''Donau'' (A516) is the sixth ship of the s of the

German Navy The German Navy (, ) is the navy of Germany and part of the unified ''Bundeswehr'' (Federal Defense), the German Armed Forces. The German Navy was originally known as the ''Bundesmarine'' (Federal Navy) from 1956 to 1995, when ''Deutsche Mari ...

Development

The ''Elbe''-class replenishment ships are also known tenders of the

. In

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

, this type of ship is called ''Versorgungsschiffe'' which can be translated as "supply ship" though the official translation in English is "replenishment ship". They are intended to support German naval units away from their home ports. The ships carry

fuel A fuel is any material that can be made to react with other substances so that it releases energy as thermal energy or to be used for work. The concept was originally applied solely to those materials capable of releasing chemical energy but ...

, provisions,

ammunition Ammunition (informally ammo) is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. Ammunition is both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines) and the component parts of other weap ...

and other

matériel Materiel (; ) refers to supplies, equipment, and weapons in military supply-chain management, and typically supplies and equipment in a commercial supply chain context. In a military context, the term ''materiel'' refers either to the specific ...

and also provide medical services. The ships are named after German rivers where German parliaments were placed.

Construction and career

''Donau'' was launched in March 1994 in

Bremen-Vegesack Vegesack is a northern district of the city of Bremen. Geography ''Vegesack'' is located about north from the centre of Bremen-city at the mouth of the river Lesum, beside the river Weser (). Abutting the district of Vegesack to the northwest is ...

, Germany. She was commissioned on 15 November 1994. On 11 January 2020, ''Donau'' under the command of Captain Bernd Abshagen left her home port of Warnemünde to join the

Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Group 1 Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Group 1 (SNMCMG1) is a North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) standing mine countermeasures immediate reaction force. Its role is to provide NATO with an immediate operational response capability. History From ...

(SNMCMG1). Until July 2024, it was part of the Very High Readiness Joint Task Force Maritime (VJTF (M)) in the North Sea and the Baltic Sea.https://www.dbwv.de/ticker-zurueck-zur-startseite/ueber-6-monate-und-15000-seemeilen-tender-donau-kommt-zurueck-nach-kiel

Gallery

File:Tender Donau A516 am 13.08.2005 2.jpg, ''Donau'' on 13 August 2005 File:Tender Donau.jpg, ''Donau'' on 1 August 2010 File:A516 Donau M1063 Bad Bevensen NOCO2014 01.JPG, ''Donau'' and

Bad Bevensen Bad Bevensen (West Low German: ''Bemsen'') is a town in the north of the district Uelzen in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated to the east of the Lüneburg Heath (''Lüneburger Heide''). The Ilmenau river, a tributary of the Elbe, flows thro ...

on 31 August 2014 File:German tender Donau (A516) with four minesweepers in the Baltic Sea on 16 June 2020 (200615-N-NO901-0019).JPG, ''Donau'' during

BALTOPS BALTOPS (Baltic Operations) is an annual military exercise, held and sponsored by the Commander, United States Naval Forces Europe, since 1971, in the Baltic Sea and the regions surrounding it. The purpose of BALTOPS is to train gunnery, replenis ...

on 16 June 2020

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Donau (A516) Elbe-class replenishment ships 1994 ships Ships built in Bremen (state)