ITS Margottini is re-joining EU NAVFOR for its second six-month tour participating in Op Atalanta, the European Union’s first naval operation, launched in 2008 to prevent piracy at sea off the Horn of Africa and in the Indian Ocean, EU NAVFOR says in a press release.
Commanded by Commander Marco Guerriero, the ITS Carlo Margottini was built in 2014. Although it specialises in stealth and anti-submarine warfare, it is equipped for multiple types of mission. At 144 metres in length, it has a crew of 167 and has a maximum speed of 27 knots. The frigate carries two helicopters; a surface anti-air missile system; two torpedo launch systems and two deck guns in its arsenal. The ship will be working alongside the Spanish warship ESPS Navarra.
Over the past decade, Op Atalanta has carried out numerous successful counter-piracy missions. It continues to deter, prevent and repress acts of piracy and armed robbery at sea off the coast of Somalia.