The Nigerian Navy newly constructed Landing Ship Tank – LST 100 christened Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) KADA is scheduled to undertake her maiden voyage from Albwardy Damen Shipyard, Sharjah, UAE to Lagos, Nigeria on
Friday 1st April 2022.
A signed statement by the Director of Information, Commodore Adedotun Ayo-Vaughan indicates that the NNS KADA is expected to be underway from 1 April – 27 May 2022, totaling a period of 56 days and covering a distance of 8,414.34 Nautical Miles for her maiden voyage.
The new ship is expected to make stopovers in 5 countries and ports Duqm in Oman, Mombasa in Kenya, Port Cape Town in South Africa, Port Luanda in Angola and Gentil in Gabon before arriving Lagos.
“This milestone venture progressed steadily with the keel laying ceremony of the ship conducted on 9 December 2019 at the Albwardy Damen Shipyard, Sharjah, UAE. Subsequently, the construction was completed and the new warship was launched on 7 June 2021. Meanwhile, the official hand-over to the Nigerian Navy was on 30 March 2022”. Ayo-Vaughan said.
He said the historic voyage of the new warship will be preceded by customary change of flags ceremony at the Albwardy Damen Shipyard, Sharjah, UAE.
The ceremony would be witnessed by some dignitaries such as the Chairmen Senate and House Committees on Navy, the Honourable Minister of Defence, Chief of the Naval Staff, Director Navy (MOD) and the Nigerian Ambassadors to UAE as well as Saudi Arabia.
It would be recalled that the Nigerian Navy contracted Messrs Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding for the construction and supply of NNS KADA in May 2018 as part of the recapitalization efforts of the Nigerian Navy by the Federal Government under the current leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari.
