Warships and Auxiliaries

M Class Frigate - NRP D Francisco de Almeida (F334)

2015-10-08T01:12:00.001+01:00

NRP D Francisco de Almeida (F334)

On November 1, 2006, the Portuguese Defense Minister Nuno Severiano Teixeira signed a contract for the purchase of the former Dutch frigates Van Nes and Van Galen. Van Nes, was renamed NRP Bartolomeu Dias (F333), was transferred to Portugal on January 16, 2009 and Van Galen, was renamed NRP D Francisco de Almeida (F334) was transferred on January 15, 2010

Nrp D Francisco de Almeida is a former Karel Doorman (or M Class) Frigate; the design was originally intended to play a role similar to the current Holland class for patrol duties in the North Sea and Caribbean, with high automation and a crew of 80-100.

She is seen below alongside in Leith on the 4^th October 2015.

Halifax Class Frigate - Hmcs Winnipeg

2015-10-08T00:47:00.000+01:00

Hmcs Winnipeg FFH 338

HMCS Winnipeg (FFH 338) is a Halifax-class frigate that has served in the Royal Canadian Navy since 1996. She is a guided-missile frigate that also carries a multipurpose helicopter [but especially for anti-submarine warfare (ASW)]. Her missile armament includes Harpoon anti-ship missiles and Evolved Sea-Sparrow anti-aircraft and anti-missile missiles. She also carries ASW torpedoes for close-in defense, and a Phalanx CIWS defense cannon.

Winnipeg is the ninth ship in her class, whose design was based on the Canadian Patrol Frigate Project. She is the second Canadian warship to carry the name HMCS Winnipeg.

Winnipeg was laid down on 20 March 1993 at Saint John Shipbuilding Company in Saint John, New Brunswick, and she was launched on 25 June 1994. This warship was officially commissioned into the Canadian Forces on 23 June 1995, and carries the hull classification symbol 338. In April 2012 Winnipeg was turned over to Seaspan Marine Corporation's Victoria Shipyards, to start an 18 month mid-life upgrading and modernization. On 10 April 2013 Winnipeg was returned to the Royal CN to finish the midlife refit, and she will renter service sometime in 2014. The ship is assigned to the Maritime Forces Pacific (MARPAC), and she has her homeport at the Canadian Forces Maritime Base at Esquimalt.

Winnipeg is seen outboard of the Spanish Frigate Blas De Lezo and then sailing from Leith on the 4^th October 2015.

Álvaro de Bazán Class - Blas De Lezo F103

2015-10-08T00:36:00.002+01:00

Sps Blas De Lezo (F103)

Sps Blas De Lezo is the third of seven Álvaro de Bazán class (also known as the F100 class of frigates) with the Spanish Navy.

The Álvaro de Bazán-class frigates are the first modern vessels of the Spanish Navy to incorporate ballistic resistant steel in the hull, along with the power plants being mounted on anti-vibration mounts to reduce noise and make them less detectable by submarines. The original contract for four ships was worth €1,683m but they ended up costing €1,810m.As of 2010 it was estimated that the final vessel, F-105 would cost €834m.

Blas De Lezo is seen alongside in Leith on the 3^rd October 2015 with the Canadian (Halifax Class) Frigate Winnipeg outboard.

De Zeven Provinciën-class frigates - Hnlms De Ruyter

2015-10-08T00:18:00.000+01:00

HrMs De Ruyter (F804)

HrMs De Ruyter is the third De Zeven Provinciën-class frigate of the Royal Netherlands Navy. She was laid down in 2000, launched in 2002, and commissioned in 2004. The frigate is named after the famous Dutch admiral Michiel de Ruyter (1607–1676).

De Zeven Provinciën-class frigates are highly advanced air-defence and command frigates in service with the Koninklijke Marine (Royal Netherlands Navy). This class of ships is also known as LCF (Luchtverdedigings- en commandofregat, air defense and command frigate). The ships are similar to the German Sachsen-class frigates in role and mission.

De Ruyter is seen alongside in Leith on the 26^th September 2015.

Barentshav Class OPV - Kv Barentshav

2015-10-08T00:05:00.002+01:00

Kv Barentshav (W340)

Kv Barentshav is a Barentshav class offshore patrol vessel. The class consists of three vessels powered by liquefied natural gas. Ordered for the Norwegian Coast Guard, their main tasks are EEZ patrol, fishery inspection, search and rescue as well as tug readiness along the shore of Norway which is seeing increasing traffic from tankers.

Barentshav is seen below arriving to the Port on the 12^th August 2015 to pick up the NATO Submarine Rescue Vehicle (from Leith). After departure she return to Norway to drop of the submarine, she then turned about and headed back to Leith for on the 24^thSeptember to return the submarine holder, departing again on the 28^th September 2015.

