ITS Espero joins Operation Atalanta
(B2) The Italian frigate, theITS Hope, joined the European operation to fight piracy off the coast of Somalia on Saturday 25 March.
Ordered by the Order (Commander) Luigi Pirozzi, the Italians will be present in the next four months to patrol the waters of the Gulf of Aden and the Somali basin – where a small resurgence of piracy has been felt recently –, protect World Food Program ships carrying humanitarian aid to Somalia, and support twin missions (EUTM and EUCAP) working on capacity building in Somalia.
Italians ready for the resumption of piracy
The four months of mission will be intense. Just two weeks ago, Somali hackers pulled off a successful attack – the first since 2012 – showing the threat still exists (read: The pirates go on the attack again in the Gulf of Aden. The captured Aris 13). Before leaving his home port of Taranto, Luigi Pirozzi said that " the crew and I are fully prepared and ready for what I know will be a busy four months. It is imperative that pirate attacks continue to be suppressed off the coast of Somalia so that ships can remain safe. "The ship" est perfectly suited to counter-piracy operation and the crew received an "fintensive operational training against piracy ».
On board, in addition to the crew of 200 people, several specialized boarding teams: the special troops of the San Marco navy, the divers of the "gruppo Operativo Subacquei" and the manpower of the "air" component for the AB212 helicopter.
Second participation in the operation
For'I hope, this is the second deployment in the European operation. Its first participation dates back to 2011. The frigate notably rescued the MV Glamour, a Italian merchant ship was attacked in early May by four armed pirates aboard a skiff, about 700 nautical miles from Salalah (Oman). Pirates not hesitating to shoot RPG on the boat (read: Latest piracy news (May 15, 2011)). The last Italian ship participating in the operation was the frigate " Euro who ended his engagement on September 30 (2016).
(Leonor Hubaut)
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