River class (2002)
 The Mersey
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The ships of the River class are offshore patrol vessels (OPV) of the British Royal Navy . According to the parlance of the British Navy, they are officially known as Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPV) . They replace the Island-class and Castle-class ships from the 1970s.
history
In 2001, the Royal Navy awarded the contract to build three deep-sea patrol boats to the armaments company Vosper Thornycroft (VT) in Southampton . These were intended to replace the five smaller Iceland- class patrol boats . A special feature is that the units remained in the possession of VT after completion and were leased by the Navy. The corresponding contract has a term of five years. After this time, the Navy can cancel it, extend it or buy the ships. As the first of the three ships, the HMS Tyne (P281) was put into service in June 2003 , the HMS Severn (P282) in July and finally the HMS Mersey (P283) in November . The task of the ships is to monitor British territorial waters around the British Isles .
In February 2005, the Navy awarded Vosper Thornycroft the contract to build a fourth ship of this class. Compared to the ships of the first series, however, the HMS Clyde (P284) will have a greater displacement and heavier armament. She entered service in January 2007 and replaced the two Castle-class ships . Their task was to monitor the territorial waters of the Falkland Islands . In contrast to its two predecessors, which had to return to England every three years for maintenance and repair work, the HMS Clyde remained in service in the South Atlantic for 12 years until 2019 .
The modified River class currently comprises two boats for the Royal Thai Navy , built in Bangkok Docks, Bangkok , and three more for the Royal Navy. The latter were specifically commissioned to maintain the employment and know-how of the shipyards involved. Without these orders, there would have been a gap in capacity utilization between the new build programs that expired at the time of the order in November 2013 and the construction of the Type 26 frigates ( city class ).
construction
The ships are significantly larger than their predecessors. This enables both the accommodation of more extensive equipment and the storage of food and diesel for longer uses. The ships of the first series have a so-called working deck at the stern. Equipment for various uses can be installed and stored on this. For example, the ships can be equipped for use in fighting fire or oil, disaster relief, rescuing the injured or transporting light vehicles. The deck can also be used for landing medium-weight helicopters. The HMS Clyde will have a larger deck and will regularly carry an AgustaWestland AW101 “Merlin” transport and surveillance helicopter . Each corvette also has two dinghies.
Each ship is powered by two Ruston 12RK 270 turbo diesel engines, which together generate an output of 8,250 kW. A bow thruster with 280 kW increases the maneuverability of all four ships. The HMS Clyde also has a stern thruster with 185 kW.
Another construction lot was extended again opposite the Clyde .
Technical specifications
| Data |
HMS Tyne HMS Severn HMS Mersey |
HMS Clyde |
HMS Forth HMS Medway HMS Trent HMS Tamar HMS Spey |
|---|---|---|---|
| length | 79.5 m | 81 m | 90.5 m |
| width | 13.6 m | 14.1 m | |
| Draft | 3.8 m | 3.5 m | |
| displacement | 1677 tons | 1900 tons | 2000 tons |
| speed | 20 knots | 20 knots | |
| Range | 7800 nautical miles at 12 knots | 7800 nautical miles at 12 knots | 5000 nautical miles |
| drive | 2 × turbo diesel engines each 4125 kW | 2 × turbo diesel engines each 4125 kW | |
| crew | 30th | 34 | |
| Armament | 1 × 20 mm cannon, 2 × machine guns | 1 × 30 mm cannon, 4 × machine guns | 1 × 30mm cannon |
| helicopter | 1 × AW101 Merlin | 1 × AW101 Merlin |
The dimensions of the Krabi are essentially the same as the last three boats for the Royal Navy. However, it owns equipment from other manufacturers on the system side. These include the MAN diesel engine and the 76 mm main armament from Oto Melara .
units
The boats form the former fisheries protection squadron, today as the "Overseas Patrol Squadron", the oldest squadron of the RN, based in Portsmouth . The units support both the UK Department of the Environment and the subordinate agency responsible for fisheries protection and maritime affairs. The fourth boat, the Clyde , served as a station ship in the Falkland Islands as described above . The first four units were built at the VT Group in Portsmouth.
