Spanish frigate Victoria

Victoria (F82) is the second of the six Spanish-built Santa Maria-class frigates, based on the American Oliver Hazard Perry class design, of the Spanish Navy.

History
Spain
Name: Victoria
Builder: Bazan
Laid down: 16 August 1983
Launched: 23 July 1986
Commissioned: 11 November 1987
Homeport: Rota, Cádiz
Identification: F82
Status: in active service
General characteristics
Class and type: Santa Maria-class frigate
Displacement:
  • 2,851 long tons (2,897 t) light
  • 3,610 long tons (3,668 t) standard
  • 4,177 long tons (4,244 t) full load
Length: 138.8 m (455 ft 5 in)
Beam: 14.3 m (46 ft 11 in)
Draft: 8.6 m (28 ft 3 in)
Propulsion: 2 × General Electric LM2500-30 gas turbines generating 41,000 shp (31 MW) coupled to a single shaft and controllable-pitch propeller
Speed: 30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph)+
Armament:
Aircraft carried: SH-60 Seahawk LAMPS III helicopter

Laid down on 16 August 1983, and launched on 23 July 1986, Victoria was commissioned in service on 11 November 1987.

All of these Spanish frigates have the length of the later Oliver Hazard Perry frigates, and have a wider beam than the US Navy design, and therefore able to carry more top weight. Fin stabilizers are fitted.

On 29 March 2009, as she was taking part in Operation Atalanta, the German Navy tanker Spessart was attacked by a 7-man pirate boat.[1][2] In addition to the regular 40-man civilian crew, Spessart carried a 12-man security detail which exchanged small arms fire with the pirates, and repelled the assault.[3] The SH-60 helicopter aboard Victoria intercepted the fleeing pirate skiff, opened fire, and kept guard over the surrendering pirates until relieved by naval units. Fellow warships HNLMS De Zeven Provinciën, Psara and USS Boxer were also involved in this chase.

On 2 June 2010, Victoria provided medical assistance to the crew of the Libyan vessel MV Rim, and prevented recapture of that ship by Somali pirates, after the crew of MV Rim overpowered the pirates who had hijacked the ship four months earlier. MV Rim had been anchored in the harbor of Garacad, Somalia, since her 3 February 2010 taking in the Gulf of Aden. On 3 August 2010, a helicopter from Victoria stopped a pirate attack on the Norwegian chemical tanker MV Bow Saga, which had sent a distress call that it was under attack by a pirate skiff. The seven pirates on board the skiff were later captured by a second team from the European Union naval force in the region.[4]

On 3 August 2010, the Norwegian chemical tanker MV Bow Saga was proceeding through the transit corridor in the middle of the Gulf of Aden when it came under attack. A pirate skiff with 7 people on board shot at the bridge, damaging the windows. EU NAVFOR heard her distress call and ordered the closest warship, the Spanish frigate Victoria react to the incident. Victoria already had her helicopter in the air and was able to intervene only ten minutes after the call. The pirates stopped the attack and tried to flee. After warning shots, first from the helicopter and then from the warship Victoria, the pirates eventually stopped. The skiff was searched by a boarding team from Victoria and weapons were subsequently found. [5]

Other units of class

References
  1. Gros-Verheyde, Nicolas (30 March 2009). "Erreur fatale: les pirates attaquent un navire... d'Atalanta!" (in French). Bruxelles 2. Retrieved 17 November 2014.
  2. Perry, Tom (30 March 2009). "GULF OF ADEN: Pirates fire on German ship, leading to five-hour chase". Babylon and Beyond. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 17 November 2014.
  3. "Deutsche Marine setzt Angreifer vor Somalia fest" (in German). Franffurter Allgemeine. 31 March 2009. Retrieved 17 November 2014.
  4. "Crew 'seizes back' ship from Somali pirates". BBC News. 2 June 2010. Retrieved 17 November 2014.
  5. "EU NAVFOR warship VICTORIA apprehends pirate attack skiff". EU NAVFOR. 3 August 2010. Archived from the original on 6 August 2010.
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