The German Frankentahl class mine hunter M-1064 FGS Grömitz is conducting a port visit in Istanbul. She is the first foreign warship to visit Istanbul this year.
FGS Grömitz left her homeport Kiel, in early January and as the flagship of the NATO Standing Maritime Group Two Task Unit 01, she is taking part in the NATO operation in the Aegean Sea as part of the international efforts to stop illegal trafficking and migration.
Using a 54,3-meter long ship as a flagship for a multinational operation is not common. This class of ships is designed to localize, identify, and neutralize all types of sea mines and UXO. They have very limited capacity for additional crew. This was also acknowledged by the commander of the ship, Captain Felix Hornung (53). “Providing the ‘flagship’ for the coming months is an unusual task for us, but one that the crew of the ‘Grömitz’ identifies with and that we want to master successfully,” said the commander before leaving for the mission.
The ship is expected to leave Istanbul on 12 March 2024 and will return to her home in Kiel in June.
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