HMS Clyde (P257)
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| Career |  |
|---|---|
| Ordered: | 2005 |
| Laid down: | 2005 |
| Launched: | 14 June 2006 |
| Commissioned: | 30 January 2007 |
| Decommissioned: | |
| Fate: | Active |
| Struck: | |
| General Characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 1,850 tonnes |
| Length: | 81.5 m |
| Beam: | 13.6 m |
| Draught: | 3.8 m |
| Propulsion: | 2 x Ruston 12RK 270 Main Engines developing 4125kW @ 1000rpm |
| Speed: | 21 kts |
| Range: | 5500 nautical miles at 12 knots |
| Complement: | 36 (Room for 20 extra personnel) |
| Armament: | 30mm gun, 2 x GPMGs |
| Aircraft: | Flight Deck Arrangements sufficient size to take for a Lynx, Sea King and Merlin Helicopters |
| Motto: | ‘Clwo’ (Strength) |
HMS Clyde (P257) is the ninth ship in the Royal Navy to bear the name. She was launched on 14 June 2006 in Portsmouth Naval Base by VT Group shipbuilders in Portsmouth, England and is the fourth vessel of the River class and the first of a lengthened variety with a displacement of 1,850 tonnes and a 30mm Oerlikon KCB gun in place of the 20mm gun fitted to other River class ships.
Clyde was the first ship built entirely in Portsmouth Naval base for 40 years and has been constructed along side the bow and superstructure sections for the new Type 45 destroyers HMS Daring (D32) and HMS Dauntless (D33). She was named in a ceremony on 7 September 2006 as she had not received a traditional launching ceremony [1].
HMS Clyde is due to be accepted into the Royal Navy in a ceremony at Portsmouth Naval base on January 30, 2007. The White Ensign will then be raised for the first time in the offshore patrol vessel built by VT Shipbuilding. Since the launch of the vessel VT has been completing the ship’s fitting out, followed by contractor’s sea trials. [2]
Once accepted into the fleet she and her ship’s company will go through a rigorous series of trials and safety training before undergoing operational sea training in Scotland. Upon commissioning into active service she will be sent to the South Atlantic to relieve HMS Dumbarton Castle as the Royal Navy's patrol vessel in the area based in the Falkland Islands. Unlike predecessors in this role it is anticipated that HMS Clyde will be able to stay in Atlantic waters for some five years until 2012 when she will return to the United Kingdom for a refit.
[edit] See also
See HMS Clyde for other ships of this name.
[edit] External links
[edit] References
- ^ Royal Navy press release on launching of Clyde retrieved 11 September 2006
- ^ Royal Navy press release on acceptance into fleet retrieved 29 January 2007
| River-class patrol vessel |
| List of patrol vessels of the Royal Navy |
