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French ship Mistral (L9013)

 

FS MISTRAL

The French Navy amphibious assault ship Mistral (L9013) underway in the Mediterranean Sea on 24 June 2020.

Mistral at the military port of Toulon in 2006

Mistral (L9013) is an amphibious assault ship, a type of helicopter carrier, of the French Navy. She is the fourth vessel to bear the name, and is the lead ship of the Mistral-class amphibious assault ships.

Construction and career

Mistral at the military port of Toulon in 2006

Mistral began sea trials in January 2005, and was commissioned in February 2006. She departed from Toulon for her first long-range journey in March, sailing through the Mediterranean Sea, Suez Canal, and the Red Sea to Djibouti and India, before returning to France. In July, to ensure the safety of European citizens in the context of the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict, France set up Opération Baliste. Mistral was the flagship of the fleet unit off Lebanon, escorted by the frigates Jean Bart and Jean de Vienne, and along with another amphibious assault ship, Siroco.

On 16 May 2008, the Burmese United Nations (UN) ambassador accused France of deploying Mistral to the Burmese coast for military purposes. The French UN ambassador denied this, stating that she was instead carrying 1,500 tons of relief supplies.[1]

In March 2011 Mistral was deployed to Libyan waters to help aid the joint NATO effort to repatriate tens of thousands of Egyptian refugees fleeing the violence in Libya.[2]

In January 2013, escorted by Chevalier Paul, Mistral took part in the ill-fated operation to retrieve Denis Allex,[3] a DGSE officer held hostage in Bulo Marer.

On 22 May 2022, Mistral, operating in the Gulf of Guinea in conjunction with the La Fayette-class frigate, Courbet, was involved in the seizure of almost two tons of drugs.

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HMS Torch and HMS Euryalus in Sydney – 1904-05

This image of a Christmas card from a glass plate negative produced between 1904 and 1905 shows the Royal Navy’s steel steam sloop HMS ‘Torch’ and the armoured cruiser HMS ‘Euryalus’ at moorings in Farm Cove, Sydney Harbour. HMS ‘Torch’ (in the foreground) was built in 1894 and served on the Australia Station from 1897 until sold in 1913. Alongside her is the small steam work boat of M S Bird & Co. ship providores. She is delivering stores which can be seen towards the bow of the steamer. ‘Torch’ was rated at 960 tons and carried six quick firing 4 inch (100mm) guns at up to 13 knots.

HMS ‘Euryalus’ was built in 1904 and was flagship of the Australia Station between 1904 and 1905 until relieved by the larger HMS ‘Powerful.’ In this image the after funnel of ‘Euryalus’ is smoking, suggesting that she too is preparing to sail. ‘Euryalus’ served until the end of WW1 and was scrapped in 1920.

Graeme Andrews OAM, Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences volunteer under the supervision of Margaret Simpson, Curator, September 2015

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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.

 

 HMS Phoebe (F42) was a Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy (RN).

The British Leander-class frigate HMS Phoebe (F42) coming into Naval Station, Norfolk, Virginia (USA), on 19 January 1990. Note the Westland Lynx helicopter aft.

The large U.S Navy harbour tug USS Marinette (YTB-791) comes about to escort the British Leander-class frigate HMS Phoebe (F42) into Naval Station, Norfolk, Virginia (USA), on 19 January 1990. Note the Westland Lynx helicopter aft.


Built by Alexander Stephen and Sons on the River Clyde, she was launched on 19 December 1964 and commissioned on 15 May 1966.

In the year of her commission, Phoebe assisted in the emotionally charged withdrawal from Aden in 1967. In 1969, Phoebe took part in the 20th Anniversary of NATO Fleet Review held at Spithead.

In February 1970, Phoebe undertook a 10-month overseas deployment, which included three assignments to the Beira Patrol off Mozambique in an attempt to stop the supply of oil to Rhodesia in contravention of an oil embargo.[9] In April 1970, Phoebe left her Mozambique patrol to assist in the Indian Ocean as part of an Apollo 13 splashdown secondary task force.[10][11][12] In 1971, Phoebe deployed to the West Indies. That same year, Phoebe was guard ship during talks between British Prime Minister Edward Heath and U.S. President Richard Nixon. She suffered minor damage when the frigate Berwick collided with her whilst attempting to leave Portsmouth Harbour during the first week in November 1971.[13] In 1973, Phoebe took part in the Second Cod War, during the fishing disputes with Iceland.

