On Tuesday 27 August, Commodore Peter Lenselink, Force Commander of EU Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) Somalia Operation Atalanta and a delegation of his staff visited the Italian warship ITS Zeffiro, conducting counter piracy operations as part of EU NAVFOR in the Gulf of Aden.

During the visit, he met members of the ships’ staff and toured the ship. The Forcecommander was given a presentation on the capabilities of the ITS Zeffiro, a Maestrale class frigate. On the flight deck the Commodore spoke with the ships’ boarding team and was shown the equipment they use for counter piracy operations. Earlier in the mission the boarding team conducted friendly approaches on vessels in the Gulf of Aden.

Commodore Lenselink addressed the Commanding Officer of the ship Commander Marco Antoniazzi and Zeffiro’s crew members and complimented them on their achievements.

“It is very useful for me and my staff to visit all the ships of EUNAVFOR and meet the dedicated crews on board. It is important that the nations of the European Union work shoulder to shoulder for a valuable contribution to the counter piracy mission. I would like to thank Commander Antoniazzi for his hospitality and professional effort in fighting piracy in the Horn of Africa.”

ITS Zeffiro joined the EU Naval Force at the beginning of June 2013.