Morocco Deploys FREMM Frigate in French Carrier Escort Operation as ORION 2026 Expands at Sea.

The Royal Moroccan Navy FREMM frigate Mohammed VI has joined the escort screen of France’s aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle as the task force consolidates for high-intensity operations in the North Atlantic under Exercise ORION 2026.

Over the past few days, the French Navy’s carrier force built around the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle has been tightening into a full combat formation as it heads toward the North Atlantic and signals readiness to operate deeper into colder, more contested waters. One of the most notable additions during this assembly and warm-up period has been the arrival of the Royal Moroccan Navy FREMM frigate Mohammed VI, now integrated into the escort group as the multinational screen expands and crews shift from transit routines to high-end warfighting drills.
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Moroccan FREMM-type frigate Mohammed VI joins the escort screen of France's aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle during Exercise ORION 2026, strengthening the multinational task force's anti-submarine and air-defense layers as allied navies rehearse high-intensity carrier production operations in the North Atlantic (Picture source: French MoD/ Morocco's Navy).

ORION 2026 is conceived as a high-intensity, multi-domain training event designed to prepare forces for hybrid and peer-level conflict, with a strong emphasis on interoperability, coalition command structures, and realistic decision-making under pressure. The exercise runs from early February through the end of April 2026, with the opening phase dedicated to force generation, deployment, and the establishment of superiority across all domains, including the maritime environment.

The naval component is central to the exercise design rather than a supporting element. ORION 2026 mobilizes a powerful maritime force structure centered on a Carrier Strike Group, supported by amphibious units and a large number of surface combatants and embarked aircraft. The scenario places maritime commanders in charge of securing sea lines of communication, protecting critical naval assets, and enabling follow-on joint operations ashore. In practical terms, this means sustained carrier operations, complex escort maneuvers, and continuous integration with air and land components under a single operational framework.

Within this construct, the arrival of Mohammed VI is operationally significant. Commissioned into the Royal Moroccan Navy in the mid-2010s, the frigate is derived from the FREMM multi-mission design and optimized primarily for anti-submarine warfare. Displacing around 6,000 tons and capable of speeds approaching 27 knots, the ship is well suited to operate alongside a fast-moving carrier group while maintaining the flexibility required for wide-area screening tasks.

The frigate brings a balanced and modern combat system to the escort formation. Its sensor suite is built around a three-dimensional multifunction radar integrated into a networked combat management system, allowing it to contribute to the shared tactical picture of the strike group. For air defense, the ship is equipped with vertical-launch surface-to-air missiles and a medium-caliber main gun, providing point and local area protection against aircraft and incoming missiles. In the surface warfare role, the frigate’s anti-ship missile armament gives the task force an additional layer of deterrence and strike capability against hostile surface units.

The ship’s core value, however, lies below the surface. Designed around the anti-submarine mission, Mohammed VI combines hull-mounted and variable-depth sonar systems with lightweight torpedoes and an embarked naval helicopter. This configuration allows it to detect, track, and prosecute submarines at extended ranges, a capability that is critical when operating in the acoustically challenging waters of the North Atlantic. Within a carrier escort group, such a platform is typically assigned to outer or intermediate ASW screens, pushing detection arcs away from the high-value unit and buying time for layered defensive responses.

The protection of the aircraft carrier remains one of the most demanding tasks in modern naval warfare. A nuclear-powered carrier concentrates airpower, command-and-control capabilities, and political signaling into a single platform, making it a prime target for submarines, long-range cruise missiles, and coordinated multi-vector attacks. Effective defense therefore relies on depth, redundancy, and constant coordination among escort ships, submarines, and carrier-based aircraft. Exercises like ORION 2026 deliberately stress these systems, forcing crews to operate under conditions of uncertainty, electronic interference, and compressed decision timelines.

ORION 2026 also stands out for its multinational scope. Alongside French naval units, the exercise integrates ships and forces from several partner nations, including Spain and Morocco, under a French-led command structure. This diversity is not symbolic. It requires participating navies to align procedures, data links, and tactical doctrines, testing whether units with different national backgrounds can operate as a coherent combat team. For Morocco, the deployment of Mohammed VI alongside one of Europe’s premier carrier strike groups represents both a political signal and a practical demonstration of interoperability at the high end of naval operations.

In this context, the arrival of the Moroccan frigate is more than a routine port call or ceremonial participation. It is a tangible test of coalition naval warfare, assessing how a capable regional navy integrates into a complex escort architecture designed to protect a strategic asset in a high-intensity scenario. For ORION 2026, it reinforces the exercise’s core objective: preparing multinational forces to fight, survive, and prevail together at sea.