The city of Wolfratshausen has been the sponsor of the naval boat “Oste” since 2013.
Now it was important for Upper Bavaria to fly the flag at the Waterkant.
Eckernförde/Wolfratshausen – Plowing through the Baltic Sea with a fleet service boat and spending the nights on board the steel giant is not possible for package tourists.
A good dozen people from Wolfratshausen can now report on just such an extraordinary trip - they accepted the invitation from Lieutenant Captain Sebastian Westphal, commander of the "Oste", the sponsored boat of the city of Wolfratshausen.
"I'm a landlubber, the constant wind at sea takes a bit of getting used to," said Deputy Mayor Günther Eibl in an interview with our newspaper.
Solidarity with soldiers: Wolfratshauser visit the crew of the sponsored boat on the Baltic Sea
The starting point of the four-day tour was the Eckernförde naval base in Schleswig-Holstein, the home port of the almost 84 meter long and almost 15 meter wide "Oste", which is powered by a 9000 hp diesel engine.
The 36-man crew of the naval boat – in cooperation with other units of German and international armed forces – primarily takes on early warning and communications tasks.
Due to the corona pandemic, personal contacts were impossible for a good two years, so it was all the more important for Eibl, in his own words, to fly the flag for the rafting town: "The 'Oste' team is doing a sensational service, they have all of our appreciation and ours deserves respect.”
It is important that we uphold and live this sponsorship.
Günther Eibl, Deputy Mayor of Wolfratshausen
At a young age, Eibl did his basic military service in the army, specifically with the 1/8 telecommunications training company in Murnau, from which he retired with the rank of corporal.
He entered the city's sponsored boat for the first time.
In addition to the confinement on board, which represents an additional challenge for the soldiers, who are often at sea for weeks, he remembers above all the hospitality of Commander Westphal and his crew: "Absolutely huge," summed up the Deputy Mayor.
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Welcome to the Waterkant: Lieutenant Commander Sebastian Westphal (middle) and his team welcomed the guests from Wolfratshausen to the naval base in Eckernförde (Schleswig-Holstein) with the traditional beer.
© Gabriele Rüth
"It is important that we uphold and live this sponsorship," emphasizes Eibl, already looking ahead to next year - in September 2023 the connection to the crew of the "Oste" will exist for exactly 20 years.
On the occasion of the 1000-year celebration of the Loisach city, the then head of the town hall, Reiner Berchtold, and the former corvette captain, Ingo Wolf, officially certified the sponsorship.
Until it was decommissioned in September 2000, the city of Wolfratshausen was the sponsor of the Navy's S47 "Jaguar" speedboat.
Former mayor Berchtold and his wife, city councilor Gerlinde Berchtold, also took part in the most recent sea trip.
A large gift basket and 500 euros for the team fund
Head of delegation Eibl and Laura Schniotalle from the town hall department for city marketing did not travel empty-handed across the white sausage equator to the Waterkant.
Together with Roman Huber (Mountain Rifle Company Wolfratshausen) and Gabriele Rüth (Flößerstraße Club) they presented a large gift basket and 500 euros for the team fund.
The trip was organized by City Hall employee Alexandra von Alvensleben, who is still responsible for the town twinning and sponsorships of the municipality.
As reported, von Alvensleben is leaving the city administration at his own request at the end of next month.
You can read all the news from Wolfratshausen here.
On the first day, a visit to the submarine memorial in Möltenort and the naval memorial in Laboe were on the agenda.
The memorial on the Möltenorter Schanze near Kiel is dedicated to the memory of the submarine drivers of the German Navy who stayed at sea - and is a reminder against war and violence.
More than 35,000 names of U-boat drivers who did not return from their missions in World War I and World War II are immortalized there on bronze plaques.
The 72 meter high memorial in Laboe is a memorial for the seafarers of all nations who stayed on the seven seas and reminds of peaceful seafaring on the open seas.
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Active sponsorship: Lieutenant Commander Sebastian Westphal, commander of the "Oste", and Wolfratshausen's second mayor Günther Eibl.
He led the 16-strong delegation from Loisachstadt.
© Gabriele Rüth
On the second day we went out to sea with the “Oste”, the boat reaches a top speed of around 20 knots, which is the equivalent of almost 40 km/h.
The Wolfratshauser were allowed to take a detailed look behind the scenes of the fleet service boat and got an impression of the everyday life of the crew.
So that the impression of a contemplative excursion was not given, the marines completed two alarm exercises in front of the Upper Bavarians: "Fire on ship" and "Man overboard".
"Oste" crew donates to Inselhaus children and youth welfare in Wolfratshausen
That the sponsorship “is by no means a one-way street”, according to Vice-Chairman Eibl, was proven by “Oste” commander Westphal and his comrades on the last evening together with the guests from Loisachstadt.
Westphal presented Eibl with a donation of 2,300 euros from the boat crew to be forwarded to the Inselhaus children and youth welfare service – there was a blackboard full of seaman's knots for the mountain rifle club's home.
Eibl's conclusion: An impressive short trip, characterized by "extreme hospitality".
It was important to him personally "to set an example with our visit during these times" and to underline the bond with the crew of the fleet service boat.
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