The Lithuanian Sea Museum, in cooperation with Klaipėda University, prepared the exhibition „Never Give Up!“ about the emergence of combat divers in the independent Lithuania.
The exhibition is located in the former refrigerator room of the historical fort
– Combat divers are a classified unit of the Lithuanian Armed Forces, designed to carry out the most complex combat tasks in a maritime environment," says historian Romualdas Adomavičius, one of the organisers of the exposition and deputy director of the Museum and chief curator of the Museum's collection.
The Combat Diver Unit in Lithuania was formed after the restoration of Lithuania's independence in 1990, when Valerijus Krisikaitis, a diver from Klaipėda, initiated the training of combat swimmers for the needs of the National Defence. - At the time of the creation of the Lithuanian Republic, there was also thought about how combat divers could contribute to national defence in the Baltic Sea and the Klaipėda harbour area," said Romualdas Adomavičius, "The current retired captain, Valerijus Krisikaitis, had a lot of experience in combat diving at the time, and it was at his initiative that the activities of the combat divers started.
For some time, the divers were part of the Land Forces. After experience with NATO partners, the contribution of combat divers to national defence and international military cooperation was recognised. In 2001, the Naval Forces formed a Submarine Action Team, with the same combat divers training in maritime special operations. The experience gained in exercises with the US SEALs opened the way for Lithuanian combat divers to engage in combat operations outside Lithuania.
Historian Romualdas Adomavičius marked that the exposition „Never give up!“ presents diving as an activity that is not only for recreational exploration, but also as a way to ensure the security of the maritime state. At the same time, it also contributes to the awareness and patriotic education of young people, a positive attitude towards military service and encouragement to become combat divers.
The exhibition will show visitors real items used by divers in the 1980s: diving suits, scuba diving equipment, diving vests, fins and other items of clothing, underwater orientation devices.
The design of the exposition was created and the installation works were carried out by Klaipėda Design Centre.
