The maritime action ship ‘Rayo’ is halfway through her deployment in Africa

The maritime action ship ‘Rayo’ is now halfway of her deployment around the African coast, after having concluded her participation in operation ‘Atalanta’ last May 20th. The ship is scheduled to arrive at Las Palmas (Canary Islands) at the end of July after more than six months out of base.

The ‘Rayo’ called yesterday at Lagos (Nigeria) where she will remain until July 3rd. The offshore patrol boat has also visited the following ports: Maputo (Mozambique), Cape Town (South Africa), Luderitz (Namibia), Lobito (Angola) and Port Gentil (Gabon).

Several activities have been carried out with the Navies of those nations: briefings to exchange information and expertise, and exercises in port and at sea to enhance interoperability and common procedures.

During the stay in Maputo a conference was held on board to discuss her participation in operation ‘Atalanta’ in the Indian Ocean. The meeting was presided over by the Spanish Ambassador and attended by experts on counter piracy operations and representatives from the CESAB (Centro de Estudios Sociales Antonio de Bragança).

In Lobito (Angola) the topic selected for discussion was fishing inspections and the role played by the Spanish Navy. The briefing was attended by the Angolan Admiral, Commander of the Southern Region and his Staff.

Training in port was carried out with representatives from the following Navies: Mozambique (Corpo de Fuzileiros); South Africa, Angola and Gabon. The exercises included drills on Damage Control, fire-fighting activities, maritime interdiction operations with VBSS (Visit, Board, Search and Seizure) teams and use of RHIBs.

As part of a joint training program, the ‘Rayo’ carried out an exercise in Port Gentil waters with two patrol boats from the Gabon Navy. Specifically, the drills consisted in the protection of a naval force and man overboard. It is worth underlining the good level of interoperability between both Navies.

Finally, during this deployment, the ‘Rayo’ is also collaborating with our indigenous naval industry showing civilian and military authorities from different nations the capabilities and state-of-the-art systems of this multi-purpose ship, ideally fitted for Maritime Security missions.

One of those collaboration activities took place in Cape Town. Navantia presented two of its projects: BIRO, an offshore patrol vessel and HOTEL, a hydrographic ship project for the South African Navy. A visit to the ‘Rayo’ was organized to see her Integrated Platform Management System (IPMS), the Combat System and the Navigation System.

This deployment in Africa, where the Spanish Navy collaborates with the Defense Policy Secretariat and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, covers a series of activities in Western Africa and the Gulf of Guinea. This part of the world is of growing interest for Spain and this initiative decisively contributes to the Defense Diplomacy Plan.