Category: Headlines

Hold on or let go: Floods in Valparaíso

It's only a 50-second video, but it gives an insight into winter in the southern hemisphere - in Chile. More precisely, it is the protective pier of the Valparaíso naval base about 70 kilometres west of the capital Santiago de Chile. You can see it very nicely on Google Maps with five frigates and the fleet tanker "Almirante Montt" (ex US Navy Emperor class "Andrew J. Higgins") at the berth, which is also shown in the video. In front of them are the two Oliver Hazard Perry frigates of the Australian Adelaide class recently acquired from Chile - as also shown in the clip. Just in time! It is presumably the transport ship "Aquiles" (AP41, 103 metres,...

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Hunting for yachts

Russian oligarchs used to order their yachts in Germany. The sanctions are therefore also a heavy blow for the shipyards in this country. Some character traits are not part of what we generally think of as good behaviour: Voyeurism, schadenfreude, malice and envy fall into this category. But in view of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine, we let the sometimes malicious reporting on the yachts of Russian oligarchs slide. Their sheer size, exorbitant prices and often unbridled luxury are fascinating. On the other hand, the owners' flaunted distance from the average citizen, their arrogance and decadence are rather off-putting. Not so long ago...

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White visit for the 500th birthday

To mark the 500th anniversary of the Royal Swedish Navy, its training sailing ships Falken and Gladan visited the Hanseatic city of Lübeck on Ascension Day. The Nordic country bought its first ten warships here in 1522. Sea battles between Sweden and Lübeck a few decades later have long been forgotten, but the friendship is now celebrated. Rear Admiral Ewa Skoog Haslum, head of the navy of the prospective NATO member, also travelled to Lübeck for the occasion. She was welcomed by her German counterpart, Vice Admiral Jan C. Kaack, to the sounds of the Kiel Naval Music Corps. The officer then signed the Golden Book of the Hanseatic city. Haslum had brought a symbolic coin with her from her home country,...

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Iranian navy presents its "drone carrier"

As is well known, Iran does not have long-range large combat ships, but it knows how to help itself in one way or another. It demonstrated this to high-ranking military leaders in mid-July and reported on it in the state media. This coincided with the American warning that Russia wanted to stock up on drones in Iran for the war against Ukraine. Naval solution - robust and simple The Iranian navy has now presented its solution to the operational problem: The amply dimensioned landing platform on one of the four aged, small helicopter landing ships (LSLH) of the Hengam class (1974/1985, 2,600 tonnes) has been covered over its entire width and length with...

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Albania: On offer - a harbour for NATO

Albania has been a member of NATO since 2009 and is endeavouring to meet the associated obligations and standards in armed forces matters. Albania is also on the waiting list for EU membership and is not making any real progress. The defence budget is stagnating at 1.5% (by no means a reproach!), the country was the focus of the major NATO Defender exercise with Ukraine in 2021 and it supports NATO's position in the Ukraine war. So far - so good. Pasha Liman Albania still has a naval base of fairly modest dimensions from the days of the country's own communism and friendship with the Soviet Union: Pasha Liman at the southern end of the Bay of Vlore, 100 kilometres south of Tirana. In...

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