Aviso

The Dictionnaire de la Marine Française 1788 – 1792 (by Nicolas-Charles Romme) describes avisos as "small boats designed to carry orders or advices".

World War I avisos, used also during World War II, had displacement 300-700 tons, speed 13-20 knots, main armament usually of two 100 mm or 138 mm guns or four 100 mm guns. In English nomenclature they are often referred to as sloops. Bigger were colonial avisos Bougainville class, intended for overseas service.

Modern avisos have grown to become combat-capable ships, smaller in size than a corvette, but larger than patrol ships. They typically have roles in anti-submarine coastal defence. In NATO classification they are usually recognized as corvettes.

See also

• D'Estienne d'Orves class