Spanish warship group DEDALO-24, which includes the multifunctional landing ship Juan Carlos l and the frigate Blas de Lezo, arrived in Estonia June 22 for a planned visit.
After mooring in the Old Port, the commanders of the Allied ships and the commander of the group visited the Estonian Navy at the Mine Harbor campus in Tallinn. Tomorrow, the ship will be visited by the President of Estonia Alar Karis and the Spanish King Felipe VI, who will be arriving in Estonia for a visit.
Both ships have just arrived from BALTOPS, the largest annual naval exercise in the Baltic Sea.
Juan Carlos l (L61) is a Spanish multifunctional landing craft that entered service in 2009. The ship has a runway and the ability to make landing craft with various air means as well as smaller landing vessels. In addition to the ship’s crew and pilots, marines and Leopard 2E tanks are also on board for landing operations. The armament of the ship includes both remote-controlled machine guns and anti-aircraft missiles.
Blas de Lezo (F103) is a Spanish anti-aircraft frigate that entered service in 2004. The armament of the ship includes anti-aircraft cannons, anti-ship and anti-aircraft missiles, torpedoes and lighter machine guns. Also, the ship has the ability to carry a single helicopter.
The last time a Spanish warship visited Estonia was in March 2008, when the same frigate Blas de Lezo arrived in the Old Port with the Portuguese frigate Vasco da Gama (F330) as part of NATO’s 1st Permanent Naval Group (SNMG1).