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09 november 2015

El-Mellah sailing ship launched

Saturday November 7th saw several thousand spectators admiring the side launching of the school sailing ship, El-Mellah, which took place at our Remontowa Shipbuilding shipyard. At noon, the 110-meter-long ship slid rapidly into the water, making it the thousandth launching in the 70-year-long history of the company.

The bridge was not the only place from where people could watch the celebrations, as on that day the shipyard gates were open for anyone who was willing to take part in such an extraordinary event.

The ship will be named El-Mellah, which means "Sailor" in Arabic. Living up to its name, it will be used by naval academy cadets to improve their marine and navigation skills. Additionally, like the majority of sailing ships, it will play a representative role abroad as well as participating in competitions, regattas and international meetings. The ship has been built for the Algerian Navy.

The three-mast frigate is a meter longer than Dar Młodzieży, already familiar to the citizens of the Tricity. The length of the hull including bowsprit will be 110 m, while the tallest of its masts will be 54 meters. The man behind the idea and the technical design is Zygmunt Choreń, an engineer considered to be the most outstanding constructor of sailing ships in the world. Dar Młodzieży is also one of his designs. One of the masts of El-Mellah will also be a funnel, thus fumes being discharged through side exhausts will no longer be a problem for the crew. The ship is expected to be delivered at the end of 2016.