Spessart (A1442)

Spessart (A1442) is a Rhön-class tanker of the German Navy. She was commissioned in Kiel on 5 September 1977.

History
Spessart was originally built for civilian service by Kröger of Rendsburg in 1974. On 5 September 1977 she was commissioned into the Deutsche Marine, based at Kiel.

On 29 March 2009, as she was taking part in Operation Atalanta, Spessart was attacked by a 7-man pirate boat. In addition to the regular 40-man civilian crew, Spessart carried a 12-man security detail which exchanged small arm fire with the pirates, and repelled the assault. The frigates HNLMS De Zeven Provinciën, HS Psara, SPS Victoria, USS Boxer and the Rheinland-Pfalz (F 209) intervened and captured the pirates after a few hours of chase.