Alster (A 50)
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| Career Germany |  |
|---|---|
| Class and type: | Klasse 423 |
| Builder: | Flensburger Schiffbau-Gesellschaft |
| Laid down: | 1987 |
| Launched: | |
| Commissioned: | 1988 |
| Status: | In active service |
| Homeport: | Eckernförde, Schleswig-Holstein |
| General Characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 2375 tonnes (full load 3200 t) |
| Length: | 83,5 metres |
| Beam: | 14,6 m |
| Draught: | 4,2 m |
| Propulsion: | Humboldt-Deutz Diesel |
| Speed: | 21 Knots |
| Range: | 5000 nautical miles |
| Complement: | 36 sailors 40 intelligence technicians |
| Armament: | none |
The Alster (A 50) is an intelligence ship of the German Navy. She is the lead ship of the "Klasse 423".
The Alster is meant as a reconnaissance ship, with a wide array of modern elektromagnetic, hydroacoustic and electro-optic sensors for strategic intelligence gathering. She can be used as an advanced warning unit. The design was originally intended to gather data on Soviet ships.
On the 26th of October 2006, Israeli planes flew over the Alster [1], stirring an international incident [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]. German authorities declared that the planes have fired shots at the ship and evaded launching flares. The Israeli, though denying that firing had occurred, aknowledged the incident and declared that no aggression was meant. Diplomatic activity resulted in a settlement, though none of the parties backed from its position.
| Ship classes of the Deutsche Marine | |
|---|---|
| Destroyers | 101A Hamburg | 103B Lütjens |
| Frigates and Corvettes | 122 Bremen | 123 Brandenburg | 124 Sachsen | F125 | 130 Braunschweig |
| Fast Attack Craft | 143 Albatros | 143A Gepard | 148 Tiger |
| Mine warfare | 332 Frankenthal | 333 Kulmbach | 352 Ensdorf | 742A Mühlhausen |
| Submarines | 205B | 206A | 212A |
| Auxiliary ships | 404 Elbe | 423 Oste | 441 Gorch Fock | 520 Barbe | 702 Berlin | 703 Walchensee | 704 Rhön | 720 Helgoland | 721 Eisvogel | 722 Wangerooge | 760 Westerwald |
