It may not be widely known but it has been a tradition for the Navy for many years now to christen its ships with women. For example, the sponsor (i.e. godmother) of the “Hydra” frigate, which participated in the “Aspides” operation in the Red Sea and even shot down Houthi drones, was the mother of the current Prime Minister, Marika Mitsotakis, as BIMAtodoti informs us.
The role of the godmother in the navy
The christening ceremony of the frigate “Hydra” took place in 1992 and the late Marika went to a shipyard in Northern Germany for this purpose.
Undertaking of warships
The title of godmother of a warship is a title of distinction and honor. Thus, the Navy gives the underwriting of its ships to the first among the first to attend the naval schools.
For example, first in her class at the Naval Petty Officer School and captain of her class, a Petty Officer, Konstantina Bogdanaki she was honored with the title of “godmother” on a Navy support ship, “Perseus”.
And on the other general support ship of the navy, “Aias”, the contractor was also a woman, Navy Officer, Captain (M) A. Psomadelli, confirming the prevailing custom.
The special cases of naming
In special cases, the naming of warships is given to relatives of fallen hero officers. For example, the naming of the military Fast Guided Missile Patrol “Lieutenant Vlahakos”, the brother of the hero Vassilis Vlahakos was designated as the contractor. In the warship of Guided Missiles “Lieutenant Karathanasis” his contractor was the son of the heroically fallen officer Yiannis Karathanasis.
The baptism ceremony and the champagne
But how is a soldier baptized? As the Pacemaker explains to us, the Naval General Staff is the one who chooses the champagne. When we say “picks,” we mean he picks a champagne glass with a thin glass to break on the first try. Custom says if the champagne is broken first, then the warship will be lucky. Afterwards, the undertaker reads a wish for the ship to have a safe journey, the consecration takes place and the ship is ready for missions.
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