The ceremony for the last Ammaina Bandiera di Nave took place at sunset on Wednesday 25 September, at the Tullio Marcon quay in Augusta (SR), headquarters of the Command of the Patrol Forces (COMFORPAT). Chimera of the Ship Driade. The two ships have thus completed their operational life, after about 30 years of activity at the service of institutions and the community, to be disbarred from the Navy fleet.
The two corvettes were ferried to this destination by the vessel lieutenant Marco Teghini who, thanking the Navy for the prestigious assignment entrusted to him, addressed himself to those present "My twelve months of command may seem little compared to the operational life of Nave Driade and Nave Chimera, but I can nevertheless express with sincere and serene conviction my admiration for the crew that I was lucky enough to have at my command and which goes my most affectionate thanks. Being your commander was an honor for me ".
The commander in chief of the naval team, team admiral Donato Marzano, presided over the heartfelt and exciting ceremony, addressing those present "The last two units of the Minerva Class have been effectively used in multiple national missions and in various international contexts, reflecting Italian technology, inventiveness and originality. The tricolor, which now waves on the shore, will soon be lowered for the last time. I thank the civil and military authorities present, the former commanders and former crews of the two corvettes, but also all the staff of the naval squad that makes me proud every day to be their commander ".
With the cancellation from the roles of the military ships of the two corvettes, the process of downsizing, and at the same time modernizing, the Navy fleet continues. Combat flags of Ship Chimera e Driade will be kept in Rome in the Shrine of the flags of the Armed Forces, inside the Altare della Patria.
