Italian ship Alliance

	Alliance' at La Spezia
History
Italy
Name	Alliance
Owner	NATO
Builder	Fincantieri – Cantiere Navale del Muggiano (La Spezia)
Laid down	18 June 1984
Launched	9 July 1986
Commissioned	15 April 1988 Germany; 31 March 2016 Italy;
Homeport	La Spezia
Identification	Pennant number: A 5345; Hull number: 921; MMSI number: 247366500; Callsign: IALL;
Status	Active
General characteristics
Type	Research vessel
Tonnage	3,180 GT; 960 NT;
Displacement	2.920 t (2.874 long tons) full load; 2.466 t (2.427 long tons) standard;
Length	93 m (305 ft 1 in) LOA; 82 m (269 ft 0 in) LPP;
Beam	15.2 m (49 ft 10 in) (molded)
Draught	6.2 m (20 ft 4 in) full load
Propulsion	Main diesel driven propulsion generators, 1,800 kW (2,400 bhp); auxiliary gas turbine driven propulsion generator, 967 kW (1,297 bhp)/400 kW (540 bhp); main generators:; 2 x diesel engines Grandi Motori Trieste GMT B-230.12, silenced, 1,890 kW (2,530 bhp) each ; 2 x main generators [AEG] Type DKBL 634/06 1,799 kW (2,412 bhp); auxiliary generators:; 1 x TAG Kongsberg KG2-3C, 1,430 kW (1,920 bhp) ; 1 x auxiliary generator AEG Type DKBH 4504/04, dual rated 967 kW (1,297 bhp)/400 kW (540 bhp); electric propulsion engines:; 2 x electric engines MEP SAM Electronic (ex-AEG) GC312/128/8 KZ 90/24, 1,470 kW (1,970 bhp); ship service engines:; 3 x diesel engine generators Isotta Fraschini ID36-SS-6V (silenced), 480 kW (640 bhp) each; 2 x propeller ; 1 x bow thruster;
Speed	16.3 knots (30.2 km/h; 18.8 mph) (sustained speed)
Range	9,450 nmi (17,500 km; 10,870 mi) at 11.5 knots (21.3 km/h; 13.2 mph) (Fuel consumption = approx. 8 tons per 24 hours of economical steaming at 16.3 knots (30.2 km/h; 18.8 mph). 5 tons per 24 hours of low speed scientific operations)
Endurance	30 days, port to port
Complement	69, of which:; 44 crew, of which 5 officials (accommodations in 5 single suites, 1 single cabin and 19 double cabins); 25 scientists (accommodations in 1 single suite, 16 single cabins and 4 double cabins);
Sensors and ; processing systems	2 x navigation radar Kelvin Hughes Nucleus 6000 (X and S band); Kongsberg K-Bridge INBS; Kongsberg MDM 400 Marine Data Management system; ELAC echo sounder LA25100;
Notes	; fuel capacity: 315 m3; fresh water capacity: 100 t (98 long tons); 4 x cranes: 2 each of 5t SWL with 13m outreach, 2 each of 2t SWL of 10m outreach ; 2 x ‘A-frames, 1 forward 16t SWL, 1 aft 10t SWL (50t snap load) ; 2 x towing winches – 20t @ 12 knots ; 2 x diesel jet drive rigid inflatable workboats (RHIB): Delta/Yanmar TD 730 hp (540 kW) and MST/Volvo Delta TD 190 hp (140 kW);

Alliance (A5345) is a research vessel owned by NATO and operated by the Marina Militare as a NATO research vessel and owned by the CMRE – Centre for Maritime Research and Experimentation, in La Spezia, Italy. Alliance has the status of an auxiliary ship of the Marina Militare.

The function of the Alliance is to conduct a wide range of acoustic, oceanographic research and engineering technology tasks on behalf of NATO, Marina Militare and third party organizations when 'on hire' for charters in global waters. The design and construction of the vessel was done to create a versatile research platform that is adaptable to the Centre's needs and reduce noise output to the lowest possible level in order to minimize interference with research work.

History

Commissioned on 15 April 1988 to SACLANT (Undersea Research Centre – SACLANTCEN, then named NATO Underwater Research Centre – NURC and now CMRE – Centre for Maritime Research and Experimentation) of La Spezia, under the German flag.

Alliance was transferred to the Italian naval flag on 9 April 2016. The vessel is crewed and operated on behalf of NATO by the Marina Militare under a Memorandum of Understanding signed on 22 December 2015.^[5]

It took part in Nordic Recognized Environmental Picture research mission, a multi-year oceanographic research project that started in 2017 and has been conducted in different parts of the Arctic Ocean. The mission assess the impact of climate change in the Arctic, in particular, how the transformation of the Arctic affects sonar performance.^[6]

General information

Source:^[7]

primary working area (aft): 200 m² (2,200 sq ft)
secondary working area (forward): 200 m² (2,200 sq ft)
maintenance, support and all Labs: 370 m² (4,000 sq ft)
scientific storage areas: 500 m3
capacity to embark up to 5 standard ISO1C, 20 ft (6.1 m), and up to 3 standard ISO 1D, 10 ft (3.0 m), containers

Sensing devices

multibeam echo sounder Kongsberg SIMRAD EM-302, 30 kHz
echo sounder Atlas Deso 30, 33 kHz ^[8]
echo sounder Atlas deso 25, 210 kHz
echo sounder FWC, 100 kHz
SMS Sound Velocity Probe C Sonde SVP 10
acoustic tracking system
E.M. Speed Log Skipper DL850, 270 kHz
Acoustic Range and Bearing Indicator, 9–11 kHz
Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP) RDI, 75 kHz
Conductivity/temperature sensor Sea Bird, 8–12 kHz
Underwater telephone ELAC LAZ5100 Archived 20 December 2016 at the Wayback Machine, 8-11.5 kHz

Communication systems

There are two independent systems for ship communications and for scientific trials (with some overlap). The ship system, which uses radios complying with SOLAS and GMDSS rules, includes Inmarsat systems (e-mail, fax and phone).

2 x Elmer ST-1075, 1000 watt HF transmitter
2 x Elmer ST-675, 600 watt HF transmitter
2 x Elmer SRT-619, UHF transceiver
Sailor RT144C, VHF transceiver
Furuno FM-2510, VHF transceiver
Kelvin Hughes Band V-Sat SATCOM, Satellite Communication System

References

^ "Alliance - Marina Militare". Archived from the original on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 28 November 2016.
^ "CMRE - NRV Alliance".
^ "Contact | Compressors and Expansion Turbines | Siemens Energy Global".
^ "NAto's Research Ships: Alliance and Leonardo".
^ Sage, Ian. "STO – CMRE" (PDF). NATO Science and Technology Organization Centre for Maritime Research and Experimentation. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
^ NATO scientists start research mission in the Arctic Sea
^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 22 December 2016. Retrieved 11 December 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
^ "Atlas Hydrographic DESO 30".

External links

Media related to Italian ship Alliance (A5345) at Wikimedia Commons

[1] "Alliance - Marina Militare". Archived from the original on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 28 November 2016.

[2] "CMRE - NRV Alliance".

[3] "Contact | Compressors and Expansion Turbines | Siemens Energy Global".

[4] "NAto's Research Ships: Alliance and Leonardo".

[5] Sage, Ian. "STO – CMRE" (PDF). NATO Science and Technology Organization Centre for Maritime Research and Experimentation. Retrieved 17 December 2021.

[6] NATO scientists start research mission in the Arctic Sea

[7] "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 22 December 2016. Retrieved 11 December 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

[8] "Atlas Hydrographic DESO 30".

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