The Dutch Navy’s sole trainee tallship is to visit Dublin Port this weekend; however, before its arrival this morning, an overnight anchorage call took place in Killiney Bay, writes Jehan Ashmore.
His Netherlands Majesty’s Ship, HNLMS Urania, a ketch, had departed its homeport of Den Helder, the nation's largest naval base. Onboard are a permanent crew of 4 and 11 trainees, who use the 80-ton ketch for the purpose of sail training midshipmen of the Royal Netherlands Naval Academy.
HNLMS Urania is the navy’s only sail trainee vessel, which has extensively taken voyages in Northern Europe; the Baltic, Skagerrak/Kattegat; the North Sea, and the Atlantic/Caribbean as well as the North America East Coast.
De Gier & Bezaan International built the ketch laid down in 2003, with fitting out carried out by the Dutch Navy. In the following year, launching took place, and its commissioned date is almost 22 years ago, having taken place on 25 May 2004.
Its last port of call was in France at Brest, Brittany, from where it set off on Monday with its passage across the Celtic Sea and along the Irish eastern seaboard, where the Class D ketch made its approach to Dublin Bay when on the fringe of Killiney Bay yesterday afternoon.
HNLMS Urania was underway in Dalkey Sound, from where it circled twice before anchoring overnight in Killiney Bay.
When it headed up Dalkey Sound, the outbound Danish civilian trainee tallship, Georg Stage, as Afloat reported, was underway in Dublin Bay, bound for Helsingør, a Danish ferryport on Sjaelland connecting another Nordic state through the Swedish port of Helsingborg.
Upon the Class D tall ship’s arrival, having rounded Scotland, the Danish trainees are to participate in emergency exercises with a local ferry operator, Oresundslinjen, across the narrow waterway of the Øresund, taking 20 minutes between Sjaelland and this part of western Sweden.
As for the HNLMS Urania, its presence in Irish waters included circling Dalkey Island twice before it settled to drop anchor in Killiney Bay off Black Castle close to Whiterock Beach. Several crew members took advantage of some downtime with the lowering of a small tender craft.
This morning, it was back to duties as the ketch under motor, with no sails aloft, left the bay for the Liffey at Sir John Rogerson’s Quay, where berth 8 in the Dublin Docklands is designated for naval vessels and cruise ships. This berth was previously occupied by Georg Stage, which is expected to return to Denmark in more than a week's time.
