The king, as the supreme ruler, makes all major military decisions. The post of defense minister has always been held by a member of the ruling al-Khalifa family. Military service in Bahrain is voluntary. Despite long-stated intentions to recruit more Bahraini nationals to the armed forces, there still appears to be a significant expatriate component in their ranks. 3,638 tons full load; length 1,356 meters; speed 29 knots; two GE LM2500 gas turbines; four Harpoon anti-ship and 36 SM-1MR air defense missiles, one Mk 13 Mod 4 launcher; one Oto Melara 76mm/62 Mk 75 gun, one 20mm Vulcan Phalanx Mk 15 multibarrel gun, four 12.7mm machine guns; six 324mm Mk 32 Mod 7 torpedo tubes (two triple); Naval Tactical Data System (NTDS) with Link 14; SPS-49(Ⅴ)4 air search, SPS-55 surface search, STIR, and Mk 92 fire control radars; SQS-56 sonar; SLQ-25 torpedo decoy, SLQ-32(Ⅴ)2 radar warning system with Sidekick; fields one BO 105 helicopter but needs SH-2G-type model to reach full ASW capability; from U.S. Navy surplus stocks; tentative plans being formulated to replace this manpower-intensive ship, which requires a crew of 216.
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