Between 1973 and 1977 Phoebe was used for the filming of the popular Warship BBC drama, set on board the fictional HMS Hero.

In 1974, Phoebe commenced her modernisation, which including altering her weapons configuration. Her single 4.5-inch twin turret was removed in favour of the Exocet anti-ship missile system, giving her a powerful anti-surface capability. The number of SeaCat missiles she carried was increased. The modernisation was completed in 1977. She subsequently took part in the Silver Jubilee celebrations and Fleet Review, at which many warships attended from a variety of nations.[14]

During late 1977 and early 1978, Phoebe led a task force on active service to the South Atlantic (Falklands) in company with HMS Alacrity, HMS Dreadnought and RFA’s Resurgent and Olwen calling at Funchal, Madeira before returning home.

HMS Phoebe in 1990

In 1978, Phoebe patrolled in the Caribbean and subsequently joined Standing Naval Force Atlantic (STANAVFORLANT), a multi-national squadron of NATO in company with USS Pharris, the German frigate Emden, HMCS Okanagan and the Dutch frigate Tjerk Hiddes. In that year, Phoebe had the distinction of becoming the first frigate to operate the Westland Lynx attack helicopter aka ‘Phelix’, which remains in service, though obviously of a newer variant.In February 1981, Phoebe was refitted with Towed array sonar type 2031.[12]

In September 1982, Phoebe deployed to the South Atlantic in the aftermath of the Falklands War, and performed a number of duties, though mainly patrolling in that region. In 1984, Phoebe completed her towed array sonar refit. In 1988, Phoebe again served under Standing Naval Force Atlantic and took part in the rescue effort in the tragic aftermath of the Piper Alpha oil rig explosion in the North Sea, which killed 167 people. Phoebe decommissioned in 1991 and was sold for scrap the following year. Some of her notable Commanding Officers include P E C Berger, G I Pritchard, Hugh Balfour and Jonathon Band.

References

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On 29 April 1814, during the War of 1812, United States Sloop-of-War Peacock captured the British Brig Epervier off Florida.This oil on canvas by Tomiro depicts the battle. NHHC image NH 83139-KN

Early in the morning of 28th April 1814, HMS Epervier and her convoy were sighted by the USS Peacock. The USS Peacock, although brig-rigged like HMS Epervier, was significantly bigger and was more powerfully armed. USS Peacock was half as large again as HMS Epervier and mounted a total of 22 guns as opposed to the 18 on the British vessel and 20 of those guns were 32pdr carronades. At 10:20 in the morning, both vessels opened fire, aiming high in attempts to bring down the others rigging. The American ship received only slight damage, but HMS Epervier lost her main topmast. After that, the American ship shifted her aim and began firing into HMS Epervier’s hull. This had the desired effect and HMS Epervier’s fire fell away. After 40 minutes, HMS Epervier’s hull was peppered with 45 shot-holes and she had taken on 5 feet of water in her hold. As the vessels drew towards each other, Commander Wales ordered boarding parties to muster, intending to board the American and fight it out at close range, hand-to-hand. At that point, his fears were horribly realised as his crew refused to fight, laid down their arms and struck their colours, surrendering to the enemy.

HMS Epervier vs USS Peacock

The Americans put a prize crew into HMS Epervier and they had the ship ready to go again within an hour. After a brief encounter with a pair of British frigates which they successfully evaded, both vessels arrived in Savannah, Georgia a few days later. The vessel was repaired there and was commissioned into the US Navy as the USS Epervier.

Commander Wales was repatriated after the cessation of hostilities and on 20th January 1815 faced the customary Court Martial for the loss of his command. He stated in his evidence that he had previously reported unrest and disaffection amongst his crew and that several of his carronades had been dismounted by fire from the enemy vessel or had fallen off their slides in the opening broadside of the engagement. Because of the unrest amongst the crew, Commander Wales had been unable to carry out gunnery practice which would have revealed faults in the gun-mounts. The Court Martial also revealed that the replacements the ship had received at Port Royal had mostly been composed of invalids from the hospital there and that the vessel had the worst crew of any vessel on the Halifax Station. Not surprising then that they had failed in their duty to fight to their utmost. During the engagement, HMS Epervier suffered 8 dead and 15 wounded and had suffered extensive damage.

