Submarine ‘Tramontana’ joins NATO to counter terrorism

• Its crew will be integrated for more than a month in the Alliance operation 'Sea Guardian'

The "Tramontana" set off from Cartagena to deploy within NATO's "Sea Guardian" operation, which takes place in the Mediterranean Sea. The submarine will be integrated during the next few weeks in this allied operation.

It is the fourth time that this submarine, which gets its name from the cold and turbulent north wind that blows off the northeast coast of Spain -the “tramontane”-, takes part in this operation since it began four years ago.

The submarine, which is based in Cartagena, is the fourth of its kind and has been in active duty since 1984. Its crew is made up of 64 men and women, with a vocation for service, motivation and the spirit of sacrifice necessary to live more than one month below the surface ensuring peace of mind and safety of their compatriots.

Stealthy, submarines are able to carry out surveillance tasks without being detected and therefore, locate and identify vessels suspected of engaging in illegal activities.

The integration of ‘Tramontana’ shows Spanish Armed Forces’ commitment to NATO in maintaining maritime security.

OPERATION ‘SEA GUARDIAN’

‘Sea Guardian’ is a NATO operation that aims to gain knowledge of the maritime environment to deter and fight terrorism, as well as mitigate other threats.

It is a flexible operation, which can cover the whole range of maritime security tasks, if requested by the North Atlantic Council, such as upholding freedom of navigation, conducting interdiction tasks, countering proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and protecting critical infrastructure and protecting critical infrastructure.