And alongside on the 27th September

ARC Gloria

2015-10-07T23:56:00.003+01:00

ARC Gloria is a three-masted barque. She is a training ship and official flagship of the Colombian Navy.

The Colombian Government authorized its navy to acquire a training ship in 1966. A contract was signed with the Spanish shipyard Celaya of Bilbao in October 1966, and began to be fulfilled in April 1967. The ship was commissioned on 7 September 1968 with the vessel moored at the wharf of Deusto Channel.

The ship's name is a reference to the national anthem, Oh Gloria Inmarcesible (O Unfading Glory).

She is seen alongside The Port of Leith on the 28^th August 2015.

MV Ocean Victory

2015-08-20T18:20:00.000+01:00

The American Research/Survey vessel MV Ocean Victory is seen here arriving in Leith on 27^th July 2015.

She is an old girl, built in 1972 for the American Navy and named Research Tide, Her name was changed to Denny Tide in 1999, before being renamed Ocean Victory in 2013 following a massive refit which saw her add over 500 tons on to her displacement. She now has a displacement of 2,257 tons.

MV Ocean Victory visited Leith between 27^th July to 5^th August.

She is seen here arriving to the port.

Archer Class Patrol Vessels - Hms's Blazer and Express

2015-07-22T20:51:00.000+01:00

Hms's Blazer (P280) and Express (P164)

The Archer class (or P2000) is a class of patrol and training vessel in service with the Royal Navy, commonly referred to as a Fast Training Boat.‪

Most are assigned to University Royal Naval Units, although HMS Tracker and HMS Raider are armed and provide maritime force protection to high value shipping in the Firth of Clyde although are most commonly employed as escorts for submarines transiting to Faslane.

The Archers were initially used as Royal Navy patrol craft and as training tenders for the Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) and University Royal Naval Units (URNU). Four identical vessels were ordered for the Royal Naval Auxiliary Service (RNXS) as Example-class tenders. When that service was disbanded in 1994, the Examples were transferred to the Royal Navy for similar duties as their Archer-class brethren (under the same names under which they served as "XSVs", all of which begin with the first syllable "Ex"). Until 2005, the four Examples were still painted with a black hull.

In 1998 two additional vessels (Raider and Tracker) of this design were commissioned into the Royal Navy from Ailsa Shipbuilding Company, to replace Loyal Watcher and Loyal Chancellor as URNU training vessels for the two newest URNUs, serving Cambridge and Oxford Universities respectively (Raider was later transferred to Bristol URNU whilst Trumpeter became the ship of Cambridge URNU). This brought the total of Archer class vessels in the Royal Navy to sixteen, of which fourteen form the 1st Patrol Boat Squadron (formerly the Inshore Training Squadron), each one attached to an URNU (one per unit) under the command of a Lieutenant.

The remaining two vessels (Pursuer and Dasher), having formed the Cyprus Squadron from 2003 to 2010, and URNU vessels before that,‪returned to the UK in April 2010 to form the Faslane Patrol Boat Squadron, performing security duties within HMNB Clyde.

In 2012 Dasher and Pursuer were replaced by Raider and Tracker - these can be identified by a number of pintle-mounted L7 7.62 mm GPMG machine guns and armour plating. Ranger and Trumpeter were also formerly allocated to the Gibraltar Squadron for guard ship and search and rescue duties, but were replaced by the dedicated Scimitar class. These two ships were also used during the Thames River Pageant, escorting the Royal Barge during the Queens Diamond Jubilee. Unlike the remainder of the class, both these ships remain capable of being mounted with a 20 mm cannon on the fo'c'sle.

The NATO designation of a P2000 is "PBR", denoting a "Patrol Boat - Riverine and Harbours"

Blazer is seen ahead of Express as they arrive in Leith on the 15th July 2015.

Barentshav Class OPV - KV Bergen

2015-07-22T20:43:00.001+01:00

Kv Bergen

Kv Bergen is a Barentshav class of offshore patrol vessels consists of three vessels powered by liquefied natural gas. Ordered for the Norwegian Coast Guard, their main tasks are EEZ patrol, fishery inspection, search and rescue as well as tug readiness along the shore of Norway which is seeing increasing traffic from tankers.

Bergen is seen alongside in Leith on the 15th July 2015

Wodnik Class - Orp Wodnik

2015-07-22T20:37:00.000+01:00

ORP Wodnik 251

Wodnik is a training ship, which was built in Northern Shipyard in Gdansk. She entered service on 28th May 1976.

