Cristóbal Colón is the fifth and last ship of the of air defence frigates entering service with the Spanish Navy. The ship is named after Christopher Columbus, the Genoese explorer that claimed the discovery of North America in the name of the Crown of Castile. It is the most capable and modern warship of the Spanish Navy.

Operational history Cristóbal Colón was ordered on 20 May 2005 and construction started in the Ferrol shipyards on 29 June 2007. The ship was launched on 4 November 2010 and commissioned on 23 October 2012. The frigate was sponsored by the Infanta Margarita, Duchess of Soria.

On 9 February 2013, it sailed from its base in Ferrol, in its first navigation out of the Galician waters to set sail for the naval base of Rota, where it arrived on 11 February. It began a process of inspection, certification and naval training that ended on the 15 February. On 14 February a Sikorsky SH-3 made the first landing on its flight deck.Primera toma de un helicóptero en la cubierta de vuelo de la fragata “Cristóbal Colón” On 24 February 2014, she sailed from her base in Ferrol to join the Atalanta anti-piracy operation in Indian waters.La ferrolana fragata Cristóbal Colón se estrena en la lucha contra la piratería

On 16 March 2014 she relieved Álvaro de Bazán in Djibouti. While in port an accidental firing of the 127-mm cannon occurred. The shell fell to the sea floor after flying over a hotel and a mosque. Spanish diplomatic authorities had to apologize.La Armada investiga el cañonazo fortuito de un buque en Yibuti

On 26 and 27 June 2014, the frigate escorted the cruiser against conventional aerial threat in Vella Gulf's passage through the Mediterranean, as the US Navy was configuring a combat system to intercept ballistic targets outside the Earth's atmosphere.La fragata «Cristóbal Colón» protege a un buque de guerra de la US Navy

On 11 July 2014 she returned to her base in Ferrol. The other four ships of the class were also at Ferrol, so that for the first time, the five frigates of the class made a joint training exercise as part of the 31st Escort Squadron.Las cinco fragatas F-100, juntas en la mar por primera vez

In mid-July 2016 Cristóbal Colón certified her combat system in Norfolk, Virginia with the American destroyer ,La F-105 termina con éxito en Norfolk su prueba de misiles after which she made a stopover in Halifax, Canada to support Navantia's commercial options in a contest for the construction of fifteen frigates.Navantia ya está en la lista corta del programa de fragatas de Canadá The ship arrived at her base in Ferrol on 2 August 2016.La «Cristóbal Colón» ya es una fragata 100 % operativa

On 9 January 2017, F105 sailed from her base in Ferrol to Australia, arriving on 20 February 2017. There she helped train the crews of Australian Hobart class ships based on the . On 20 and 21 January 2017, a stopover took place in the Saudi Arabian port of Yeda, where the ship received a delegation from the Royal Saudi Navy.La «Cristóbal Colón» visita Arabia Saudí en su navegación hacia AustraliaLa fragata Cristóbal Colón llega a Australia

On 24 June 2017, the frigate finished its deployment in Australia and began its return to base. After stopping in Papeete, French Polynesia and Callao, Peru it arrived back to Ferrol in August.La fragata Cristóbal Colón finaliza su despliegue en Australia The ship participated in exercise UNITAS 2017 between July 13 and 26.España participa en el ejercicio Unitas con su buque más moderno

In early March 2026 the frigate was deployed to prevent further potential Iranian attacks on Cyprus.https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2026-03-05/europe-commits-to-expanding-iran-campaign-as-israel-strikes-southern-lebanon

Differences from the rest of the class The design of the Cristóbal Colón incorporates several improvements with respect to the original design of the class. It incorporates new Bravo 16V engines that increase its maximum speed and a bow thruster of 850 kW for operations in port. In weaponry and combat systems, two 25mm Mk 38 guns are added for close defense, a new electronic and submarine warfare control system, Aries surface surveillance radar, SPY-1 radar improvements, and improvements in communications and control systems. F105 can also operate with NH 90 helicopters by expanding the hangar and flight deck.

See also F110-class frigate Spanish frigate Blas de Lezo

References