Several Allied fleets will benefit from the U.S. Navy's ongoing retirement of dedicated mine countermeasures vessels. As the Osprey class of coastal minehunters retires from service, many of the ships are being transferred abroad. Current plans call for the Oriole (MHC-55), shown here, and the Falcon (MHC-59), both of which were decommissioned in the summer of 2006, to transfer to Taiwan. The Raven (MHC-61) and the Cardinal (MHC-60), which were retired in January 2007, are being transferred to Egypt, while the sisters Kingfisher (MHC-56) and Cormorant (MHC-57) will likely transfer to Lithuania in 2007-08. The Pelican (MHC-53) and Heron (MHC-52) are expected to transfer to Greece later this year. Unconfirmed reports also have two additional, as-yet-unnamed units transferring to Turkey by 2008. All plans to transfer the vessels are currently on hold, however, as U.S. Navy leaders work to ease congressional concerns over the possible loss of mine countermeasures capabilities stemming from the class' early retirement.
The first of five retired Dutch Alkmaar-class mine countermeasures ships has been transferred to Latvia. The vessel, previously known as Alkmaar, was recently renamed Imanta and renumbered M 04 in Latvian service. The newly delivered ship is shown here, still flying a Dutch flag, during her initial delivery voyage from the Netherlands in February. Joining Imanta by 2008 will be retired Dutch sister ships Dalfzijl, Dordrecht, Harlingen, and Scheveningen. These five new additions to the Latvian mine countermeasures force will replace their current fleet of mine-hunting and mine-sweeping vessels including two Kondor-II–class ships and one ex-German Type 331B vessel. The Alkmaar mine countermeasures ships have the same basic design as the Tripartite-class minehunters in use by France and Belgium. The ships that are being transferred were retired from Dutch naval service between 2000 and 2004 and never received the extensive modernization carried out on board many other members of this very successful multi-national program. In line with previous Dutch modernization efforts, Latvia may eventually choose to update these newly acquired mine warfare ships during the post-2010 timeframe.
In February 2007, the United Arab Emirates Navy took delivery of the first of four new 26-meter fast-supply vessels. The craft, designed by Sweden's SwedeShip Marine, is intended to operate as an amphibious landing craft and has been built to deliver up to 42 troops directly onto a beachhead by way of the vessel's hydraulically operated bow ramp. Powered by two MTU diesel engines driving two Rolls Royce water jets, the class is capable of speeds in excess of 38 knots. The aluminum-hulled vessel has a crew of three and is fitted to carry a surface-to-air missile system in addition to a 12.7-mm machine gun. All four units of the class are expected in service by mid-2007.
Combat Fleets
By Eric Wertheim, Editor, <i>Combat Fleets of the World</i>