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Mar 15 2021

The third PPA launching ceremony

The launching ceremony of the third PPA was held on the 13th March 2021 at Fincantieri Shipyard in Riva Trigoso – Genova.

The ship has been named after Raimondo Montecuccoli (1609 – 1680), Duke of Melfi, Author, Field Marshal and military reformer, a master of the warfare, who led Austrian armies to victory against enemies of the House of Habsburg for half a century. Montecuccoli was considered as the only commander to be the equal of the General Turenne of the French Arms under Louis XIV.

Raimondo Montecuccoli

PPA3 will be the second ship serving the Italian Navy named after the brave Warlord Montecuccoli. The first one was a light cruiser that first took part in World War II and then became a training ship for the cadets of the Naval Academy.

Former Italian Navy light Cruiser Montecuccoli (1934-1964)

Mrs Anna Maria Pugliese, daughter of Admiral Stefano Pugliese, Commanding Officer the previous Montecuccoli, was the Godmother of the third PPA launching ceremony that took place in the presence of a handful number of guests due to the COVID-19 government restrictions. The ceremony was attended by the Italian Government Under Secretary of Defense, Senator Stefania Pucciarelli, the IT Navy Logistic Commander, V.Adm. Eduardo Serra, the Deputy DNA, V.Adm. Dario Giacomin, the IT Naval Procurement Director, V.Adm. Massimo Guma, the OCCAR-EA Director, Mr Matteo Bisceglia and very few senior Managers from Fincantieri and Leonardo Company.

Under the supervision of both the Italian Naval Armament Directorate and of the OCCAR PPA Programme Division, the Italian Ship (ITS) Raimondo Montecuccoli (P432) is expected to start its sea trials by the end of next summer.

OCCAR-EA Director, Mr Matteo Bisceglia. ©Fincantieri

Based on a common platform, PPAs are built in three different configurations: LIGHT (two ships), LIGHT PLUS (three ships) and FULL (two ships); the LIGHT version has a complete set of artillery; the LIGHT PLUS version adds a missile firing capability with actuators planned also for ballistic missile defence; the Full version will be able to operate in all traditional warfare domains, Surface, Air and Underwater. Light and Light Plus have been developed with the “fitted for” approach: every system on the Full can quickly be deployed also on Light and Light plus, facilitating operational flexibility and growing capabilities during the ship’s life.

ITS Raimondo Montecuccoli is the First of Class in Light Plus configuration and its delivery to the Italian Navy is scheduled for January 2023.

Italian Navy Ship Raimondo Montecuccoli (PPA Class) ©OCCAR