HMS Aurora (F10)

Last updated

HMS Aurora MOD 45140164.jpg
Aurora post IKARA conversion
History
Naval Ensign of the United Kingdom.svgUnited Kingdom
NameAurora
Builder John Brown & Company
Cost£4.65m
Yard number721
Laid down1 June 1961
Launched28 November 1962
Commissioned9 April 1964
Recommissioned5 August 1967
Decommissioned28 April 1987
RefitConverted to IKARA Batch 1b Leander 4 December 1974 – 27 February 1976 – Chatham Dockyard. Conversion cost £15.58m
HomeportChatham
Identification Pennant number: F10
MottoPost Tenebras Lux: 'After darkness light'
FateArrived for scrapping 6 September 1990 at Millom, Cumbria
General characteristics
Class and type Leander-class frigate
Displacement2,500 tons standard, 2,962 tons full load
Length113.4 m (372 ft 1 in)
Beam13.1 m (43 ft 0 in)
Draught4.5 m (14 ft 9 in)
Propulsion2 Babcock & Wilcox oil-fired boilers, geared steam turbines, 22,370 kilowatts (30,000 hp), 2 shafts
Speed27 knots (50 km/h; 31 mph)
Range7,400 kilometres (4,600 mi; 4,000 nmi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph)
Complement260
Sensors and
processing systems
  • Radar:
    • Types 965 (air warning radar removed in batch 1 ships), 992Q, 903, 974/978
  • Sonar:
    • Types 162, 184, 199
Armament
Aircraft carried

HMS Aurora was a Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy (RN). Like other ships of the class, Aurora was named after a figure of mythology, Aurora being the Roman equivalent of the Greek goddess Eos.

Contents

History

Aurora was built by John Brown & Company, shipbuilders of Clydebank, Scotland. Aurora was launched on 28 November 1962 and commissioned on 9 April 1964.

Aurora became the leader of the 2nd Frigate Squadron in 1964. From 1967 to 1968, Derek Bazalgette served her as Commanding Officer. On 17 April 1968, her Westland Wasp ASW helicopter from 829 Naval Air Squadron crashed off South Africa. It was replaced by an aircraft from HMS Gurkha.

In August 1969, Aurora, together with the American destroyer Macdonough and the French destroyer La Galissonnière, took part in the commemorations at Théoule-sur-Mer of the 25th anniversary of Operation Dragoon, the Allied invasion of Southern France. [1] From 1970 to 1971, Paul Greening served as her Commanding Officer.

On 19 September 1972, while on patrol near the Faroe Islands during the Second Cod War, Aurora came to the aid of the Icelandic fishing vessel Jon Eiriksson that had caught fire, rescuing the five-person crew of the fishing vessel with the frigate's helicopter. [2] Soon after this incident, Aurora underwent modernisation which included the addition of the Ikara anti-submarine warfare (ASW) missile launcher that in effect changed the Batch One ships, of which Aurora was part, into a specialised ASW batch rather than its original role as a general-purpose batch. The modernisation was completed in 1976.

In 1978, Aurora joined the Fishery Protection Squadron, undertaking patrols and other duties in support of British fishing interests around the UK. She remained with the squadron until she was eventually transferred to the 7th Frigate Squadron, which was stationed in the Far East, just as the RN presence in that region was being reduced.

Further duties were undertaken by Aurora across the world and in 1982 she took part in the Armilla Patrol and in 1983 was deployed to the Far East, Australia and New Zealand during the Royal Navy's 'Orient Express' deployment along with HMS Invincible, HMS Rothsay and other RN Ships.

However in 1987, due to defence cuts, as well as manpower shortages, a common problem for the RN at that time, Aurora was decommissioned.

Related Research Articles

HMS <i>Scylla</i> (F71) 1970 Type 12I or Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy

HMS Scylla (F71) was a Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy (RN). She was built at Devonport Royal Dockyard, the last RN frigate to be built there as of 2016. Scylla was commissioned in 1970, taken out of service in 1993 in accordance with Options for Change, and sunk as an artificial reef in 2004 off Whitsand Bay, Cornwall.

HMS <i>Argonaut</i> (F56) 1967 Type 12I or Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy

HMS Argonaut (F56) was a Leander-class frigate that served with the Royal Navy from 1967 to 1993. She took part in the Falklands War in 1982, sustaining damage and casualties in action.

HMS <i>Andromeda</i> (F57) Type 12I or Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy and Indian Navy

HMS Andromeda was a Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy. She was built at HM Dockyard Portsmouth. She was launched on 24 May 1967 and commissioned into the Royal Navy on 2 December 1968. She took part in the Falklands War. She was sold to India in 1995, for use as a training ship, being renamed INS Krishna. She was finally decommissioned in May 2012.

HMS <i>Achilles</i> (F12) Type 12I or Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy and Chilean Navy

HMS Achilles was a Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy. She was built by Yarrow at Glasgow. She was launched on 21 November 1968 and commissioned on 9 July 1970. She was sold to Chile in 1991 and served in the Chilean Navy as Ministro Zenteno. She was washed away from her berth at Talcahuano by a tsunami following the February 2010 Chile earthquake, and ran aground on the coast a few kilometres to the north. She was scuttled the following month by the Chilean Navy as a danger to navigation.

HMS <i>Galatea</i> (F18) 1964 Type 12I or Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy

HMS Galatea (F18) was a Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy. She was built by Swan Hunter & Wigham on the Tyne. She was launched on 23 May 1963 and commissioned on 25 April 1964 and was the eighth ship of the Royal Navy to bear the name.

