The drive of the Hanse is diesel-electric . The diesel generators are a total of four diesel engines. The two electric traction motors with an output of 1000 kW each , which each act on a fixed propeller , are from STN ATLAS Marine Electronics . In addition to the four diesel generators, the ship also has an auxiliary diesel. It also has a bow thruster with an output of 350 kW.
The ship entered service in 2000. Since September 2000 it has acted as a station ship at the Elbe pilot station. It replaced the two monohull ships Kommodore Ruser and Kommodore Rolin . The Commodore Ruser was initially held as a replacement ship.
In 2010 the ship was replaced by a slightly larger new building, which also bears the name Elbe . The ship was therefore renamed Hanse and has since been available as a replacement ship for the new Elbe and the Weser, which came into service in summer 2010 .