Change to command of the Mare Sicuro operation

(To Marina Militare)
25/09/18

Yesterday 24 September took place aboard the frigate Alpine, moored in port at Augusta, the ceremony of rotation to the tactical command of the operation Safe Sea.

In the presence of the commander-in-chief of the naval team, Admiral of the Donato Marzano team, Rear Admiral Angelo Virdis sold the command to Rear Admiral Davide Berna after almost two months of activity at sea.

The operation Safe Sea, the 12 2015 started in March following the evolution of the Libyan crisis, provides for the deployment of an air-naval device in order to ensure activities of presence, surveillance and maritime security in the central Mediterranean and the Strait of Sicily, in application of national legislation and international agreements in force.

The offshore units included in the aeronaval device operate in a sea area of ​​about 160.000 square kilometers ensuring presence and surveillance, protection of national interests, safety of maritime activities of national interest, protection of communication lines and commercial ships in transit , protection of strategic energy sources of national interest and the surveillance of possible movements of jihadist formations, as well as to ensure the necessary security framework for the operations of national means in the central Mediterranean. From the 1 January 2018, the mission's tasks have been expanded and now include support activities and support for the Libyan Coast Guard and the Navy by strengthening what is already being done by the Navy operating in the Mediterranean.

The frigate Alpine, currently the headquarters of the operation command Safe Sea, is the fifth Italian ship built as part of the Italian-French program called the European Multi-Mission Frigate (FREMM). For our Navy it is foreseen the realization of ten frigates, of which six in multipurpose configuration (General Purpose - GP) as the Bergamini and four in anti-submarine configuration (Anti Submarine Warfare - ASW).

With a crew of 168 between men and women, 144 meters in length and a displacement at full load of 6.700 tons, ship Alpine is a multipurpose frigate, designed in the name of innovation and flexibility, in order to actively operate in the protection of national interests and be able to respond successfully to future scenarios.