''Pasewalk'' (GS05) was a
Kondor I-class minesweeper
A minesweeper is a small warship designed to remove or detonate naval mines. Using various mechanisms intended to counter the threat posed by naval mines, minesweepers keep waterways clear for safe shipping.
History
The earliest known usage of ...
built in
East Germany
East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In t ...
. After the
Volksmarine was disbanded just before the
reunification of Germany
German reunification (german: link=no, Deutsche Wiedervereinigung) was the process of re-establishing Germany as a united and fully sovereign state, which took place between 2 May 1989 and 15 March 1991. The day of 3 October 1990 when the Ge ...
, she was sold to Malta in 1992 and renamed ''P31'' and was used as a
patrol boat
A patrol boat (also referred to as a patrol craft, patrol ship, or patrol vessel) is a relatively small naval vessel generally designed for coastal defence, border security, or law enforcement. There are many designs for patrol boats, and the ...
. After being
decommissioned, she was
scuttled
Scuttling is the deliberate sinking of a ship. Scuttling may be performed to dispose of an abandoned, old, or captured vessel; to prevent the vessel from becoming a navigation hazard; as an act of self-destruction to prevent the ship from being ...
as a dive site in 2009 off
Comino
Comino ( mt, Kemmuna) is a small island of the Maltese archipelago between the islands of Malta and Gozo in the Mediterranean Sea, measuring in area. Named after the cumin seed, the island has a permanent population of only two residents and ...
.
History
East Germany
The minesweeper was
laid down
Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a ship's construction. It is often marked with a ceremony attended by dignitaries from the shipbuilding company and the ultimate owners of the ship.
Keel laying is one o ...
on 12 December 1968 at Peenewerft shipyard in
Wolgast
Wolgast (; csb, Wòłogòszcz) is a town in the district of Vorpommern-Greifswald, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is situated on the bank of the river (or strait) Peenestrom, vis-a-vis the island of Usedom on the Baltic coast that can b ...
. She was
launched on 18 June 1969 and
commissioned on 18 October of that same year. She was the eighth ship to be built within the Kondor I class, and was named ''Pasewalk'' after the
town of the same name in ''Mecklenburg-West Pomerania''
federated state
A federated state (which may also be referred to as a state, a province, a region, a canton, a land, a governorate, an oblast, an emirate or a country) is a territorial and constitutional community forming part of a federation. Such sta ...
in northern
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...
. She was used to patrol the river banks between East and West Germany, as well as a minesweeper.
After the Volksmarine was disbanded, she and the other Kondor I-class vessels were deemed too obsolete to join the German Navy, so she was decommissioned in 1990. Her armaments were removed.
Malta
The unarmed minesweeper was then purchased by Malta on 1 July 1992 along with her
sister ship
A sister ship is a ship of the same class or of virtually identical design to another ship. Such vessels share a nearly identical hull and superstructure layout, similar size, and roughly comparable features and equipment. They often share a ...
''Ueckermünde'', and they were given the pennant numbers ''P30'' and ''P31''. ''P31'' became a patrol boat within the
Offshore Command of the
Maritime Squadron of the Armed Forces of Malta
The Maritime Squadron of the Armed Forces of Malta ( mt, Skwadra Marittima tal-Forzi Armati ta' Malta) is the naval component of the Maltese military. The Maritime Squadron has responsibility for the security of Maltese territorial waters, m ...
. A third sister ship, ''Boltenhagen'', was purchased in 1997 and was given the pennant number . Since the former minesweepers were purchased unarmed, some light armament was then added by the AFM.
''P31'' was then used to secure the Maltese coast against smuggling and border control operations. Most notably was the rescue of 251
illegal immigrants
Illegal immigration is the migration of people into a country in violation of the immigration laws of that country or the continued residence without the legal right to live in that country. Illegal immigration tends to be financially upwa ...
from their boat which was sinking to the south of Malta in over force 6 winds.
''P31'' was decommissioned in 2004 and bought by the Malta Tourism Authority. She was cleaned and then was scuttled on 25 August 2009 off the Maltese island of Comino at a depth of to serve as a diving site and artificial reef. The wreck now lies on bare sand, and it is located close but not on the important sea grass beds.
See also
*
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:P31
Ships sunk as dive sites
Ships built in East Germany
1969 ships
Naval ships of Malta
Ships of the Volksmarine
Cold War minesweepers of Germany
Shipwrecks of Malta
Maritime incidents in 2009
Underwater diving sites in Malta
Comino
Patrol boats