Operation to lift sunken Norwegian frigate gets underway

The Royal Norwegian Navy’s sunken frigate HNoMS Helge Ingstad is ready to get out of the water after spending over four months on the sea bottom in the Hjeltefjorden fjord.

As informed by Norway’s defense ministry, weather conditions and forecasts have finally allowed for the operation to start.

HNoMS Helge Ingstad was involved in a collision near Bergen on November 8, 2018. The ship initially spent several days on its starboard side with a significant portion of its body above the waterline before almost completely sinking on November 13.

The navy expected it would lift the frigate and transport it to the Haakonsvern base within three weeks.

Some three months later, in the early morning hours of Tuesday, heavy lift vessels Rambiz and Gulliver are on site and have begun lifting the frigate onto a barge for her transport to the navy base.

HNoMS Helge Ingstad is expected to be onboard the submersible barge “Boa barge 33” by Thursday or Friday, the navy said. The entire operation is expected to be completed by the end of the weekend.

The schedule of the delicate operation could still be affected by the weather, the navy noted.

You can watch the operation live in the video below

Before the defense ministry shares first before and after photos, here is how it envisions the operation to unfold: