Interesting, there was some discussion back in 2019 about whether Finland's Pohjanmaa-Class Corvettes (under construction now) would more properly be called Frigates.
There was some political consideration, as Frigates deploy, but Corvettes stay closer to home waters. With that in mind, the ship- despite some public questioning- remains classified as a corvette.
As Robin Häggblom (blogger Corporal Frisk) put it:
"The displacement is on the larger side for a corvette, the capabilities are at the very high end for being a corvette, and are in fact higher than many relatively modern frigates. Is there anything then that stops them from being frigates?"
The author notes the shallow draft, necessary to be sure the ships can reach key parts in the Baltic Sea's archipelago. He then concludes:
"Is she then a frigate? I personally would have to answer with “Yes, but not that kind of a frigate.” Designating her a corvette isn’t necessarily wrong either, but that would also have to be accompanied by the same asterisk. Ironically, it does seem that today’s Pohjanmaa-class will inherit not only the name but also a difficulty in straightforward classification from the original Pojama-class of the late 18th century. I guess we’ll simply have to resurrect the phrase “archipelago frigate”."
One of the big things that rule a peacetime navy is the need to have the big ships in place when the war starts. They take the longest time to build.
I am a huge advocate of small ships and fast attack craft. But, they are quick and easy to build in time of war, and expensive to maintain in peacetime. I will guarantee, if Australia (or any other country, for that matter) finds themselves in a war, the small ships will be thrown out of every yard that can build one - much like the Flower Class Corvettes of WW1 and, more famously, WW2.
Interesting, there was some discussion back in 2019 about whether Finland's Pohjanmaa-Class Corvettes (under construction now) would more properly be called Frigates.
There was some political consideration, as Frigates deploy, but Corvettes stay closer to home waters. With that in mind, the ship- despite some public questioning- remains classified as a corvette.
As Robin Häggblom (blogger Corporal Frisk) put it:
"The displacement is on the larger side for a corvette, the capabilities are at the very high end for being a corvette, and are in fact higher than many relatively modern frigates. Is there anything then that stops them from being frigates?"
The author notes the shallow draft, necessary to be sure the ships can reach key parts in the Baltic Sea's archipelago. He then concludes:
"Is she then a frigate? I personally would have to answer with “Yes, but not that kind of a frigate.” Designating her a corvette isn’t necessarily wrong either, but that would also have to be accompanied by the same asterisk. Ironically, it does seem that today’s Pohjanmaa-class will inherit not only the name but also a difficulty in straightforward classification from the original Pojama-class of the late 18th century. I guess we’ll simply have to resurrect the phrase “archipelago frigate”."
https://corporalfrisk.com/2019/09/22/the-importance-of-being-a-corvette/
One of the big things that rule a peacetime navy is the need to have the big ships in place when the war starts. They take the longest time to build.
I am a huge advocate of small ships and fast attack craft. But, they are quick and easy to build in time of war, and expensive to maintain in peacetime. I will guarantee, if Australia (or any other country, for that matter) finds themselves in a war, the small ships will be thrown out of every yard that can build one - much like the Flower Class Corvettes of WW1 and, more famously, WW2.