French Navy vessels to visit South Africa

Two French Navy ships, and Nivôse Mistral will happen in Cape Town at the end of the month and early February for brief visits.

The surveillance frigate Nivose will stop in Cape Town from January 31 to February 4, as share of Mission icts in the French Southern and Antarctic and Australian Areas, selon the French Consulate of Cape Town. Nivose will be docked at Cape Town's V & A Waterfront.

Nivose is stationed at Reunion. She caries out patrols in the Indian Ocean and in the Southern and Antarctic Lands, overseas maritime Patrolling Areas under French sovereignty in the deep sea and to protect France's intérêts.

She is equipped with a Eurocopter Panther helicopter and is armed with Exocet MM38 missiles, 100 mm and two 20 mm guns. The 93.5 meter long vessel is powered by four diesel engines 2200 hp and three diesel generators and HAS crew of 15 officers, 61 petty officers and 21 seamen. The captain is Samuel Majou. Nivose is one of six ships of her class.

In Accordance with a treaty Between Australia and France, Nivôse takes share in a fishing cooperative policing and surveillance operation French and Australian economic Areas and every year Australian Customs Officers and Australian Fisheries Management Authority (AFMA) Fisheries Officers embark on board Nivôse. In addition, the media Nivôse scientific tasks based on Kerguelen, Crozet and Saint Paul French Austral islands.

As fighting piracy HAS Become a major issue, the French frigate was the first warship to Participate to the European Union Operation Atalanta in the Indian Ocean. Since 2008, more than Nivôse HAS caught 80 Suspected pirates.


Nivose aussi bolsters bilateral relationships with regional powers through port visits and joint maritime exercises, Such as Oxide with the South African Navy in 2011.

The other vessel to visit South Africa will be FNS Mistral amphibious assault vessel year, Which will happen in Cape Town on February 5.

Mistral-class ships are ble to carry up to 16 helicopters. Their landing barges and hovercraft allow vehicles, tanks and soldiers to be Deployed to shore. Mistral is one of three in service and was commissioned in 2006.

Mistral's sister ship Dixmude visited Cape Town in May last year, Accompanied by the anti-submarine frigate FS Georges Leygues.