cyclogenesis. By 4 February, the BoM reported that the disturbance had developed approximately north-northwest of Broome in Western Australia. During 6 February, the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) issued a Tropical Cyclone Formation Alert (TCFA) on the system. By 09:00 UTC, the JTWC initiated advisories on the system and classified it as Tropical Cyclone 11S. The BoM reported that the tropical low had developed into a Category 1 tropical cyclone on the Australian tropical cyclone intensity scale and named it Freddy. Later that next day, feeder bands were covering its very broad and central dense overcast (CDO), prompting the JTWC to upgrade the system to a Category 1-equivalent cyclone. The BoM subsequently followed suit and upgraded Freddy into a Category 2 tropical cyclone. Freddy attained Category 3 cyclone. Freddy began showing an eye feature seen in microwave imaging, with Freddy later becoming a Category 2-equivalent cyclone. Freddy weakened slightly due to CDO and a persistent area of cold cloud tops. Weakening occurred as the JTWC assessed that Freddy's winds bottomed out at . Freddy weakened back into a tropical storm, and the BoM estimated winds of , the weakening resulting from easterly wind shear. Crossover, rapid deepening, and first landfall Continuing to rapidly intensify, Freddy intensified, becoming a Category 3-equivalent cyclone around 15:00 UTC on 11 February. Freddy had further intensified to a Category 4 severe tropical cyclone due to the presence of a well-defined eye surrounded by deep convection. Freddy intensified into a Category 4-equivalent cyclone with a symmetric CDO. According to the JTWC, Freddy gradually became disorganized, with its eye no longer well-defined, and Freddy fell to winds. The BoM also reported that Freddy's winds weakened to of winds. Despite easterly vertical wind shear, Freddy maintained a symmetric convective core. The cyclone's ragged and cloud filled eye appeared on satellite imagery. At 12:00 UTC on 14 February, Freddy crossed 90° E into the South-West Indian Ocean basin, and was immediately classified as a tropical cyclone by Météo-France (MFR) The MFR upgraded the system to a intense tropical cyclone. Freddy exhibited highly symmetrical and annular characteristics, Freddy intensified, reaching 1-minute sustained winds of around 03:00 UTC on 15 February. Later the next day, the JTWC also assessed Freddy as having 1-minute maximum sustained winds of , making the storm a Category 5-equivalent tropical cyclone, as the cyclone sustained a symmetric ring around deep convection. During 18 February, Freddy began