Navy (Armada Nacional)
The Navy consists of about 5,700 personnel under Admiral Juan H. Fernández and is organized into four commands: the Fleet Command (Comando de la Flota or COMFLO), the Coast Guard (Prefectura Nacional Naval or PRENA), the Chief Directorate of Naval Materiel (Dirección General de Material Naval or DIMAT), and the Chief Directorate of Naval Personnel (Dirección General de Personal Naval or DIPER). The Navy General Staff (Estado Mayor General de la Armada or ESMAY) acts as an advisory body to the admiral.
The current fleet consists of 2 Portuguese João Belo class frigates, 1 French Commandant Rivière class frigate (in reserve), 1 German Lüneburg class auxiliary oil replenisher, 3 Vigilante class patrol boats, 2 Castrates class patrol boats, 3 East German Kondor II class minesweepers, and other smaller craft.
The Navy also includes a battalion-sized Marine Corps (Cuerpo de Fusileros Navales) and a small naval air station at Laguna del Sauce.
The Uruguayan Naval Academy (Escuela Naval or ESNAL) is located in Carrasco, a suburb of Montevideo. Instruction consists of a 4-year course of study culminating in a cruise on the instructional tall ship ROU Capitán Miranda, which lasts several weeks and takes graduates to various ports around the world.
Read more about this topic: Military Of Uruguay
Famous quotes containing the word navy:
“Give me the eye to see a navy in an acorn. What is there of the divine in a load of bricks? What of the divine in a barber’s shop or a privy? Much, all.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)