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Further Reading

3th Warship Subdivision / Hadihajós Alosztály

The Honvéd Hadihajós [Army Warship] Department, whose principal responsibility was the river Danube, was formed on on 14 May 1945 [the word Hadihajós is Hungarian for warship]. Despite the sacrifices and heroic action during the period 1948-1951, three ships were destroyed (Baikal, Dömös, Tass). The Hadihajós Unit, suited to the task of implementing mine clearance, was organized in 1951 to 1991. In the early 1980s, a significant development has been carried into this allegation was six Yugoslav-made mine clearance vessel. Independent since 1991, the Brigade assumed the name Hadihajós Honvéd River Fleet until the end of 2001. In 2001, after the dissolution of the Honvéd River Fleet formed a new organization, the Hungarian army of 1. Honvéd Regiment known as the Tuzszerész and Hadihajós. The EOD and Mine Clearance Battalion and the warship unit merged into a single unit as of 1 July 2001 under the designation “HDF 1st ‘Honvéd’ EOD and Warship Regiment”, and continued to uphold the distinguished traditions of their predecessors to meet the new challenges of the 21st century.

The HDF warship service has undergone a significant transformation over the past few years and continues to grow in importance. The implemented changes in the HDF force structure, the challenges of our age and the altered system of missions and requirements together have had a profound impact on the deployability of the unit and the range of tasks assigned to warship service. Their core roles have been extended to include providing support on water to the EOD missions and ensuring water supply. To enhance the effectiveness of their task execution and reaction capability, two mine countermeasures vessels (the EOD patrol crafts Ercsi and Baja) have been introduced into the TOE of the warship subdivision.

The first mine countermeasures vessel (MCMV)/patrol craft of the Hungarian Defence Forces entered service in September 2005. The commissioning ceremony of the refitted AN-2 class minehunter was held in the port of Ercsi. The latest warship of the unit bears the name of this town in Pest County, since by tradition the HDF warships are designated after towns lying on the banks of the River Danube. The warship “Ercsi” entered service following the vessels “Óbuda”, “Dunaújváros”, “Dunaföldvár” and “Tass”. With the “Ercsi” MCMV/patrol craft in service, the EOD unit was ready to start locating, finding and rendering safe the WWII UXOs in the water as well as on the ground.

The second refitted MCMV/patrol craft of the Hungarian Defence Forces was named after a Danubian town too. The AN-2 class MCMV was ceremonially christened in Baja, at the port situated next to the town’s main square in May 2007. By using this refitted mine countermeasures vessel, the HDF EOD personnel are able to destroy and neutralize UXOs found in the River Danube as well as all other navigable waterways of Hungary.

The “Baja” is one of the four minehunters in service with the EOD and warship regiment. It took four months to refit the vessel, which involved replacing all the components except the frame. Its main machinery is a diesel engine of the latest Euro-5 standard so the ship can do up to 43 kilometers per hour. This built-in engine is necessary to make sure that the EOD patrol craft can sail in waterways where it has to comply with special environmental protection regulations.

The MCMVs “Baja” and “Ercsi” are two warships in service with the special watercraft EOD platoon of the regiment. The deminer crews of the two warships and the platoon leader had taken the basic EOD course at the unit before they started their training, so they can assist with the work of the EOD divers in case of an actual deployment. The MCMVs are ready to set sail for the scene at very short notice on receiving a call. It takes at least one hour to prepare the other minesweepers for setting sail from the port. The MCMVs have the benefit of being fast, and they allow transportation by a trailer which means that besides the River Danube, they can be deployed on all navigable rivers and lakes/still waters around the country. The only disadvantage is that their electronic crane can hoist up to 250 kilograms at a time, while the davits of the other minesweepers have a lifting power of one ton.