Category: Shipping

The first yacht from Kiel

Today, the planks of the state yacht Hohenzollern would certainly have a lot to tell. However, the proud ship only covered very few nautical miles under her keel. The state yacht Hohenzollern was intended as a peaceful ship - built to represent the splendour and claim to power of the German Empire and its monarch. She did this on many voyages, and the mighty of Europe met on her time and again in a relaxed atmosphere. But on one of her voyages, the then brand-new ship caused trouble. On board in 1881, accompanied by his chancellor Otto von Bismarck, Emperor Wilhelm I met with a group of...

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Submarines: a game of cat and mouse at sea

State-of-the-art underwater detection also poses a threat to conventional submarines. Submariners have to face up to this. The steel hunter glides almost silently through the pitch-black depths. Tense concentration prevails in the submarine's command centre. The commander has ordered a crawl. Only the whispering of the crew occasionally drowns out the low hum of the detection and weapon deployment systems. The sonar operators the barely perceptible signals from distant active sonar systems. Locating a submerged submarine in the relatively shallow Baltic Sea is like searching for a needle in a haystack. Confident, relaxed and with a quiet smile on their faces, the crew face this attempt to find them....

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Frigate 126 on course

The construction of the future German frigate class is making good progress. The client and shipyard are cooperating at a high level. The F 126 project - formerly MKS 180 - reached the most important milestone in its realisation to date on 19 June 2020 after a multi-year award procedure in the European competition: the conclusion of the construction contract with the Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding shipyard. The project is currently focussing on the ongoing construction work. These are expected to progress to such an extent that production can begin at the end of 2023 and the keel can be laid for the first ship at the beginning of 2024. The construction contract provides for the procurement of four units as well as an option for two additional units for...

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What lasts a long time

To date, the introduction of an unmanned aerial vehicle for the Corvettes 130 has not been successful. A look at the project history reveals the reasons for this. An unmanned aerial system (UAS) was planned for the Korvette 130 at an early stage. This was initially aimed at the realisation of the SAATEG VTOL (Strategic Imaging Reconnaissance in the Depth of the Operational Area - Vertical Take-off and Landing), which was to be supplied by the Swiss company Schiebel. A joint introduction with the was considered in phases, as land-based deployment was also planned. Various unfulfilled requirement criteria, such as the use of the standard ship's...

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The responsibility of our navy

The Russian invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022 has taught us three things in no uncertain terms. Firstly, we are in the middle of a global clash of systems: Democracy, the rule of law and individual liberties are pitted against autocracy and dictatorship with censorship, surveillance and repression. Our social model and our fundamental values pose a direct threat to autocrats and dictators. We are therefore on the way to a quasi-bipolar world order of two camps with China and Russia on one side and the Western community of values on the other. Secondly, Europe is currently not in a position to prevent military aggression on its own soil.

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