Spanish Navy - The Spanish Navy Today

The Spanish Navy Today

Subordinate to the Spanish Chief of Naval Staff, stationed in Madrid, are four area commands: the Cantabrian Maritime Zone with its headquarters at Ferrol on the Atlantic coast; the Straits Maritime Zone with its headquarters at San Fernando near Cádiz; the Mediterranean Maritime Zone with its headquarters at Cartagena; and the Canary Islands Maritime Zone with its headquarters at Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.

Operational naval units are classified by mission and assigned to either the combat forces, the protective forces, or the auxiliary forces. Combat forces are given the tasks of conducting offensive and defensive operations against potential enemies and for assuring maritime communications. Their principal vessels included two carrier groups, naval aircraft, transports, landing vessels, submarines, and missile-armed fast attack craft. Protective forces have the mission of securing maritime communications over both ocean and coastal routes, securing the approaches to ports and maritime terminals. Their principal components are destroyers, frigates, corvettes, and minesweepers. It also has marine units for the defense of naval installations. Auxiliary forces are responsible for transportation and provisioning at sea and has diverse tasks like coast guard operations, scientific work, and maintenance of training vessels. In addition to supply ships and tankers, the force included destroyers and a large number of patrol craft.

The second largest vessel of the Armada is the aircraft carrier, Principe de Asturias (R11), which entered service in 1988 after completing sea trials. Built in Spain it was designed with a "ski-jump" takeoff deck. Its complement is twenty nine AV-8 Harrier II vertical (or short) takeoff and landing (V/STOL) aircraft or sixteen helicopters designed for antisubmarine warfare and to support marine landings.

The carrier has an escort group of four Álvaro de Bazán class frigates, built in Spain, equipped with the AEGIS combat system and armed with Harpoon and Standard missiles. The first was commissioned in 2002. Also in the inventory are six F-80 Santa María class frigates, commissioned between 1986 and 1995, built in Spain. Six slightly smaller corvettes of Portuguese design were constructed in Spain between 1978 and 1982.

The submarine force consists of Franco-Spanish designs. Four of the Agosta 90B class submarine were constructed in Spain between 1983 and 1985. They are equipped with the submarine-launched version of the Exocet anti-ship missile. Four Daphné class submarines were completed between 1973 and 1975 and are now retired. The Spanish armada is constructing new S-80 class submarine with long range, conventional propulsion and new anti-detection technology .

The Marines have 11,500 troops and are divided into base defense forces and landing forces. One of the three base defense battalions is stationed with each of the Navy headquarters. "Groups" (midway between battalions and regiments) are stationed in Madrid and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. The Tercio (fleet - regiment equivalent) is available for immediate embarkation and based out of San Fernando. Its principal weapons include light tanks, armored personnel vehicles, self-propelled artillery, and TOW and Dragon antitank missiles.