The Croatian Navy is a branch of the Croatian Armed Forces. It was formed in 1991 from what Croatian forces managed to capture from the Yugoslav Navy during the breakup of Yugoslavia and Croatian War of Independence. In addition to mobile coastal missile launchers, today it operates 30 vessels, divided into the Navy Flotilla for traditional naval duties with Croatian Coast Guard.
One of their units that visited Malta was the former Finnish Navy FNS 62 OULU now as RTOP-41 VUKOVAR that called Malta on Sunday 19th September, 2021.
She’s the 3rd ship from a class of 4 Helsinki Fast Attack Craft built in Finland for the Finnish Navy. The first and second ships were decommissioned in 2002 and scrapped. The third ship was decommissioned in 2008 and sold to Croatia as RTOP-41 VUKOVAR together with the fourth ship as RTOP-42 DUBROVNIK.
RTOP-41 VUKOVAR was built in 1985 commissioned in the Croatian Navy on 26th January, 2009 and she has a Bofors 57mm/70 Mk 1 forward gun, 2 x Jacket Anti-Aircraft 23mm gun behind the accommodation section together with 8 x Saab RBS-15 Anti-Ship Missiles and 2 rails with depth charges. She berthed at Pinto 5 Wharf, part of Valletta Cruise Port and part of a NATO Fleet.
On Tuesday 21st September she left Grand Harbour, Malta and performed a PASSEX with the Romanian Navy Frigate ROS REGINA MARIA F 222 and the Armed Forces of Malta (AFM) Offshore Patrol Vessel P 62.
Watermarked Photos are by Capt. Lawrence Dalli otherwise stated. Do not use these images without my permission. © All rights reserved. Malta Ship Photos & Action Photos – www.maltashipphotos.com
Published – Tuesday 1st March, 2022
