The Finnish Navy is one of the branches of the Finnish Defence Forces. The navy employs 2,300 people and about 4,300 conscripts are trained each year. Finnish Navy vessels are given the ship prefix "FNS", short for "Finnish Navy ship", but this is not used in Finnish language contexts. The Finnish Navy also includes coastal forces and coastal artillery.
An icebreaker is a special-purpose ship or boat designed to move and navigate through ice-covered waters, and provide safe waterways for other boats and ships. Although the term usually refers to ice-breaking ships, it may also refer to smaller vessels, such as the icebreaking boats that were once used on the canals of the United Kingdom.
A nuclear-powered icebreaker is a nuclear-powered ship, purpose-built for use in waters covered with ice. While nuclear-powered icebreakers have been considered or planned by other countries, the only country that has built and operated them as of 2022 is Russia. Nuclear-powered icebreakers were constructed by the Soviet Union and later Russia primarily to aid shipping along the Northern Sea Route in the frozen Arctic waterways north of Siberia. Nuclear-powered icebreakers are much more powerful than their diesel-powered counterparts. Although nuclear propulsion is expensive to install and maintain, very heavy fuel demands, limitations on range, and difficulty refueling in the Arctic region can make diesel vessels less practical and less economical overall for these ice-breaking duties.
Sisu is a Finnish concept of stoic determination and tenacity.
Ice class refers to a notation assigned by a classification society or a national authority to denote the additional level of strengthening as well as other arrangements that enable a ship to navigate through sea ice. Some ice classes also have requirements for the ice-going performance of the vessel.
Polar Class (PC) refers to the ice class assigned to a ship by a classification society based on the Unified Requirements for Polar Class Ships developed by the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS). Seven Polar Classes are defined in the rules, ranging from PC 1 for year-round operation in all polar waters to PC 7 for summer and autumn operation in thin first-year ice.
Tarmo is a Finnish steam-powered icebreaker preserved in the Maritime Museum of Finland in Kotka. Built in 1907 by Sir W.G. Armstrong, Whitworth & Co Ltd in Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom, she was the third state-owned icebreaker of Finland and the last Finnish steam-powered icebreaker to remain in service. When Tarmo was decommissioned in 1970, a decision was made to preserve the vessel as a museum ship. After a long wait in Helsinki, Tarmo was towed to Kotka and completely restored in the early 1990s.
Kontio is a Finnish state-owned icebreaker. Built by Wärtsilä Helsinki shipyard in 1987 as a replacement for the aging Karhu-class icebreakers, she and her sister ship Otso were the first Finnish post-war icebreaker to be built without bow propellers.
Louhi is a Finnish multipurpose oil and chemical spill response vessel owned by the Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE), but manned and operated by the Finnish Navy. The ship, ordered in 2007, was built by Uki Workboat in Uusikaupunki, Finland, and entered service in May 2011.
Finnish-Swedish ice class is an ice class assigned to a vessel operating in first-year ice in the Baltic Sea and calling at Finnish or Swedish ports. Ships are divided into six ice classes based on requirements for hull structural design, engine output and performance in ice according to the regulations issued by the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency (Traficom) and the Swedish Maritime Administration.
Jääkarhu was a Finnish and later Soviet steam-powered icebreaker. Built in 1926 by P. Smit Jr. Shipbuilding and Machine Factory in Rotterdam, Netherlands, she was the last and largest steam-powered state-owned icebreaker of Finland. After two decades of successful service, Jääkarhu was handed over to the Soviet Union as war reparation in 1945 and renamed Sibiryakov. She remained in service until the 1970s and was broken up in 1972.
Voima is a Finnish state-owned icebreaker. Built by Wärtsilä Hietalahti shipyard in Helsinki in 1954, she was the first icebreaker in the world to be equipped with two bow propellers and generated widespread publicity that helped the Finnish shipbuilding industry to become the world leader in icebreaker design.
Sisu is a Finnish icebreaker of the Atle class built in 1976 in Helsinki.
Otso is a Finnish state-owned icebreaker. Built by Wärtsilä Helsinki shipyard in 1986 to replace the aging Karhu-class icebreakers, she was the first Finnish post-war icebreaker to be built without bow propellers. Otso has an identical sister ship, Kontio, which was delivered in 1987.
Arctia Oy is Finnish state-owned company responsible for operating a Finnish icebreaker fleet. The company was established as Arctia Shipping Oy in 2010 when Finnish icebreaking services were incorporated. The name of the parent company was changed to Arctia Oy on 18 January 2016. It has following subsidiaries: Arctia Icebreaking Oy, Arctia Offshore Oy, Arctia Karhu Oy, and Arctia Management Services Oy. Arctia has a floating office next to the icebreaker base at Katajanokka in Helsinki.
Polaris is a Finnish icebreaker. Built in 2016 by Arctech Helsinki Shipyard, she is the most powerful icebreaker ever to fly the Finnish flag and the first icebreaker in the world to feature environmentally friendly dual-fuel engines capable of using both low-sulfur marine diesel oil (LSMDO) and liquefied natural gas (LNG). Polaris was initially ordered by the Finnish Transport Agency, but the ownership was transferred to the state-owned icebreaker operator Arctia after delivery.
Sisu was a Finnish state-owned icebreaker. Built in 1939 at Wärtsilä Hietalahti Shipyard in Helsinki, she was one of the world's first diesel-electric icebreakers. In addition to icebreaking duties, she served as a submarine tender for the Finnish Navy during the summer months until the end of the Continuation War.
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