Mare nostrum, Italian pride
(BRUSSELS2)"Mare Nostrum". It's a bit of the newfound pride of the Italian Navy. Going to the rescue of migrants who try to cross the Mediterranean and end up perishing at sea.
A triggering drama
The operation was stepped up after the dramatic shipwreck on October 3 near Lampesuda which left 366 dead. The shock is immense. The Italian government (headed by Enrico Letta at the time) felt that it needed to increase its presence at sea, coordinate it better and, above all, give it political impetus and visibility at national and European level. The operation Mare Nostrum was born. It was put in place, quickly, on October 18, 2013. Objective, as Vice-Admiral Foffi, the head of the Italian Navy, explains: “ increase the maritime presence at sea, to secure the waters, and save migrants and refugees” (*).
Ships, helicopters and planes
Five Navy ships, on average, are dedicated to this task (alongside the Coast Guard and the Guardia di Finanza which have a more mobile but smaller fleet). From the large amphibious ship of the type St. George to the "Commanders" or "Constellations" type deep-sea patrol boats, passing through the frigates of the Mistral, without forgetting the essential maritime patrol aircraft, on-board helicopters (SH90 or AB212) and even a "Predator" drone which provide essential aerial surveillance, there is the whole range of intervention of a modern navy ( see detail in box).
Objective: save lives... and not get too close!
Over time, Italian sailors refined their rescue method. “Some migrant ships are so overloaded and in such conditions that they are no longer seaworthy or even towable. That's why we're very careful, going on the search with small vessels. Getting too close is dangerous. Merchant ships approached to save them. And the ship sank. »
A more refined rescue technique
There is therefore no question of going to the rescue of sinking boats with large ships. With the " induced swell » explains Rear Admiral Saponero, Chief of Staff of the Navy and responsible for the operational command center (CincNav), this could cause small overloaded boats to capsize. " The large landing ship therefore remains in the rear. It serves as a "hub" from which the landing craft and the approach ships and other RHIBs come to "dump" the recovered men and women. Without these precautions, shipwreck is certain.
On the Italian SAR zone... and sometimes in the Libyan zone
The Italians normally operate in their maritime rescue and rescue at sea (SAR) zone. But if necessary, and if there is an emergency, they can come to the aid of a sinking boat in Libyan waters. It's the " duty of every sailor ", an obligation " who stands above all others” emphasizes Rear Admiral Saponero.
The Libyan SAR system = almost Zero
In " Libya is chaos. It's a bit like Somalia says another senior naval officer. “Authorities are often unable to provide search and rescue (SAR) operations in their zone” And to regret: “ NATO probably stopped its maritime operation under Unified Protector too soon, without ensuring that local authorities could take over ».
A dizzying increase
Since the beginning of the operation (in eight months), nearly 74.000 have been rescued. Of this figure, nearly 44.000 by the Italian Navy. The majority are men (37.724); there are also 5505 women and 6014 minors (some of whom are unaccompanied, either because they have lost their parents or because they have drowned). The others having been rescued by the other Italian forces (Guardia Costiera and Guardia Di Finanza). The increase is vertiginous... From 13.267 migrants in 2012, we already reached 35.707 during October 2013 - at the time of the "Lampedusa drama" - and 42.295 in total for the year 2013. An increase « largely due to the crisis in Syria, and the situation in sub-Saharan countries according to Admiral Foffi. And almost 60.000 over the first six months of 2014, most of which is concentrated in the last months (since the end of winter)!
270 people on average per day, many more on certain days
The arithmetic average of 270 people per day does not reflect the reality at sea, where on some days several thousand migrants are picked up on board Italian ships. With notable peaks, at the end of March at the beginning of April, as well as at the end of May at the beginning of June, when nearly 10.000 people were saved. The record ? : « We recovered 1566 migrants crammed on a single ship remarks an officer. The controversy rumbles in Italy, where the operation is questioned as being a "vacuum cleaner for refugees". A criticism that some at the European level take up, in half-words, to... justify their inaction.
A The reconquest of certain European values
To these criticisms, the military respond that these statistics simply reflect better monitoring. « Before we would die in silence summarizes, a little bitterly, an officer. Before setting up the operation, “it was estimated that only one ship in ten reached European waters safely according to UNHCR and NGOs confirms Vice-Admiral Foffi. The others were sinking... without anyone knowing. And no one was moved. Today « it is hoped that the proposal of ships arriving safely has been reversed, and that only 1 in 10 are shipwrecked »
(Nicolas Gros-Verheyde, at CincNav in Rome)
The Italian rescue device
- The naval group is generally composed of a landing ship of the Class St. George, with a crew of 180 sailors, an on-board hospital, helicopters with large spaces to accommodate migrants or refugees and a large deck to organize the recovery of rescued boats, even in difficult sea conditions;
- and 2 standard frigates Mistral (with a crew of 183 sailors and an SH90 or AB212 helicopter); two offshore patrol vessels, “commanders” or “constellations” type, with a deck that can accommodate a helicopter, a coastal unit for logistical support.
- 2 EH-101 helicopters equipped for long-distance maritime surveillance, with an infrared search capability, are also on board the ships, and if necessary based in Lampedusa.
- An Atlantic maritime patrol aircraft, based in Sigonella – Catania and a P180 aircraft are also in the game.
- A “predator” maritime drone, used for the identification of contacts;
- A Carabinieri helicopter is used for maritime patrols, equipped with an infrared search device (FLIR);
- the Italian coastal radars, and identification stations of the AIS (automatic identification system) systems, electro-optical camera systems and infrared sensors;
- the air and naval assets of the Guardia Costiera and the Guardia Di Finanza.
NB: An advanced logistics site on the island of Lampedusa provides logistical assistance to ships at sea, to coordinate the movement of personnel to or from boats and to facilitate the use of the civil airport for the transit or parking of aircraft maritime patrol.
(*) It should not be denied either. For the Italian Navy, this operation is a "great" opportunity to show its know-how and safeguard its rear in the face of budgetary attacks both within the Ministry of Defense and at interministerial level. According to our information, both the navy and the Italian air force flirted with, or even fell below, the minimum NATO limits in terms of presence at sea. To keep crews and ships in good condition, some ships were left to be refitted. Today, no one doubts the usefulness of the navy. The Navy is also trying, in the face of the other forces present - coast guards, Guardia di Finanza, etc. - to win the fight for coordination. A necessity !
To be continued (on the blog):
and on the Club: visit to the headquarters of the Italian Navy - CincNav
