S76 FRETTCHEN

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Speedboat reached last port

On Sep 1, the 'Happy Sky' has successfully completed the unlaoding of seven German Navy missile speedboats of the Type 143A Gepard class from Kiel, to Aliaga, The boats have now reached their final destination where they will be dismantled.The seven boats, part of a series of ten, are all identical and were commissioned between 1983 and 1984. In 2015 and 2016 they were decommissioned and one of their sister ships, the ex-S74 'Cheetah', was preserved in 2016 and has been on display at the naval museum in Wilhelmshaven. The seven vessels now transported were the ex-S72 'Puma', ex-S73 'Hermelin', ex-S75 'Zobel', ex-S76 'Frettchen', ex-S78 'Ozelot', ex-S79 'Wiesel' , and ex-S80 'Hyäne'. They each weigh approximately 330 metric tonnes, and are 58 metres long. The 'Happy Sky' stowed two of the boats in her hold, while the remaining five were secured on deck. In order to accommodate three boats side by side, the 'Happy Sky'’s weather deck was extended by using the vessels’ tweendeck hatch covers. A wide range of equipment was mobilised for the laoding operation; A-frames were used, as well as cut-to-shape dunnage, lifting beams, chains featuring BigLift’s new speed lashing system, and heavy load platforms (HLPs). Since technical information of the boats was limited and outdated, and each boat turned out to have a slightly different centre of gravity because of their age and maintenance history. the rigging was selected with sufficient contingency, resulting in a heavier than usual setup to make sure lifting remained safe. On Sep 1, all boats were delivered at their final berth. The 'Happy Sky' had already sailed on Aug 28, en route to Piraeus. Report with phtos: https://www.bigliftshipping.com/en/latest/happy-sky-ships-historic-german-schnellboote-to-final-berth?fbclid=IwY2xjawMkzLNleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHice8BJv4TwYU3GlvuSbOW3tkXp89j6s2wgZ5rPiXEk4HkBUebocwNvvPspi_aem_fAjbfgnWj37mBBwomuvUHg

Frettchen last boat to be loaded in Kiel

The crew of the Dutch heavy-lift freighter "Happy Sky" has placed the "Frettchen" as the last boat on the dec on Aug 11, thu completing the loading of seven speedboats. This marked the end of the two-week operation in Kiel. After securing the boats, the "Happy Sky" left the port en route to Aliaga on Aug 14, to deliver the old speedboats to a shipbreaking yard on Aug 25. The loading of the seven boats began on July 31st with the "Hyäne," which, along with its sister boat, the "Puma," was placed in the hold of the freighter. Preparations were also necessary underwater. In the area where the crane gear with the lifting straps had to be placed, divers removed the mussel growth on the hull to ensure safe loading. In Turkey, the wooden speedboats must be dismantled under the supervision of the German Armed Forces in such a way that they cannot be used again as military equipment. The boats' spare parts are being resold, however. Each speedboat had four MTU 16V956 diesel engines. Thanks to the good maintenance by the German Armed Forces, these engines can still be used for other ships, railways, or power plants. Trading in spare parts for the boats is also a lucrative business for the shipbreaking yard. The seven boats "Ozelot," "Hyäne," "Zobel," "Puma," "Hermelin," "Wiesel," and "Frettchen" were among a total of ten Class 143A boats from the former 7th Squadron. The squadron was disbanded in 2016. Only one of the boats has been preserved for posterity as a museum boat in Wilhelmshaven. Report with photo: https://www.kn-online.de/lokales/kiel/schnellboot-verladung-in-kiel-beendet-jetzt-geht-es-in-die-tuerkei-27KL2GWXKVAZPA5YNR44XPMQJI.html

Fast patrol boat loaded onto Happy Sky to be taken to recyclers in Aliaga

Since July 28, 2025, the 'Happy Sky' has berthed in the Naval Depot in Kiel in order to take on board seven former German fast patrol boats, which will be transported to Aliaga for recycling. first boat to be loaded was the 'Ozelot' on July 30, followed by the 'Frettchen', 'Hermelin', 'Hyäne', Puma', 'Wiesel' and 'Zobel'. The boats were decommissioned in 2016 with the 7. Speed Boat Squadron in Rostock. A first attempt toto load the boats had failed in November 2024 because too much marine growth had accumulated on the hull due to the long lay-up, so that the straps could not be safely attached. Divers have meanwhile removed the obsttructions, and loading operations were underway as of Aug 4. Report with photo: https://www.kn-online.de/lokales/kiel/sieben-schnellboote-der-marine-werden-in-kiel-verladen-ziel-tuerkei-XZ56XB3A6VB63G3YM4CO34OAFE.html