The Falkland Islands are a British overseas territory and, as such, rely on the United Kingdom for the guarantee of their security. The other UK territories in the South Atlantic, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, fall under the protection of British Forces South Atlantic Islands (BFSAI), formerly known as British Forces Falkland Islands (BFFI), which includes commitments from the British Army, Royal Air Force and Royal Navy. They are headed by the Commander, British Forces South Atlantic Islands (CBFSAI), a brigadier-equivalent appointment that rotates among all three services.
HMS Invincible was the Royal Navy's lead ship of her class of three light aircraft carriers. She was launched on 3 May 1977 as the seventh ship to carry the name. She was originally designated as an anti-submarine warfare carrier, but was used as an aircraft carrier during the Falklands War, when she was deployed with HMS Hermes. She took over as flagship of the British fleet when Hermes was sold to India. Invincible was also deployed in the Yugoslav Wars and the Iraq War. In 2005, she was decommissioned, and was eventually sold for scrap in February 2011.
HMS Intrepid (L11) was one of two Fearless-class amphibious warfare ships of the Royal Navy. A landing platform dock (LPD), she served from 1967 until 1999. Based in HM Naval Base, Devonport, Plymouth, Devon and HM Naval Base Portsmouth, she saw service around the world over her 32-year life.
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 Apollo was a batch 3B broadbeam Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy. She was, like the rest of the class, named after a figure of mythology. Apollo was built by Yarrow Shipbuilders of Scotstoun. She was launched on 15 October 1970 and commissioned on 28 May 1972, making her the penultimate Leander.
HMS Danae was a Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy. She was, like the rest of the class, named after a figure of mythology. Danae was built by Devonport Dockyard. She was launched on 31 October 1965 and commissioned on 10 October 1967.
HMS Tartar (F133) was a Tribal-class frigate of the Royal Navy (RN). She was named after the Tartar people, most of whom were located in Asia and Eastern Europe. She was sold to the Indonesian Navy in 1984 as KRI Hasanuddin (333).
HMS Gurkha (F122) was a Tribal-class frigate of the Royal Navy. She was named after an ethnic group located in Nepal, and who continue to serve in the British Army. She was sold to the Indonesian Navy in 1984 and renamed KRI Wilhelmus Zakarias Yohannes (332).
The Castle class was a class of British offshore patrol vessels of the Royal Navy. Two ships were constructed and after nearly 30 years service were sold to the Bangladesh Navy in 2010. The Bangladesh Navy upgraded these with more armaments including C-704 anti-ship missiles and sensors. These ships are now reclassified as corvettes by the Bangladesh Navy.
HMS Dumbarton Castle (P265) was an offshore patrol vessel of the British Royal Navy. Her main role was the protection of the offshore assets of the United Kingdom, including oil and gas installations and fisheries out to the 200-nautical-mile limit.
USS Gurke (DD-783) was a Gearing-class destroyer of the United States Navy, in service from 1945 to 1976. She was transferred to Greece in 1977 and served as Tombazis until 1997.
The Sleipner class was a series of corvettes ordered as part of the Royal Norwegian Navy's 1960 fleet plan. It was intended to build five ships of the class, but because of economic problems only two were built; Sleipner and Æger.
USS Stein (DE-1065) was a Knox-class destroyer escort, later redesignated as a frigate (FF-1065) of the United States Navy. She was named after Tony Stein, the first Marine to receive the Medal of Honor for action in the Battle of Iwo Jima.
HMS Falmouth was a Rothesay-class, or "Improved Type 12", anti-submarine frigate built for the Royal Navy during the 1950s. She took part in the Third Cod War in 1976, ramming the Icelandic gunboat V/s Týr. Both ships suffered extensive damage.
The Commandant Rivière class was a class of frigates built for the French Navy in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Labeled "aviso-escorteur", they were designed to perform the role of overseas patrol in peacetime and anti-submarine escort in wartime. This vessel class is named after the French Navy officer Henri Rivière (1827–1883).
The Cassiopea class is a heavy series of four patrol boats of the Italian Navy. They were built in the late 1980s on civilian standards. They are designed for patrol in safe areas.
The Sparviero class, also known as the Nibbio class, are small hydrofoil missile boats capable of traveling at speeds of 46 knots. They were designed for and formerly used by the Italian Navy. The Japanese 1-go-class missile boat is an updated version formerly used by the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF).
BNS Gomati is an Island-class offshore patrol vessel of the Bangladesh Navy. She was originally built as a Fishery Protection Vessel for the British Royal Navy, entering service as HMS Anglesey in 1979. She was sold to Bangladesh in 2002, entering service in 2003.
The Atrevida class was a class of six corvettes built for the Spanish Navy in the 1950s.
KRI Oswald Siahaan (354) is an Ahmad Yani-class frigate operated by the Indonesian Navy. Prior to her service in the Indonesian Navy, she served in the Royal Netherlands Navy as Van Speijk-class frigateHNLMS Van Nes (F805).
United Kingdom