Once taken into American service, the now-USS Epervier was sent to join the American squadron under Commodore Stephen Decatur which was in the Mediterranean attempting to prevent harrassment of American shipping by the Dey of Algiers. On 17th June 1815 in company with the heavy frigates USS Guerriere, USS Constellation and the sloop-of-war USS Ontario, USS Epervier captured the 44 gun frigate Mashuda in the Battle of Cape Gata. In that action, USS Epervier fired 9 full broadsides into the Algerian ship after the USS Guerriere had dismasted it. On 19th June, she captured the Algerian brig Estedio of 22 guns in the Battle of Cape Palos.

These defeats forced the Dey to sue for peace with the Americans. Commodore Decatur chose the USS Epervier to carry the news, a copy of the peace treaty and spoils of war back to the United States. On 14th July 1815, USS Epervier was reported passing through the Straits of Gibraltar and was never seen or heard from again. It is thought that she foundered in a hurricane reported in the Atlantic during August of 1815. Whatever the case, no survivors were found from the 134 people aboard when she departed.

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USS Chung-Hoon (DDG-93) is an Arleigh Burke-class Aegis destroyer serving in the United States Navy (USN).

 

131001-N-WX059-022 PEARL HARBOR (Oct. 1, 2013) The guided-missile destroyer USS Chung-Hoon (DDG 93) returns to its homeport at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam after a six-month deployment to the Western Pacific. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Sean Furey/Released)

Chung-Hoon was named in honor of Rear Admiral Gordon Pai’ea Chung-Hoon (1910–1979), recipient of the Navy Cross and the Silver Star.

The contract to build her was awarded to Northrop Grumman Ship Systems on 6 March 1998, and her keel was laid down on 14 January 2002, at Ingalls Shipbuilding, Incorporated. She was launched on 11 January 2003, sponsored by Michelle Punana Chung-Hoon of Honolulu, Hawaii, Chung-Hoon’s niece, and commissioned on 18 September 2004.[1]

She is part of the Pacific Fleet and homeported in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

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USS Eversole (DD-789) was a Gearing-class destroyer of the United States Navy,

USS Eversole (DD-789) underway in 1956.



USS Eversole (DD-789) underway in 1956.

TCG Gayret as a museum ship (TCG Gayret Museum) in Izmit, Turkey.



USS Eversole (DD-789) was a Gearing-class destroyer of the United States Navy, the second Navy ship named for Lieutenant (junior grade) John T. Eversole (1915–1942), a naval aviator who was killed in the Battle of Midway. She later served in the Turkish navy from 1973 to 1995 as TCG Gayret (D-352) and is now a ship museum.

Eversole was launched on 8 January 1946 at the Tacoma Washington shipyard of Todd-Pacific Shipyards, Inc., Seattle, Washington; sponsored by Mrs. S. R. Eversole, mother of Lt. (j.g.) Eversole; and commissioned on 10 May 1946. The Eversole was one of the final three ships built in Tacoma by Todd-Pacific before closure of the Tacoma yard.

Service history[edit]

Eversole arrived at San Diego, Calif., her home port, on 6 October 1946, and in the years prior to the Korean War, twice sailed to the Far East for duty with the 7th Fleet, patrolling off China and Japan. She sailed from San Diego on 1 May 1950 for another such tour, and thus was in the Orient upon the opening of the war. Until 8 February 1951, when she returned to San Diego, she screened the fast carrier task forces as they launched air strikes against North Korean targets.

During her second tour of duty in the Korean War, from 27 August 1951 to 10 April 1952, Eversole bombarded Hŭngnam, Wonsan, and other points along the east coast of Korea, and served in the Blockading and Escort Force, with ships of the navies of Great Britain, Canada, Netherlands, Australia, New Zealand, and the Republic of Korea. From 17 November 1952 to 29 June 1953, she served a similar tour of duty. Eversole received seven battle stars for her Korean War service.

