Spanish Navy Fleet Inventory 🇪🇸

The Spanish Navy, or "Armada Española," is one of the oldest and most storied naval forces in Europe, with roots dating back to the 15th century. In its modern form, the navy is a significant component of the Spanish Armed Forces and plays a key role in Spain's defense strategy, as well as in fulfilling its NATO commitments. The Spanish Navy is responsible for a wide range of functions, including territorial defense, international peacekeeping, anti-piracy operations, and humanitarian aid missions.

The surface fleet of the Spanish Navy is diverse and relatively modern. At the high end, the navy operates the Alvaro de Bazán-class frigates equipped with the Aegis Combat System, making them highly capable in anti-air warfare roles. These frigates can also engage in anti-surface and anti-submarine operations, offering a multirole capability. In addition to the frigates, Spain has a number of patrol vessels and minehunters that provide versatility for littoral operations and other specific tasks such as anti-mining and surveillance.

One of the standout features of the Spanish Navy is its amphibious and aircraft carrier capabilities. The Juan Carlos I, a multi-purpose amphibious assault ship, serves as the navy's flagship. Capable of carrying helicopters and short takeoff and vertical landing (STOVL) aircraft like the AV-8B Harrier II, the vessel is instrumental in power projection and humanitarian operations. The navy also has a complement of Galicia-class and Castilla-class landing platform docks (LPD) to further bolster its amphibious capabilities.

Submarines form another critical component of the navy's operational scope. Spain is in the process of replacing its older Agosta-class submarines with the advanced S-80 Plus-class submarines. These new boats are expected to substantially enhance Spain's underwater capabilities, particularly in anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare.

Key facts

Official Name Spanish Navy
Country🇪🇸 Spain
World rank#24
Ships in service78 (as of 2024)
Total ships78
Naval ensign

Ensign of Spain navy

Number of active ships by category

Ship category Active
Other ships 27
Patrol boats 24
Frigates 11
Mine Warfare ships 6
Support ships 4
Submarines 3
Amphibious ships 2
Aircraft carriers 1

Detailed inventory of Spanish Navy

Amphibious ships

Type Class Ship Name Hull Number Status Year
Amphibious transport dock Galicia Galicia L-51 Active 1998
Galicia Castilla L-52 Active 2000

Aircraft carriers

Type Class Ship Name Hull Number Status Year
Aircraft-carrying amphibious assault ship [5] Juan Carlos I Juan Carlos I L-61 Active 2010

Frigates

Type Class Ship Name Hull Number Status Year
ASW frigate Santa María Santa María F-81 Active 1986
Santa María Victoria F-82 Active 1987
Santa María Numancia F-83 Active 1989
Santa María Reina Sofía F-84 Active 1990
Santa María Navarra F-85 Active 1994
Santa María Canarias F-86 Active 1995
Air-defence frigate Álvaro de Bazán Álvaro de Bazán F-101 Active 2002
Álvaro de Bazán Almirante Juan de Borbón F-102 Active 2003
Álvaro de Bazán Blas de Lezo F-103 Active 2004
Álvaro de Bazán Méndez Núñez F-104 Active 2006
Álvaro de Bazán Cristóbal Colón F-105 Active 2012

Mine Warfare ships

Type Class Ship Name Hull Number Status Year
Minehunter Segura Segura M-31 Active 1999
Segura Sella M-32 Active 1999
Segura Tambre M-33 Active 2000
Segura Turia M-34 Active 2000
Segura Duero M-35 Active 2004
Segura Tajo M-36 Active 2005

Other ships

Type Class Ship Name Hull Number Status Year
Training ship - Arosa A72 Active 1981
- La Graciosa A74 Active 1988
- Sisargas A75 Active 1995
- Giralda A76 Active 1993
- Peregrina A78 Active 2007
- Contramaestre Navarrete A82 Active 1983
- Contramaestre Sanchez Fernandez A83 Active 1983
- Contramaestre Antero A84 Active 1984
- Contramaestre Lamadrid A85 Active 1984
- Guardiamarina Barrutia A121 Active 2006
- Guardiamarina Chereguini A122 Active 2006
- Guardiamarina Rull A123 Active 2007
- Guardiamarina Salas A124 Active 2007
Salvage tug Amatista Mar Caribe A-101 Active 1988
Submarine rescue ship Amatista Mod Neptuno A-20 Active 1988
Hydrographic boat Castor Antares A-23 Active 1974
Fleet tug Circos Mahón A-51 Active 1982
Polar research ship Circos Mod Las Palmas A-52 Active 1981
Hespérides Hespérides A-33 Active 1991
Training vessel Intermares Intermares A-41 Active 2018
Sail training vessel Juan Sebastián Elcano Juan Sebastián Elcano A-71 Active 1928
Hydrographic ships Malaspina Malaspina A-31 Active 1975
Malaspina Tofiño A-32 Active 1975
Fleet tug Punta Amer La Graña A-53 Active 1987
Hydrographic boats Rodman 1250 Astrolabio A-91 Active 2001
Rodman 1250 Escandallo A-92 Active 2004
Hydrographic boat Sondaleza Sondaleza A-93 Active 2016

Patrol boats

Type Class Ship Name Hull Number Status Year
Patrol boat Anaga Tagomago P-22 Active 1981
Anaga Medas P-26 Active 1981
Anaga Tabarca P-28 Active 1981
Aresa P-101 P-101 Active 1978
Aresa P-114 P-114 Active 1979
Cabo Fradera Cabo Fradera P-201 Active 1963
Chilreu Alborán P-62 Active 1997
Chilreu Arnomendi P-63 Active 2000
Chilreu Tarifa P-64 Active 2004
Corvette Descubierta Infanta Cristina P-77 Active 1980
Offshore (oceanic) patrol vessel Meteoro Meteoro P-41 Active 2011
Meteoro Rayo P-42 Active 2011
Meteoro Relámpago P-43 Active 2012
Meteoro Tornado P-44 Active 2012
Meteoro Audaz [13] P-45 Active 2018
Meteoro Furor P-46 Active 2019
Patrol boat Rodman 101 Isla de León P-83 Active 2003
Rodman 101 Isla Pinto P-84 Active 2023
Serviola Serviola P-71 Active 1991
Serviola Centinela P-72 Active 1991
Serviola Vigía P-73 Active 1992
Serviola Atalaya P-74 Active 1992
Toralla Toralla P-81 Active 1987
Toralla Formentor P-82 Active 1989

Submarines

Type Class Ship Name Hull Number Status Year
Attack submarine Galerna Galerna S-71 Active 1983
Galerna Tramontana S-74 Active 1985
S-80 Plus Isaac Peral S-81 Active 2023

Support ships

Type Class Ship Name Hull Number Status Year
EW support ship Alerta Alerta A-111 Active 1992
Replenishment oiler Cantabria Cantabria A-15 Active 2010
Patiño Patiño A-14 Active 1995
Logistics support ship Suardiaz Galicia Ysabel A-06 Active 2021