Eisvogel-class icebreaker
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Eisvogel-class icebreakers (Type 721) was a two ship class built for the German Navy by the Hitzler Werft shipyard of Lauenburg/Elbe.
 Eisvogel laid up in Wilhelmshaven | |
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Builders | Hitzler Werft |
| Operators |  German Navy |
| In commission | 1961–2006 |
| Completed | 2 |
| Retired | 2 |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement | 560 tonnes |
| Length | 38.85 m (127 ft 6 in) |
| Beam | 9.7 m (31 ft 10 in) |
| Draft | 3.72 m (12 ft 2 in) |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | 13 knots (24 km/h) |
| Range | 2,000 nmi (3,700 km; 2,300 mi) at 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph) |
| Complement | 16 civilians |
| Sensors & processing systems | Navigation radar only |
| Armament | Fitted for one Bofors 40 mm anti-aircraft gun |
| Notes | 140 tonne Hitzler pitching device (for icebreaking) |
The Eisvogel was in service for the Naval Base Command Kiel and sold to private owners after decommissioning. Since 2010 she is operated as a civil tugboat in Trieste.[2]
The Eisbär was based along the German North Sea coast. After decommissioning she was laid up in Wilhelmshaven later sold to the Netherlands.
List of Ships
| Pennant number |
Name | Call sign |
Launched | Commissioned | Decommissioned | Fate/Base |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A 1401 | Eisvogel | April 28, 1960 | March 11, 1961 | March 3, 2006 | Sold to Italy | |
| A 1402 | Eisbär | June 9, 1969 | November 1, 1961 | October 30, 1997 | Sold to the Netherlands |
The ships are named after the European kingfisher (Eisvogel) and polar bear (Eisbär), both names contain the German word for ice.