HNLMS Vlaardingen

Melitopol is a former minehunter of the Royal Netherlands Navy. Now in service with the Ukrainian Navy.

History

Dutch service

Vlaardingen is the result of a cooperation between France, Belgium and The Netherlands. She is the fourteenth ship of the class in Dutch service and the third ship in the Dutch Navy to be named Vlaardingen. The commissioning ceremony took place in Alblasserdam on 15 March 1989.
The decommissioning ceremony took place in Vlaardingen on 27 March 2024.

Ukrainian service

Vlaardingen was pledged to the Ukrainian Navy in 2024 together with the following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. She was transferred in 2025 and renamed Melitopol. The ship can't travel to the Black Sea because of the Montreux Convention.