The Mistral will relieve the Tramontana on the mission to enforce an arms embargo on LibyaThe Defence Minister Carme Chacón at the Navy submarine base in Cartagena
The Defence Minister, Carme Chacón, was at the Spanish Navy submarine base in Cartagena on Tuesday to see off the ‘Mistral’ submarine, as it left to relieve the ‘Tramontana’ which is deployed in the operation to enforce an arms embargo on Libya.
The Tramontana has been in the area since March 26.
The Mistral is almost 26 years old and, with a top speed of six miles an hour, will take a week to reach its destination. It’s sailing with a crew of 62, including 7 seven women, who will be in Libyan territory until the first fortnight of July. EFE reports that it will then return to Cartagena for the quarterly revision which all submarines must undergo.
The Mistral will be under NATO orders during its Libya mission.
Admiral General Manuel Rebollo, Chief of Staff of the Spanish Navy, announced at the event that four new submarines, with a design and technology which are ‘genuinely’ Spanish, are currently under construction to relieve the older models. He noted however that both the Tramontana and the Mistral are both ready and able to take on new missions.
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