This report is based on preliminary data. Ventspils (Latvia). 01-02 March 2015 and 07-09 March 2015 Purpose of the cruise The original scientific goal of this cruise, conducted in the framework of the WGL/Pakt project ILWAO-II, was the investigation of the role of internal waves for basin-scale vertical mixing in the deep basins of the Baltic Sea. In agreement with IOW’s board, however, it was decided to devote a substantial part of the cruise time to the observation of one of the rare major saline inflow events that reached the central Baltic Sea exactly at the time of this cruise. In addition to the physical measurements, microbiological and chemical investigations were conducted, focusing on the role of methane-oxidizing bacteria in pelagic redoxclines.