Visiting Coast Guard Vessel Óðinn

The offshore patrol vessel ICGV Óðinn was launched in September 1959, later entering official service with the Icelandic Coast Guard. She remains the oldest ship in the fleet and is powered by Burmeister & Wain engines, which are believed to be the only remaining serviceable examples of their kind in the world.

Following her launch the previous year, the vessel was officially commissioned into the Icelandic Coast Guard in January 1960. During her active service, she became a prominent figure in the Cod Wars between Iceland and the United Kingdom, tasked with patrolling territorial waters.

During the Third Cod War on April 30, 1976, the ship was rammed in the stern by the British trawler Arctic Corsair. The collision occurred after the Icelandic vessel made several attempts to cut the trawler's nets, cementing her role in the historical maritime disputes of the period.

Following her decommissioning in 2006, the ship was donated to the Hollvinasamtök Óðins association in 2008. This transfer enabled her preservation and transition into a museum ship, which is currently displayed at the Reykjavík Maritime Museum in Reykjavík Harbour.

In 2014, significant work commenced to restore the vessel to operational status. This preservation effort proved successful by 2020, when the ship was able to depart Reykjavík harbour for the first time in over a decade to undergo a series of successful engine tests.

As a symbolic gesture of cooperation between former adversaries, the ship exchanged bells with the Arctic Corsair, the same British vessel she had collided with during the Cod Wars. By this time, both ships had been preserved as museum pieces in their respective home countries.

In May 2022, the vessel received an official certificate of seaworthiness from the Icelandic Transport Authority. This certification was followed in June 2022 by a ceremonial voyage to Grindavík, attended by the President of Iceland to celebrate the annual Icelandic Fishermen's Day.