HS THEMISTOKLIS (F465) was a Hellenic Navy Standard / Elli-class frigate, originally built in the Netherlands as HNLMS PHILIPS VAN ALMONDE (F823) of the Royal Netherlands Navy. Launched in 1979 and commissioned into Dutch service in 1981, the frigate was transferred to Greece in 2003 and served with the Hellenic Navy for almost 23 years. Her long operational career finally ended on 20 March 2026, when the Greek flag was lowered for the last time at Salamis Naval Base.
The ship belonged to the Dutch Kortenaer class, known in Greek service as the Standard or “S” class. She measured approximately 130.5 metres in length, displaced around 3,600–3,900 tonnes depending on load condition, and used a powerful COGOG gas-turbine propulsion system capable of speeds of around 30 knots.
Vessel Details
Final Name: HS THEMISTOKLIS
Former Name: HNLMS PHILIPS VAN ALMONDE
Pennant Number: F465
Former Pennant Number: F823
Type: Frigate
Class: Standard / Elli class
Original Class: Kortenaer class
Navy: Hellenic Navy
Former Navy: Royal Netherlands Navy
Builder: Wilton-Fijenoord, Schiedam, Netherlands
Laid Down: 1 October 1977
Launched: 11 August 1979
Commissioned in Netherlands: 2 December 1981
Decommissioned from Dutch Navy: 2002
Transferred to Greece: 2003
Greek Flag Raised: 24 October 2003
Arrived in Greece: 9 March 2004
Decommissioned from Hellenic Navy: 20 March 2026
Length Overall: approx. 130.5 m
Beam: approx. 14.5 m
Draught: approx. 4.4 m
Full Load Displacement: approx. 3,800–3,900 t
Crew: up to approx. 198
Maximum Speed: approx. 30–31 knots
Range: approx. 4,700 nautical miles at 16 knots.
Propulsion
THEMISTOKLIS used a COGOG – Combined Gas Or Gas propulsion arrangement with:
2 × Rolls-Royce Olympus TM3B gas turbines for high-speed operation
2 × Rolls-Royce Tyne RM1C gas turbines for cruising
2 shafts
The same propulsion arrangement equipped the other former Dutch Standard-class frigates of the Hellenic Navy and provided a maximum speed of approximately 30–31 knots.
Armament in Greek Service
During her Hellenic Navy career, THEMISTOKLIS carried a typical armament fit of the former Dutch Standard-class frigates, including:
1 × OTO Melara 76/62 naval gun
1 × Phalanx Mk15 CIWS
Up to 8 × RGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missiles
Mk29 launcher for NATO Sea Sparrow surface-to-air missiles
2 × twin Mk32 324 mm torpedo launchers
Electronic countermeasure / chaff launchers
Capability to operate AB-212 ASW helicopters.
From PHILIPS VAN ALMONDE to THEMISTOKLIS
The frigate began her career as HNLMS PHILIPS VAN ALMONDE (F823), named after the Dutch admiral Philips van Almonde. Her keel was laid in October 1977, she was launched in August 1979 and entered Royal Netherlands Navy service on 2 December 1981.
During more than twenty years under the Dutch flag, PHILIPS VAN ALMONDE participated in NATO operations and deployments, including service connected with the 1990–1991 Gulf War and later Operation Enduring Freedom. She was withdrawn from Dutch service in 2002 and sold to Greece.
The Greek flag was raised on 24 October 2003 at Den Helder, and the vessel was renamed THEMISTOKLIS, honouring the Athenian statesman and naval strategist whose policies contributed decisively to the Greek victory at Salamis in 480 BC. The frigate arrived at Salamis Naval Base on 9 March 2004.
Her name history is therefore:
PHILIPS VAN ALMONDE (F823) → THEMISTOKLIS (F465)
Service with the Hellenic Navy
THEMISTOKLIS became one of the heavily employed units of the Greek fleet. During her Greek career she participated in national exercises, NATO deployments and multinational operations including UNIFIL, EUNAVFOR MED IRINI and NATO's SNMG2.
Her operational tempo was particularly striking in 2022, when the ship spent 218 days at sea, an achievement for which her crew received recognition. By the time of her retirement, the vessel had accumulated approximately 900,000 nautical miles during her Hellenic Navy service.
THEMISTOKLIS also served in training roles. In the summer of 2020, she departed Piraeus together with landing ship LESVOS for the Hellenic Naval Academy's annual Summer Training Cruise, carrying Naval Cadets on a month-long training deployment.
Decommissioned – 20 March 2026
The most important update to the original PiraeuShips page is that THEMISTOKLIS is no longer in active service.
On 20 March 2026, a formal decommissioning and flag-lowering ceremony was held at Salamis Naval Base, bringing to an end approximately 45 years of naval service under the Dutch and Greek flags. She had spent almost half of that career with the Hellenic Navy.
Her retirement came as the Hellenic Navy began introducing its new FDI HN frigates. The name THEMISTOKLIS is planned to live on aboard the fourth Greek FDI frigate, F600.
Piraeus Connection
THEMISTOKLIS had a strong connection with the wider Piraeus–Salamis naval area throughout her Greek career. Independent photographic records document the frigate outside the Port of Piraeus on 8 July 2011, while Piraeus was also used as the starting point for her 2020 Naval Academy training cruise.
The vessel later became part of the PiraeuShips archive, with the original THEMISTOKLIS F465 page published in 2023.
PiraeuShips Record
HS THEMISTOKLIS F465 was documented by PiraeuShips during the frigate's long career with the Hellenic Navy. Originally commissioned in 1981 as the Dutch frigate PHILIPS VAN ALMONDE, she joined the Greek fleet in 2003 and subsequently served for almost 23 years in national, NATO and international operations. The frigate was finally decommissioned at Salamis Naval Base on 20 March 2026 after a combined naval career of approximately 45 years, turning the original PiraeuShips footage into a record of a warship that has now passed into history.
Original video footage © PiraeuShips. All rights reserved.
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