Last October 11, 2023 at the dock docks of the naval base of La Spezia, the last flag lowering ceremony for the ship took place Vesuvio (A 5329) and Ship bormida (A 5359).
The ceremony presided over by the commander in chief of the naval team, team admiral Aurelio De Carolis, brought together numerous civil and military authorities as evidence of the important role played by the two auxiliary units under the first naval division: Mrs. Nicoletta was also among those present Marcolini, daughter of the then godmother Annamaria Zerbini and of the MOVM cf Evelino Marcolini.
Nave's battle flag Vesuvio delivered during the touching ceremony to Admiral De Carolis, it will be preserved in Rome in the Shrine of the flags of the Armed Forces, inside the Altare della Patria.
The team supplyer Vesuvio, launched on 4 June 1977 at the Muggiano shipyard (SP), concluded its period of activity after having traveled approximately 560.000 nautical miles, a distance equivalent to approximately 26 times the earth's circumference: “a long period of service, characterized by a very high rate of efficiency and availability which allows Vesuvius to participate in almost all the major operations of the Navy, from the 70s to today" Admiral De Carolis said to those attending the ceremony, recalling his participation in numerous missions, from the little known to the most Operation Margherita, to the best known Gulf 1, Gulf 2 and the intervention in Somalia.
This type of unit represented the first project of naval units of this type created by Italy in the post-war period according to the modern concepts of logistical support at sea, effectively summarized by the motto of the unit which reads "DEFEND ME I SERVE YOU" (Defend me I will save you).
The unit, second in the class Stromboli, provided logistical support at sea to both naval squadron units and allied navies, supplying them with naval and aircraft fuel and various materials, including food.
Together with Ship Vesuvio Nave also left active service bormida, a tanker used to supply drinking water to smaller islands and coastal areas without sufficient water resources. “FACTA NON VERBA" (Deeds not words) - its motto, demonstrating the commitment of this unit in dealing with water emergencies mainly in the summer period: "a meritorious service in the metropolitan seas, a logistical service, sometimes little known but no less important than the other operational activities of the naval team".
Laid down in the Arsenal of La Spezia in 1969, launched in 1970 and delivered to the Navy in 1974, in the same year it was moved to the headquarters in Naples, where it served between the Neapolitan capital, Gaeta, the islands of Capri and Ischia . In 1979, it was transferred to La Maddalena for works, which were completed, in 1980 it was moved to the La Spezia headquarters, ensuring the water supplies of the islands, of the military and merchant units within the Gulf of La Spezia and, in the past, of the municipalities of the Cinque Terre covering a total of approximately 5000 nautical miles.
“The ship, as long as it is in service, is alive – Admiral De Carolis said in conclusion - This is not only because it is inhabited by people, with their souls and their feelings, but also for objective reasons. In the tubes and cables on board, as in the vessels of a human body, fluids and other forms of energy always circulate: air, fresh and salt water, diesel, lubricating oils, electric current. Like the blood of a human being. And like humans, ships have a soul. For this reason I express my closeness to the feelings that, in this solemn but at the same time crucial moment, crowd the hearts and minds of the former crews of these two ships. I know what it means, I understand you and I am as heartbroken as you are. Know that Vesuvius and Bormida will always live within us".
