The Italian Navy transferred the ‘GO59’ floating dry dock from the Sicilian Augusta Naval Base to the Brindisi Naval Base, February 24. The undertaking was part of the rationalization of the Armed Forces resources and was planed out in December 2015. The new dock will replace the old, no longer usable one, and will have a displacement of 1000 tonnes, the Italian Navy said.
The operation was planned and conducted by the Taranto-based Second Naval Group Command, which used two Ciclope-class offshore tugs Saturno and Ciclope, escorted by the light patrol corvette Aviere.
The convoy traveled about 290 nautical miles from Augusta to Brindisi, for a total of approximately 72 hours of sailing. This marked the first time that the Italian Navy carried out an activity of this kind using its own crews.