LÉ Aoife (P22)
LÉ "Aoife" (P22) of the Irish Naval Service, now known as P62 of the Maritime Squadron of the Armed Forces of Malta, was built as an offshore patrol vessel in 1978. Serving the Irish Naval Service since 1979, "Aoife" was decommissioned by Ireland in 2015, and donated to the Armed Forces of Malta. It was commissioned as the patrol boat "P62" on 28 June 2015, and is currently Malta's largest naval vessel. Operational history. Irish service. "Aoife" was first commissioned when European Union (then EEC) funding became available in response to the extension of the Irish  Exclusive Fisheries Zone from to in 1976. Together with sister ships (decommissioned in 2001), (decommissioned in 2013) and (decommissioned in 2016), "Aoife" was built at Verolme Cork Dockyard. Originally named after Aoife, step-mother to the children of Lir, "Aoife" operated primarily as a fisheries protection vessel. "Aoife" also assisted however in emergency rescue operations and other naval support roles. In 1986 Richard Branson's "Virgin Challenger II" was attempting to break the transatlantic speed record set by in 1952. "Challenger" left New York Harbour on 26 June 1986 and refueled, as prearranged, at an oil rig on the Grand  Banks of Newfoundland. However, four tons of water also entered her tanks and soon, "Challenger" needed more fuel filters. Branson's London control centre requested help from the RAF but the Royal Navy did not have a ship in the area. "Aoife", 160 miles distant, was informed and an RAF Nimrod dropped a canister of filters to "Challenger". "Aoife" reached "Challenger" at 00:43 on 29 June. Her crew refueled "Challenger", which went on to complete the voyage, taking two hours and nine minutes off the previous record. Branson invited representatives of the ships company to the celebrations in London, saying  We could not have succeeded without their help. In October 2004, "Aoife" assisted in the rescue of the Canadian Forces submarine off the north-western coast of Ireland. In July 2007, "Aoife" assisted in the rescue of over 100 children taking part in a sailing regatta off Dun Laoghaire Harbour. Despite the ship's home port being Haulbowline Island in Cork Harbour, it had a close relationship with the city of Waterford and its crew were involved in fund-raising for the children's ward of the University Hospital Waterford. LÉ "Aoife" was decommissioned in Waterford on 31 January 2015  and later donated to Malta. Maltese service. "Aoife" was commissioned into the Maritime Squadron of the Armed Forces of Malta on 28 June 2015, and given the pennant number "P62". It is the largest vessel in the Maritime Squadron, being larger than the flagship, the offshore patrol boat . It arrived in Malta in November 2015, intended initially for use in humanitarian operations in the Mediterranean. On 24 May 2019, "P62" was involved in the recovery of a WWII aircraft engine off the Grand Harbour. The engine, most probably that of a Short Sunderland flying boat, was retrieved after a 14 -hour operation. During 2020, the ship participated in joint training operations with the Royal Netherlands Navy and Hellenic Navy.