At home after 20,000 miles

Corvette "Magdeburg" is back from UNIFIL mission

Welcome at the Molenkopf, Photo:Nico Theska PIZ

Friday morning, 10.00 a.m., overcast sky, but happy faces. Friends, relatives, children and comrades wait for the redeeming sight. There she is - and she's bringing the loved ones home again. The corvette "Magdeburg" has returned to her home port of Warnemünde from the UNIFIL mission (United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon) in the eastern Mediterranean. Despite Corona and the rules to be observed, the 1st Corvette Squadron organised a dignified arrival. Incidentally, the guests were delighted by the fact that the Army Music Corps performed "Comrades at Sea" with at least as much talent as a naval music corps.
The 60-strong "Alpha" crew, under the command of frigate captain Christian Heger (37), spent more than five months away from home and more than four months on a mission off the Lebanese coast. Their main task was to monitor maritime traffic in order to prevent possible arms smuggling on the ground. In addition, the marines trained their Lebanese comrades in coastal defence.

"We are carrying out the monitoring in cooperation with the other partners involved in the UN mission and that is also the exciting thing about this mission. Seeing how one gear meshes with the other shows the high level at which we are now working with our partners.

Commander FKpt Heger, photo. Nico Theska PIZ

allied nations," says the commander, Frigate Captain Heger. However, due to the strict hygiene requirements, the "Alphas" had no opportunity to go ashore during their deployment. "Of course, it was a considerable burden for my men and women, but the team spirit among the crew is very strong, which helped tremendously in overcoming this hurdle. I am very proud of how professionally the crew handled it," says the commander. Since the beginning of the year, the entire fleet has been under the German command of Flotilla Admiral Axel Schulz (50). In addition to Germany, ships and boats from Greece, Bangladesh, Indonesia and Turkey are also taking part in the UN mission in the eastern Mediterranean. The corvette "Magdeburg" served as a platform for the marines of the Rostock corvette squadron for around ten months. During this time, she travelled almost 20,000 nautical miles. In order to ensure a seamless presence off the Lebanese coast, the corvette "Magdeburg" was relieved by its sister ship, the corvette "Braunschweig", at the end of June, marineforum.online reported https://marineforum.online/korvette-braunschweig-auf-un-mission/

Report to the squadron commander Florian Feldt, Photo:Nico Theska PIZ

Hustle and bustle on the pier. Photo: Warnecke

Dad is back.... Photo: Nico Theska PIZ

Text: Schlüter / PIZ Marine