Ouvéa, named after Ouvéa Island

Ouvéa Island

Ouvéa Island is one of the Loyalty Islands, in the archipelago of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. The island is part of the commune of Ouvéa, in the Islands Province of New Caledonia.-Geography:...

, was the name of a yacht used by three DGSE agents to import the naval mine

Naval mine

A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, an enemy vessel...

s used to sink the Greenpeace

Greenpeace

Greenpeace is a non-governmental environmental organization with offices in over forty countries and with an international coordinating body in Amsterdam, The Netherlands...

 protest yacht Rainbow Warrior

Rainbow Warrior (1978)

The Rainbow Warrior was a former UK Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food trawler later purchased by the environmental organisation Greenpeace...

in 1985, killing photographer Fernando Pereira

Fernando Pereira

Fernando Pereira was a freelance Dutch photographer, of Portuguese origin, who drowned when French intelligence used two underwater mines to sink the ship Rainbow Warrior, owned by the environmental organisation Greenpeace on July 10, 1985 .The bombing of the boat had been designed to make the ship...

. The Ouvea was sailed to Norfolk Island

Norfolk Island

Norfolk Island is a small island in the Pacific Ocean located between Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia. The island is part of the Commonwealth of Australia, but it enjoys a large degree of self-governance...

 after the bombing, from where one of the bombers flew to Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

, narrowly escaping arrest. After New Zealand Police

New Zealand Police

The New Zealand Police is the national police force of New Zealand, responsible for enforcing criminal law, enhancing public safety, maintaining order and keeping the peace throughout New Zealand...

 arrested two other agents still in New Zealand, the Ouvéa set to sea and was scuttled, while the crew transferred to the French submarine Rubis

Rubis (S 601)

The Rubis is a first-generation nuclear attack submarine of the French Navy, named after the French submarine Rubis which distinguished herself during the Second World War....

, to make their escape.