- Abeille Flandre
The "Abeille Flandre" is a high sea tug of the
French Navy . She is the property of the French private companyAbeilles International , and had been operated by theFrench Navy since December 1979.She had previously been based in Brest, where she assisted traffic off the coast of
Bretagne . The Abeille Flandre could set out with a 20-minute warning, or whenever winds in excess of 25 knots were recorded inOuessant . She was replaced at this station in April 2005 by the more powerful, 80-metre "Abeille Bourbon ". The "Abeille Flandre" is now based inToulon on the Mediterranean.French rescue tugs on government contracts operate under orders of the "préfet maritime". If the salvage is successful, the French state earns half the value of the salvaged cargo. When the vessels are not required for government service, operators of can request of the préfet that they be released to perform private salvage and rescue missions. Rates for private salvages are negotiated on a case-by-case basis. Fees are never charged to rescue people.
The "Abeille Flandre" is famous and popular in
France for her role after the sinkings of the "Erika" and the "Ievoli Sun ".Hervé Hamon wrote an homage in his book "L'Abeille d'Ouessant".Like all vessels in French Government service, the Abeille Flandre is recognizable by angled blue-white-red stripes on her sides.
External links
* [http://www.netmarine.net/g/bat/abeillef/index.htm Netmarine.net]
* [http://www.ouessant.org/sitefr/trad/pag2ce.html]
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