On 5 October 2007, Belgium retired the Westdiep , its fourth and final Wielingen -class frigate. The ship, shown here, was constructed at Cockerill shipyard in Hoboken, Antwerp, and was the second of four frigates Belgium built during the late 1970s. Sister ships Wielingen , Wandelaar , and Westhinder served with the Westdiep ably through the decades, although the Westhinder was the first of the class to retire, decommissioning in 1993. The remaining three vessels soldiered on into the 21st century, retiring between 2004 and 2007. Bulgaria, which bought the Wandelaar in 2004 and renamed the vessel Druzki , has expressed interest in purchasing two additional ships of the class. The long-serving Wielingen class is being replaced in Belgian service by two retired Karel Doorman —class frigates transferred from the Netherlands and subsequently renamed the Leopold I and Louise Marie .
