeraldas-class
Italian corvette, introduced in 1982, displaces 685 tons and uses four MTU diesel engines.
| Subtype | Corvette |
| Displacement | 685 tons |
| Crew | 51 members |
| Width | 9.3 m (30.5 ft) |
| Length | 62.3 m (204.4 ft) |
| Propulsion | 4 shaft MTU diesel engines, 24,400 hp (18,200 kW) |
| Range | 4400 km at 1200 knots |
| Maximum speed | 37 knots |
- Bell 206 helicopter
Description
The Esmeraldas-class corvettes are a series of six warships built for the Ecuadorian Navy by the Italian shipbuilder Cantieri Navali Riuniti (CNR, later Fincantieri). The Ecuadorian Navy ordered the vessels in 1978 or 1979. The design is based on the Type 550 corvette, similar to the Assad and Laksamana classes built for export. The Esmeraldas class represents a development of the Wadi M'ragh-class missile corvettes built by CNR for Libya in the late 1970s, configured with more powerful propulsion and revised equipment.
Propulsion is provided by four MTU MA20 V 956 TB 92 diesel engines driving four propeller shafts. The armament of the Esmeraldas class consists of six Exocet MM40 anti-ship missiles in two triple mounts amidships, and a quadruple launcher for the Albatros surface-to-air missile system firing Aspide missiles, located aft of the mast. Gun systems include a forward-mounted OTO Melara 76 mm Compact gun and a twin Bofors 40 mm anti-aircraft mount aft. For anti-submarine operations, the corvettes carry two triple 324 mm torpedo tubes designed to launch Whitehead A244 torpedoes. A helipad positioned amidships allows the operation of a Bell 206 helicopter, though the ships do not feature a hangar. The onboard sensor suite comprises a Selenia RAN-10S air/surface search radar, two Selenia Orion 10X fire control radars, and a Thomson Sintra Diodon hull-mounted sonar.
The six ships of the class—BAE Esmeraldas, BAE Manabí, BAE Los Rios, BAE El Oro, BAE Galápagos, and BAE Loja—were constructed at CNR's Muggiano and Ancona shipyards, entering service between 1982 and 1984. BAE El Oro was severely damaged by a fire on 14 April 1985, requiring two years of repairs. In 1991, the torpedo tubes from two of the corvettes were removed to equip the Leander-class frigates BAE Presidente Eloy Alfaro and BAE Morán Valverde, which Ecuador purchased from the British Royal Navy. A planned upgrade to the ships' combat and fire control systems in 1993–1994 was canceled due to a lack of funding. Between 2017 and 2018, the Ecuadorian shipyard Astinave completed life-extension refits for BAE Los Rios, BAE Manabí, and BAE Loja. These updates included the installation of a locally developed Orion combat management system.