Dimitris Mitsatsos

Dimitris Mitsatsos, whose family hails from the island of Psara, was born and raised in Athens. His love for the sea and ships led him to the Hellenic Naval Academy, from which he graduated in 1956. In the summer of 1964, he was assigned a secret mission to Cyprus as the commander of the patrol boat PHAETHON. Following the battle on August 8, which resulted in the loss of crew members and cost him his own limb, Mitsatsos turned the page. At the age of 28, he returned to the classroom, this time at the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA) to study Mechanical and Electrical Engineering. He subsequently held various executive positions in land-based industry and shipyards. In 1983, he organized and, until 2020, directed the Hellenic Marine Environment Protection Association (HELMEPA). Today, he holds the rank of Commodore of the Hellenic Navy in the status of War Reserve.