During the 1st Gulf War, she was rebuilt as an evacuation hospital ship.

Wodnik was sent to the Persian Gulf waters with Orp Piast, as a hospital ship. On the night of February 16th 1991, Wodnik was alongside, in the safe harbour of Jubail in Saudi Arabia, berthed next to her was the amphibious assault ship Uss Tarawa which became the target of a rocket attack by the Iraqis.

About 02:07 one Al Hussein missile fell into the dock, just 125 meters from the Wodnik, luckily the missile head did not explode, so the ship escaped serious damage.

Wodnik is seen here arriving and alongside in Leith on the 14th July 2015.

Georges Leygues Class - Fs Latouche-Tréville D646

2015-06-08T23:32:00.001+01:00

FS Latouche-Tréville D644

The French frigate is seen here departing Leith on the 8th June 2015.

Georges Leygues Class - Fs Latouche-Tréville D646

2015-06-08T14:00:00.003+01:00

Latouche-Tréville is a F70 type anti-submarine frigate of the French Marine Nationale. The French Navy does not use the term destroyer for its ships. Thus, some large ships, referred to as frigates, are registered as destroyers. She is the third French vessel named after the 18-19th century politician and admiral Louis-René Levassor de Latouche Tréville.

She is seen here alongside in Leith on Friday 5^th June 2015

Helgoland Class Tug

2015-05-15T16:32:00.003+01:00

Fgs Fehmarn (A1458)

The Type 720 Helgoland class tugs are large seagoing salvage tugs used by the German Navy. After the decommissioning of Helgoland, the class is now referred to as Fehmarn Klasse in the German Navy. As with other auxiliary ship classes in Germany, these tugboats are manned by a civilian crew. The ships are named after the German islands Helgoland (Heligoland) and Fehmarn.

She is seen here arriving at Leith on the 1st May 2015.

Type 441 Class Naval Tall Ship

2015-05-15T16:28:00.000+01:00

FGS Gorch Fock (A60)

Officially Gorch Fock is a Type 441 class naval ship with the NATO pennant number A60. Her international radio call sign is DRAX.

The Gorch Fock is a tall ship of the German Navy..

She is the second ship of that name and a sister ship of the Gorch Fock built in 1933. Both ships are named in honour of the German writer Johann Kinau who wrote under the pseudonym "Gorch Fock" and died in the battle of Jutland/Skagerrak in 1916. The modern-day Gorch Fock was built in 1958 and has since then undertaken 146 cruises (as of October 2006), including one tour around the world in 1988. She is sometimes referred to (unofficially) as the Gorch Fock II to distinguish her from her older sister ship.

Here she is alongside in Leith on the 1st May 2015.

Ula Class Submarine

2015-05-15T16:22:00.000+01:00

Knm Utvaer (S303)

The Ula class is a Norwegian submarine type, which was assembled in Germany in the late 1980's and early 1990's. The class, consisting of six vessels, is currently the only submarine type in service with the Royal Norwegian Navy.

Utvaer is seen below alongside 29th April 2015.

Walrus Class Submarine

2015-05-15T16:13:00.003+01:00

HrMs Walrus (S802)

HrMs Walrus was laid down on 11 October 1979 at the Rotterdam Dry Dock Company yard in Rotterdam. She was launched on the 28th October 1985, but on the 14th August 1986 an electrical fire broke out on board causing an estimated damage of £225 million to repair.

Her completion was delayed until the 13th September 1989, sea trials were carried out in 1990 and 1991 before she was accepted in to service on the 25th March 1992.

Here she is arriving in the port of Leith on the 28th April 2015.

Georges Leygues Class - Fs Primauguet D644

2015-05-15T15:58:00.001+01:00

Fs Primauguet D644

Primauguet is seen here in the port having previously visited a fortnight previously (Click Here) having participated in the Joint Warrior exercised of the North of Scotland, she is seen here having some well deserved R & R before the ship heads of to the West Indies for a seven month patrol before heading back to France to retire.

Duke Class - Type 23 Frigate

2015-05-15T15:52:00.002+01:00

Hms Somerset F82

HMS Somerset is a Type 23 Frigate of the Royal Navy. She is the eleventh ship of the class to join the fleet since 1989. She was built by Yarrow Shipbuilders Ltd on the River Clyde, in Scotland and was launched in June 1994 by Lady Elspeth Layard, wife of then 2nd Sea Lord Admiral and Commander-in-Chief Naval Home Command Admiral Sir Michael Layard. She entered service in 1996. Lady Layard is the ship's sponsor.

Somerset is seen in Leith on her final port visit before heading back to Plymouth for some maintenance which should she her alongside for the reminder of the year.