HMS <i>Charybdis</i> (F75) 1969 Type 12I or Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy

HMS Charybdis (F75) was a Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy (RN). She was built by the Harland & Wolff company of Belfast, and was the last ship to be built there for British naval forces until RFA Fort Victoria of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, was launched in 1990. Charybdis was launched on 28 February 1968 and commissioned on 2 June 1969. Her nickname was "Cherry B".

HMS <i>Diomede</i> (F16) Type 12I or Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy and Pakistan Navy

HMS Diomede (F16) was a Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy. She was built by Yarrow Shipbuilders in Glasgow. Diomede was launched on 15 April 1969 and commissioned on 2 April 1971. In 1998, the vessel was taken out of service and sold to Pakistan. Renamed PNS Shamsheer, the vessel served with the Pakistan Navy until being scrapped.

HMS <i>Leander</i> (F109) 1963 Type 12I or Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy

HMS Leander (F109) was the nameship of the Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy (RN). She was originally intended to be part of the Rothesay class and would have been known as Weymouth. Leander was, like the rest of the class, named after a figure of the classical Greek mythology. She was built by the Harland & Wolff shipyard in Belfast, Northern Ireland and was launched on 28 June 1961. She was commissioned on 27 March 1963.

HMS <i>Euryalus</i> (F15) 1964 Type 12I or Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy

HMS Euryalus (F15) was a Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy (RN). Like the rest of the class, Euryalus was named after a figure of mythology. Euryalus was built by Scotts Shipbuilders of Greenock. Euryalus was launched on 6 June 1963, and commissioned on 16 September 1964.

HMS <i>Cleopatra</i> (F28) 1966 Type 12I or Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy

HMS Cleopatra (F28) was a Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy (RN). Cleopatra was built at HMNB Devonport. She was launched on 21 March 1964, commissioned on 1 March 1966 and decommissioned on 31 January 1992.

HMS <i>Naiad</i> (F39) 1965 Type 12I or Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy

HMS Naiad (F39) was a Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy (RN). Like the rest of the class, Naiad was named after a figure or figure of mythology, in this case, the Naiads of Greek mythology. Naiad was built by Yarrow Shipbuilders of Scotstoun. She was launched on 4 November 1963 and commissioned on 15 March 1965.

HMS <i>Hermione</i> (F58) 1969 Type 12I or Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy

HMS Hermione (F58) was a Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy (RN). She was, like the rest of her class, named after a figure of mythology. Hermione was built by Alexander Stephen and Sons, though she was completed by Yarrow Shipbuilders. She was launched on 26 April 1967 and commissioned on 11 July 1969.

HMS <i>Ariadne</i> (F72) Type 12I or Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy and Chilean Navy

HMS Ariadne was a Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy. She was launched in 1971, was sold to Chile in 1992 and sunk as a target hulk in 2004.

HMS <i>Juno</i> (F52) 1967 Type 12I or Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy

HMS Juno was a Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy (RN). Like the rest of the class, Juno was named after a figure of mythology. She was built by Thornycroft of Woolston, Hampshire. Juno was launched on 24 November 1965 and commissioned on 18 July 1967.

HMS <i>Sirius</i> (F40) 1966 Type 12I or Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy

HMS Sirius (F40) was a Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy (RN) built by H.M. Dockyard Portsmouth, and was the penultimate RN warship to be built there for a period of forty years, until Vosper Thornycroft built HMS Clyde. Sirius was launched on 22 September 1964 and commissioned on 15 June 1966. The ship continued in front line service until February 1992.

HMS <i>Jupiter</i> (F60) 1969 Type 12I or Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy

HMS Jupiter (F60) was a Batch 3 Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy (RN). She was, like the rest of the class, named after a figure of mythology. Built by Yarrow Shipbuilders of Scotstoun, she was launched on 4 September 1967 and commissioned on 9 August 1969.

HMS Phoebe (F42) was a Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy (RN). She was, like the rest of her class, named after a figure of mythology. Built by Alexander Stephen and Sons on the River Clyde, she was launched on 19 December 1964 and commissioned on 15 May 1966.

HMS <i>Duncan</i> (F80) 1958 Type 14 or Blackwood-class frigate of the Royal Navy

HMS Duncan, launched in 1957, was the fifth RN ship named after Admiral Adam Duncan. She was a Blackwood-class frigate of the Royal Navy that served in the Cod Wars.

HMNZS <i>Waikato</i> (F55) Leander class frigate of the Royal New Zealand Navy

HMNZS Waikato (F55) was a Leander Batch 2TA frigate of the Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN). She was one of two Leanders built for the RNZN, the other being the Batch 3 HMNZS Canterbury. These two New Zealand ships relieved British ships of the Armilla patrol during the Falklands conflict, freeing British ships for deployment.

HMS <i>Tamar</i> (P233) 2020 River-class offshore patrol vessel of the Royal Navy.

HMS Tamar is a Batch 2 River-class offshore patrol vessel of the Royal Navy. Named after the River Tamar in England, this is the seventh Royal Navy ship to be named Tamar. She is the fourth Batch 2 River-class vessel to be built and is forward deployed long-term to the Indo-Pacific region with her sister ship HMS Spey.

References

  1. "Aurora 'war landings' visit". Navy News . October 1969. p. 3. Retrieved 21 October 2019.
  2. "Iceland is ready for unilateral discussions". The Times . No. 58584. 20 September 1972. p. 4.

Publications