The Spanish Navy frigate ESPS Victoria, currently deployed in operation Atalanta, visited a total of 30 craft off the coast of Somalia during the second week of January.
These endeavors were part of the European Union mission, and are intended to ascertain that piracy in the area is fully under control.
During the seven days that the warship was on patrol, several craft were visited in order to draw life patterns of local fishermen and gather valuable information. The ship’s VBSS (visit, board, search and seizure) squad was tasked with this mission.
Abiding by the established procedures, the VBSS squad conducted friendly approaches to the dhows. The SH-60B helicopter provided the necessary support and conducted several training activities with the German Navy corvette Erfurt (F 262), also integrated into EUNAVFOR.
This collaboration served to certify the interoperability of European units and marked the first time an SH-60B landed on a K130-class warship.
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