French vessel FS Sagittaire collaborates with Finnish MHC Vahterpää in Baltic Sea exercises

The unique conditions of the Baltic Sea have captured the attention of Finland’s NATO partners. A French mine countermeasures vessel, FS Sagittaire, conducted exercises in collaboration with the Finnish MHC Vahterpää in the maritime area between Hanko and Turku from late September to early October. This operation was categorized as a low-threshold exercise, similar to those held during Finland’s accession to NATO.

Henri Savisaari, captain of Vahterpää, noted that for many French sailors, the Baltic’s seabed quality and water conditions are new, as is mine countermeasures in waters covered by islands. Pol Mauricx, the French vessel’s commander who began his role in January, expressed his enthusiasm about working in the Baltic for the first time.

During the exercises, both ships practiced close-contact maneuvers, towing operations, and the exchange of mail bags—a method for transferring supplies across vessels. Mauricx remarked that procedural similarities existed between the ships, with only minor differences in details.

The French vessel, commissioned in 1996, is more traditional in mine search technology, while the Finnish Vahterpää—launched in Italy in 2011—features more advanced autonomous systems, representing the future of mine detection.

Since joining NATO’s standing mine countermeasures fleet in April, Vahterpää has participated in various operations, including the Open Spirit exercise off the coast of Estonia, where it successfully located and eliminated seven World War-era mines out of eleven found.

Henri Savisaari highlighted the importance of knowing the seabed, especially as many critical shipping routes remain unexplored, emphasizing the balance between operational efficiency and environmental protection during mine disposal operations. The recent visit concluded with the French crew enjoying leisure activities in Turku before heading back to their home port of Brest.