The Bottsand class oil recovery ships (Type 738) of the German Navy

German Navy

The German Navy is the navy of Germany and is part of the unified Bundeswehr .The German Navy traces its roots back to the Imperial Fleet of the revolutionary era of 1848 – 52 and more directly to the Prussian Navy, which later evolved into the Northern German Federal Navy...

 are intended for seawater pollution control. The twin hull ships feature a bow which can be opened by 65 degrees. This creates an area of more than 40 m² to collect oil-polluted seawater. The water is pumped into the ship's 790 m³ tank, where it will be cleaned and the oil separated. Per hour one ship can clean up to 140 m³ of ocean surface polluted with a 2 mm oil slick.

The two ships in the class entered service in 1984 and 1987. The ships are auxiliary ships of the navy. They are used to contain oil spills from German ships in the sea. They are manned by civilians and not naval personnel.

List of ships

Pennant number Pennant number In the modern Royal Navy, and other navies of Europe and the Commonwealth, ships are identified by pennant numbers...	Name	Base
Y1643	Bottsand	Warnemünde Warnemünde Warnemünde is a sea resort and northmost district of Rostock in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, situated on the Baltic Sea in the northeast of Germany at the estuary of the river Warnow.- History :...
Y1644	Eversand	Wilhelmshaven Wilhelmshaven Wilhelmshaven is a coastal town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the western side of the Jade Bight, a bay of the North Sea.-History:...