Swedish warship HSwMS Carlskrona has completed four months in command of operation ATALANTA. The EU NAVFOR operation’s focus is to help deter, prevent and repress acts of piracy and armed robbery off the coast of Somalia in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean.

For the first time, HSwMS Carlskrona was supported by SWECCIS, the tri-service Swedish command and control platform, which had been installed by the Swedish defence materiel administration and interoperability experts from Systematic before the start of the operation.

SWECCIS integrates a number of systems under a SharePoint Portal developed by the Swedish defence materiel administration, including Systematic’s SitaWare track server, headquarters and IRIS forms and organisational messaging.

The installation of SWECCIS onboard of the HSwMS Carlskrona means that operational staff have a comprehensive set of tools for command and control, operational planning and situational awareness.

Rear Admiral Jan Thörnqvist, responsible for commanding ten frigates and other large vessels as well as aircraft and helicopters on operation ATALANTA, is very impressed with the new system, saying: “SWECCIS has given the Navy a highly capable C2 platform for national multinational operations. My recommendation is that SWECCIS remains onboard of the HMS CARLSKRONA after the end of the current mission.”

Operation ATALANTA’s main tasks are to escort merchant vessels carrying humanitarian aid for the World Food Program (WFP), vessels of the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), to protect vulnerable vessels in the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean, and to deter and disrupt piracy.

The increased efficiency of mission planning thanks to SWECCIS is evident in the success of operation ATALANTA. Summing up his time in command of the operation, Rear Admiral Jan Thörnqvist said: “EU NAVFOR has in this four-month period disrupted more than 20 pirate action groups and confiscated a vast amount of pirate paraphernalia – stopping more than 250 suspected pirates from conducting attacks. We have conducted 11 WFP escorts, which have delivered 90,000mt of food aid.”