Minister for Defence Industry Christopher Pyne has visited Spanish Navy frigate Cristóbal Colón in South Australia to inspect the capabilities of the ship and receive an update on the progress of training being conducted with the Royal Australian Navy.
“The Cristóbal Colón is a highly capable vessel, and demonstrates the kind of capability that Navantia are offering in the Future Frigate project,” Minister Pyne stated on March 17.
“Navantia was instrumental in turning around the Air Warfare Destroyer program in Australia, taking the Osborne shipyard to internationally competitive standards. Navantia’s ability to run shipyards, Australia’s long relationship with Spain and the capability of ships like the Cristóbal Colón are among the reasons Navantia were downselected for Australia’s Future Frigate program.”
The frigate arrived in Australia on February 19.
Addressing @Australian_Navy who are completing their training on board ?? ESPS Cristobal Colon. #auspol #ausdef pic.twitter.com/LyXZP1Dm17
— Christopher Pyne (@cpyne) March 17, 2017