The Clyde was followed by another construction lot of five units. Its first, the Forth , has served as a station ship in the South Atlantic and the Medway in the Caribbean since 2020 . This lot was built by BAE Systems in Glasgow .
| Identifier | Surname | Launch | Commissioning | Decommissioning | Whereabouts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P281 | HMS Tyne | April 27, 2002 | January 13, 2003 | active, May 24, 2018 - July 15, 2018 temporarily decommissioned | |
| P282 | HMS Severn | January 13, 2003 | July 31, 2003 | active, October 27, 2017 - June 30, 2020 temporarily decommissioned | |
| P283 | HMS Mersey | June 14, 2003 | December 18, 2003 | active | |
| P257 | HMS Clyde | June 14, 2006 | July 5, 2007 | 20th December 2019 | Delivered to Bahrain |
| P222 | HMS Forth | 20th August 2016 | April 13, 2018 | active | |
| P223 | HMS Medway | 23rd August 2017 | 19th September 2019 | active | |
| P224 | HMS Trent | 20th March 2018 | August 3, 2020 | active | |
| P233 | HMS Tamar | October 10, 2018 | 4th June 2020 | active | |
| P234 | HMS Spey | 19th June 2019 | under construction |
The former Clyde was acquired by Bahrain in 2020. She has been in service there as RBNS Al Zubara since August 2020 .
The boats had initially been ordered from Trinidad and Tobago . After they canceled the order in September 2010, Brazil acquired the Amazon class boats there in early 2012.
| Identifier | Surname | Launch | Commissioning | Whereabouts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| P120 | Amazon | November 18, 2009 | June 29, 2012 | active |
| P121 | Apa | July 15, 2010 | November 30, 2012 | active |
| P122 | Araguari | July 16, 2010 | June 21th 2013 | active |
The shipyard was the naval shipyard in Sattahip , Chon Buri .
| Identifier | Surname | Launch | Commissioning | Whereabouts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 551 | HTMS Krabi | December 3, 2011 | August 26, 2013 | active |
| 552 | HTMS Prachuap Khiri Khan | 2nd August 2019 | September 27, 2019 | active |
Web links
- Royal Navy (English)
- Navy Matters: HMS Tyne, Severn and Mersey (English)
- Navy Matters: HMS Clyde (English)
Individual evidence
- ^ A b George Allison: New Offshore Patrol Ship formally named in Glasgow. UK Defense Journal, March 21, 2019.
- ↑ HMS Clyde returns to UK after 12 years guarding the Falkland Islands, UK Defense Journal, December 28, 2019
- ↑ HMS Forth arrives in Falklands to assume guardship duties. UK Defense Journal, 8th January 2019
- ^ HMS Medway sets sail for the Caribbean. RN News, January 20, 2019
- ↑ A Fond Farewell To HMS Severn. Forces.net, October 27, 2017
- ^ HMS Clyde's last drive home for Christmas. RN News, December 20, 2019
- ^ HMS Forth is officially commissioned into the Royal Navy. Janes, April 13, 2018
- ^ Glasgow built HMS Medway officially commissioned into Royal Navy fleet. UK Defense Journal, 19th September 2019
- ↑ HMS Tamar formally joins the Royal Navy fleet. UK Defense Journal, 3rd August 2020
- ↑ HMS Tamar formally joins the Royal Navy fleet. UK Defense Journal, June 4th 2020
- ^ HMS Clyde sold to Bahrain. UK Defense Journal, 7 August 2020
- ^ Thailand conducts ceremonial launch for second Krabi-class OPV. Janes, August 4, 2019
- ↑ Thailand inducts second Krabi class OPV. Janes, October 2, 2019