She visited the port between 24th - 27th April 2015 during which time she was open to visitors on the Sunday where nearly 5,000 visitors went around her deck.

Holland Class Offshore Patrol Vessel

2015-05-15T15:40:00.001+01:00

HrMs Groningen

The Holland-class offshore patrol vessels are new oceanic patrol vessels for the Royal Netherlands Navy. They are designed to fulfil patrol and intervention tasks against lightly armed opponents, such as pirates and smugglers, but much higher level electronic and radar surveillance roles with great capabilities for military stabilisation and security roles, short of outright war. With no sonar or long range weapons they utilise, the surveillance capabilities of the plug in modular, Thales integrated mast which integrates communication systems and two 4 faced phased arrays for air and surface search advanced as those of the combat systems of many USN combatants.

Groningen is seen alongside on 25th April 2015

Bay Class - RFA Lyme Bay L3007

2015-04-13T16:56:00.000+01:00

RFA Lyme Bay L3007

RFA Lyme Bay is a Bay-class auxiliary landing ship dock (LSD(A)) of the British Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA). Ordered from Swan Hunter in 2000, the ship was launched in 2005. However, cost overruns and delays saw the shipbuilder removed from the project, and the incomplete ship was towed to Govan for finishing by BAE Systems Naval Ships. Lyme Bay entered service in late 2007; the last ship of the class to join the RFA.

Lyme Bay was dedicated on 26 November 2007; the last ship of the class to enter RFA service.

She is seen here alongside Leith before departing on the 12^th April at 05:45.

Georges Leygues Class - Fs Primauguet D644

2015-04-13T16:50:00.003+01:00

Fs Primauguet D644

Fs Primauguet is fifth ship of the Georges Leygues class (Type F70) is a class of anti-submarine destroyers of the French Navy. They are multi-role ships due to their Exocet and Crotale missile armament, making them especially suitable for the defence of strategic positions; show of force operations, or as high seas escorts. The F70 is internationally labelled an "anti-submarine destroyer" (hence the "D" in the hull numbers), though the French do not use the term and refer to the ships as "frigates".

She is seen outboard of the Spanish Frigate Sps Méndez Núñez over the weekend 10^th – 12^th April 2015. Both ships were participating in Joint Warrior 151.

Álvaro de Bazán Class - Sps Méndez Núñez F104

2015-04-13T16:45:00.000+01:00

Sps Méndez Núñez F104

Sps Méndez Núñez F104 is the fourth in the Álvaro de Bazán class (also known as the F100 class of frigates) they are a new class of Aegis combat system-equipped air defence frigates entering service with the Spanish Navy.

Sps Méndez Núñez is seen alongside the French Frigate Primauguet over the weekend 10^th – 12^th April 2015. Both ships were participating in Joint Warrior 151.

Snellius Class Hnlms Luymes A 803

2015-04-13T16:37:00.000+01:00

Hnlms Luymes A 803

Hnlms Luymes (A803) is one of two Hydrographic Survey Ships in service with the Royal Netherlands Navy. The primary role of these vessels is to map changes in the seabed and shipping lanes and pass the data onto the Hydrographic Service for the preparation of sea charts.

She has made numerous visits to Leith in the past but she is seen here arriving at the port on the 4^th April 2015.

Alkmaar Class - Hnlms Schiedam M 860

2015-04-13T16:31:00.001+01:00

Hnlms Schiedam M 860

Hnlms Schiedam is the 11^th ship of the Alkmaar class. They class were conceived in the 1970s and built in the 1980s. France built the mine-hunting equipment, Belgium provided the electronics, and the Netherlands constructed the propulsion train. France and the Netherlands originally bought 15, with Belgium buying 10. Now the Netherlands have only 6 left.

All three countries' Tripartite ships contribute at times to 's Standing Maritime MCM capability groups (SNMCMG1 or SNMCMG2).

Hnlms Schiedam is seen arriving in Leith on the 20^th March 2015.

Flamant Class - Fs Cormoran P 677

2015-04-13T16:23:00.002+01:00

Fs Cormoran P 677

Fs Cormoran was the first naval ship to visit Leith in 2015.

Fs Cormoran is the second of three Flamant Class Patrol Vessels (OPV 54), of the French Navy.

They are used for fishery protection, search and rescue patrolling the French coast up to 200 nautical miles.

The boats entered service in October and December 1997. They are based at Cherbourg.

P676 Flamant Entered service 18 December 1997

P677 Cormoran Entered service 29 October 1997

P678 Pluvier Entered service 18 December 1997

Fs Cormoran is seen alongside in Leith over the weekend 6^th – 9^th March 2015: