2024-04-05 06:44:13
Naval exercises in the area began in March last year and are due to end on Friday.
The Danish military said in a statement that the problem with the missile occurred “during a mandatory test where the missile launcher is activated and cannot be deactivated.”
“Until the missile launcher is deactivated, there is a risk that the missile could fire and fly several kilometers away,” the military added.
The missile was launched from the Niels Juel frigate, which from 2023 is part of NATO’s standing naval forces.
The warning covered the area south-west of the town of Korsor, about 4km south of the Great Belt Bridge, which crosses the strait. The bridge remained open to traffic, its operator said.
Denmark’s defense ministry said the missile contained 150kg of explosives, adding that it had not been activated and would not explode if it fell into the sea.
The incident in the Great Belt Strait comes at the end of a difficult week for the Danish Navy.
On Wednesday, Denmark’s military chief, General Flemming Lentfer, was fired for failing to report a malfunction of the Danish frigate Iver Huitfeldt’s weapons system in the Red Sea.
Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said he had lost confidence in Lentfer, who failed to notify the defense ministry that the frigate’s radar and missile systems had malfunctioned when it was attacked by a Houthi-controlled drone.
The frigate Iver Huitfeldt helped protect commercial shipping from attacks by the Houthis as they launched a campaign of support for the Palestinians following Israel’s offensive in the Gaza Strip.
Neither the crew nor the ship were injured during the deployment.
Let’s get pagan BBC inf.
2024-04-05 06:44:13