Finnish Navy
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The Finnish Navy (Finnish: Suomen merivoimat) is one of the branches of the Finnish Defence Forces.
The Navy employs 2300 people and about 4300 conscripts are trained each year.
Finnish Navy vessels are given the ship prefix "FNS" simply short for "Finnish Navy Ship".
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Equipment
Vessels (present)
- 1 Pohjanmaa class minelayer
- Pohjanmaa (01) (flagship)
- 4 Rauma class missile boats
- Rauma (70)
- Raahe (71)
- Porvoo (72)
- Naantali (73)
- 2 Hamina class missile boats
- Hamina (74)
- Tornio (75)
- 4 Helsinki class missile boats
- Helsinki (60)
- Turku (61)
- Oulu (62)
- Kotka (63)
- 2 Hämeenmaa class minelayers
- Hämeenmaa (02)
- Uusimaa (05)
- 3 Pansio class coastal minelayers
- Pansio (876)
- Porkkala (777)
- Pyhäranta (475)
- 6 Kuha class minesweepers
- 7 Kiiski class minesweepers
- 3 Kampela class transport vessels
- 4 Valas class transport vessels
- 4 Syöksy class command boats
- Several Jurmo class transport vessels
- Several Uisko class transport vessels
- Several G class transport vessels (G-boat)
In the case of a conflict, the Frontier Guard's 8 offshore patrol vessels, 7 hovercraft and 81 coastal patrol vessels and boats can be transferred to the navy's use, and armed appropriately.
Vessels (future)
The Finnish Navy has been developing a new missile squadron "Laivue 2000". At first it was supposed to consist of two Hamina class missile boats (already built at this date) and four Tuuli class hovercraft. The Navy experimented with one prototype hovercraft, but has announced in 2003 that the Tuuli class will not enter active operations and no more of them will be built. Instead two new Hamina class missile boats have been ordered.
As the new squadron is nearly finished the Navy has shifted its attention to mineprevention. The Navy plans to replace old Kuha and Kiiski classes with three new minehunters.
- 2 Hamina class missile boats (to be commissioned fall 2005 and summer 2006)
- 3 Minehunter/sweeper of still unknown class to be commissioned before 2012
Coastal artillery (present)
- 100 mm cannons
- 130 mm cannons
- MTO-85 coastal missiles (SAAB RBS-15SF)
- BOR-A 550 Ground and coastal Surveillance Radar (GSR)
Coastal artillery (future)
The Navy will be phasing out the old artillery cannons in the next few years. Training of the new EuroSpike coastal missile systems will begin 2005 in Uusimaa Brigade.
Organization
The current Commander-in-Chief of the Navy is Vice Admiral Hans Holmström. The navy is organized into two naval commands and one coastal command. The navy also includes the Uusimaa brigade where coastal jaegers are trained. The Uusimaa brigade is also the only Swedish language unit in the country.
Commander-in-Chief of the Navy
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Archipelago Sea Naval Command | Gulf of Finland Naval Command Kotka Coastal Command
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Uusimaa Brigade Naval Academy Naval Depot Naval Research Depot
- Gulf of Finland Naval Command
- Archipelago Sea Naval Command
- Kotka Coastal Command
- Uusimaa Brigade
History
The first ships of the Finnish Navy were old ships left behind by the Russians during the Finnish Civil War. These included gunboats, motor torpedo boats and minesweepers. In 1927 the Eduskunta approved a plan to build two armoured coastal vessels (Panssarilaiva in Finnish) and four submarines. Four motor torpedo boats were also ordered from Britain. More ships were purchased during the 1930s, and in the autumn of 1939 the Finnish Navy consisted of:
- 2 armoured coastal vessels (Ilmarinen and Väinämöinen)
- 5 submarines (Vesihiisi, Iku-Turso, Vetehinen, Vesikko and Saukko)
- 4 gunboats (Turunmaa, Karjala, Uusimaa and Hämeenmaa)
- 7 motor torpedo boats
- 1 mineship
- 1 training ship Suomen Joutsen
- 6 minesweepers
When the situation worsened the Navy was expanded with civilian boats, ice-breakers and patrol boats from the Coast Guard.
Winter War
When the Winter War broke out the Finnish Navy moved to occupy the de-militarized Åland Islands and to protect merchant shipping. In the first month of the war battles between Soviet ships and finnish coastal batteries were fought at Hanko, Finland, Utö and Koivisto.
In December 1939 the ice became so thick that only the ice-breakers could still move. The two armoured coastal vessels were moved to the harbour in Turku where they were used to stiffen the air-defences of the city. They remained there for the rest of the war.
Continuation War
Before the Continuation War five more topedo boats were ordered from Italy. The base that the Soviets had acquired in the Winter War at Hanko Peninsula divided the areas where the Finnish Navy would operate in two. Large mine fields were laid down in cooperation with the German Kriegsmarine when the war began. The two armoured coastal vessels bombarded the base at Hanko during the summer until the Soviets evacuated Hanko in December 1941.
The greatest loss of the Finnish Navy occurred on September 13, 1941 when the Ilmarinen ran on a mine and sank. 271 sailors lost their lives and only 132 were rescued.
In 1942 the main focus of the war at sea was on the Finnish submarines which fought against over 30 Soviet submarines that tried to attack shipping in the Baltic Sea. The Soviet subs sank 18 ships, seven of which were Finnish. 12 Soviet submarines were also sunk.
In July 1942 the Soviets made an attempt to occupy the small island of Someri in the Gulf of Finland. The Soviets lost 16 boats and 128 men. 102 Soviet soldiers were taken prisoner. During 1943 the Navy received 14 new torpedo boats which were used to replace the old pre-war ones.
In 1944 the Soviets put in their main offensive against Finland. The Navy fought in the Gulf of Vyborg and sustained heavy casualties. In the end the ships were forced to pull out.
Lapland war
On September, 1944 the operations against Germany started. The main focus was in the north, the Lapland War, but the Germans also tried to capture Suursaari (Operation Tanne Ost), but the attack was repulsed.
The last action of the Finnish Navy was during the amphibious landing of troops from Oulu in Tornio.
External link
Finnish Navy in World War II (http://www.hut.fi/~jaromaa/Navygallery/index.htm) Finnish Navy in the Winter War (http://www.winterwar.com/forces/finnavy.htm)
References
Finnish Defence Forces (http://www.mil.fi) Website of The Finnish Defence Forcesfi:Suomen merivoimat sv:Den finska marinen