The first navy ship to bear the name Vedetta was a fly-boat which entered service on April 16, 1869 and was condemned on August 30, 1903. ITS Vedetta was the first navy boat with an iron hull ever built in Italy. In the early ‘70s was deployed to the Red Sea to carry out geographic-military studies on the Assab Bay.

35 years later the name “Vedetta” was engraved again on a ship’s hull: it was a Vigilante class minehunter built at the C.R.D.A. Shipyards in Trieste and launched in 1937. Entered service on February 1938 and was condemned in June 1951.

The third unit to bear the name Vedetta was an antisubmarine corvette built at Brest Arsenal. Was laid on the stocks in November 1959 and launched in September 1954. Entered service in November 1959, and was condemned on May 1, 1978. Was first built on a contract for the USA, then for Germany and Ethiopia, and finally sold to Italy in 1959.

The current Unit Vedetta is a Coastal Patrol Boat, third unit of the Esploratore Class, especially designed to perform peacekeeping missions within the Multinational Force and Observers active in the Sinai peninsula.

As part of a modernization plan launched in the 80s, ITS Vedetta and her three sister units replaced the glorious “Alberi” class minesweepers in order to carry out patrolling activities on the Red Sea. ITS Vedetta was laid on the stocks on February 14, 1995, launched on January 11, 1997 at the C.L.E.M.N.A. shipyards in Cadimare (La Spezia). In July 1999 the Unit sailed from the shipyards to be delivered to the Italian Navy, and started her activity in February 2001.

Considering the operations environment and their mission, these units feature some specific characteristics, such as a reduced displacement, speed, endurance, and comfort on board, maximizing easy utilization. The crew is composed of just 16 members, whilst the automation of the ship’s fittings have been enhanced. The final result is a number of units which can fully perform the operations required by the M.F.O. mission, such as patrolling and surveillance, a ready re-deploy, search and rescue operations. In February 2006, ITS Vedetta participated in the SaR operation following the sinking of the ferry-boat “El Salam Boccaccio 98” in the Red Sea, rescuing six.

The Crest is surmounted by the towered crown with rostra that reminds of the origin of the Roman seamanship, to bear witness of the honour and valour conferred to the dukes of naval deeds, conquerors of lands overseas. Below the crown is the silhouette of the sailing ship with the so called “Sentry bird”, a type of white hawk used to stay perfectly still all day and night watching its hunting ground,similar to sentries at sea on the lookout from the main mast. Beams of light shining from the sun in the background bedazzle the prey leaving it with no way out.

Along the ring are the two stars symbolizing the Italian Armed Forces and the unit’s motto: “COR MEUM VIGILAT,” a sentence gotten from the Old Testament’s Song of Songs: “EGO DORMIO ET COR MEUM VIGILAT,” pronounced by a spouse meaning that while she sleeps her husband (her heart) is watching over her.