ITS Francesco Morosini (P-431), the second ship of the Multi-Purpose Offshore Patrol Vessels(PPA) class of the Italian Navy, set sail yesterday from the La Spezia naval base for a naval campaign in the Far East that will last 5 months.
“With these words, the Chief of Staff of the Navy, Admiral Enrico Credendino, speaking at the La Spezia Naval Base, bid farewell to the crew of the Morosini ship on the day before departure for the Far East campaign.
The activity, which will take place over a period of over five months and will end in September, will see the unit bear witness to the country’s system and the excellence of the national industry, sailing “in an area where our Navy has been absent for several years, a world that we know little about” – as reiterated by the Chief of Staff – “but which has strong strategic, military, diplomatic and political interests.”
Admiral Credendino also wanted to underline how this activity allows for “the development of training synergies with foreign navies such as Japan, Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States”, ensuring high visibility for the Navy and more generally for the country, and allowing “us to show our flag in very complicated waters, in some ways even more complicated than those of the Mediterranean.”
Yesterday in La Spezia at the departure, the crew was greeted by the Undersecretary of State for Defense Matteo Perego di Cremnago and the Commander-in-Chief of the Naval Fleet, Admiral Aurelio De Carolis, as well as numerous military and civilian authorities, in addition to representatives of the national industry management.
“The mission you are about to undertake is very challenging but at the same time fascinating, I envy you and if I could go back in time I would make the life choice that you have made by enlisting in the Navy. I will support you throughout the entire campaign with conviction and pride,” said Matteo Perego di Cremnago, Undersecretary of State for Defense, to the crew.
Among the planned activities, to promote Defense industry excellence, will be the presence at the Singapore International Maritime Defense Exhibition (IMDEX) and the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace Exhibition (LIMA). Following this, the ship is expected to participate in the Indonesian-led Komodo 23 exercise in the South China Sea, focused on search, rescue, and evacuation of civilians during a crisis situation in the region and involving all major countries in the Asia-Pacific area.
During the campaign, the patrol ship will travel as far as the Far East and navigate the waters of the South China Sea, reaching the ports of Yokosuka, Japan (June 14-18), and Pusan, South Korea (June 21-24), conducting Naval Diplomacy activities in fifteen ports of fourteen Southeast Asian countries.
(via www.marina.difesa.it)