From 1954 through 1961, Eversole made an annual deployment to the Far East, serving on the Taiwan Patrol, exercising off Japan, Okinawa, and in the Philippines, and visiting a wide variety of western Pacific ports. In both 1957 and 1958, she made her outward bound passage by way of Australia, and in all of these tours, made an important contribution to the power for peace of the 7th Fleet. She then entered the Bremerton Naval Shipyard in Bremerton, Washington to undergo a FRAM I upgrade, a modernization program under which Eversole and forty-three other Gearing-class ships received updated radars, sonars and electronic suites and the ASROC and DASH anti-submarine weapons systems. Eversole emerged from the shipyard in February 1963 to be homeported at the Long Beach Naval Station in Long Beach, California.

During her periods of training and preparation for deployment on the west coast, Eversole often visited ports of the Pacific Northwest, and on occasion voyaged to the Hawaiian Islands.

On 8 October 1969 Eversole deployed from Long Beach Naval Station, California, to the western Pacific stopping in Oahu, Hawaii, and Midway Island in transit to Yokosuka, Japan before frequent deployments to the Tonkin Gulf for plane guard assignments with the carrier forces of the 7th fleet and naval gunfire support duties for ground troops. Between combat deployments Subic Bay Naval Station was used as the overseas homeport. Other R&R and maintenance visits were made to Sasebo, Japan and Hong Kong. Eversole returned to Long Beach Naval Station, California, on 8 April 1970.

TCG Gayret (D-352)[edit]

On 11 July 1973, Eversole was transferred to Turkey. She served in the Turkish Navy as TCG Gayret (D-352). Gayret was stricken in 1995. She is preserved as a museum ship at the Kocaeli Museum Ships Command

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The third USS Los Angeles (CA-135) was a Baltimore-class heavy cruiser, laid down by the Philadelphia Navy Yard, Philadelphia, on 28 July 1943 and launched on 20 August 1944

 

USS LOS ANGELES, LONG BEACH-1947

The U.S. Navy heavy cruiser USS Los Angeles (CA-135) returns to the Korean theater for its second tour of combat duty with UN Naval Forces, 13 October 1952. Note that the ship’s Jack and National Ensign are flying at half-mast.

 She was sponsored by Mrs. Fletcher Bowron and commissioned on 22 July 1945, with Captain John A. Snackenberg in command.

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HMS Reclaim was a deep diving and submarine rescue vessel and was the last British warship to have sails in the Royal Navy. (Photos)

 

HMS Reclaim in Portsmouth Harbour, Portsmouth, Hampshire, for Portsmouth Navy Day 1980.

HMS Reclaim a deep diving and submarine rescue vessel was the last British warship to have sails. Although rarely used, they could add half a knot to her speed. HMS Reclaim also served as a filming location for the Doctor Who serial “The Sea Devils” in 1971

She was originally intended to be the King Salvor-class ocean salvage vessel Salverdant[2] and was fitted with specialised equipment including underwater television cameras and sonar and echosounding apparatus. She was also equipped for submarine rescue work.

At the time of her commissioning in 1949, Reclaim was the Royal Navy’s only vessel capable of carrying out deep diving operations. Upon completion Reclaim was attached to HMS Vernon, Portsmouth as a diving tender.

Operational service[edit]

  • 1948: diving from Reclaim, Petty Officer Wilfred Bollard set a world deep diving record of 535 ft (163 m).
  • 1951: on 14 June 1951 Reclaim found the submerged wreck of the submarine HMS Affray, missing since 17 April, during which operation her new underwater television apparatus was used. One of the divers from Reclaim working on the Affray was Lionel “Buster” Crabb, who later became famous when in 1956 he disappeared in Portsmouth harbour.
  • 1953: Attended the Coronation Fleet Review at Spithead.[3]
  • 1956: Lt. George Wookey of the Royal Navy’s Clearance Diving Branch dived from HMS Reclaim to set a new deep diving record of 600 ft (180 m) in Sor Fjord, Norway on 12 October 1956.
  • 1960: Reclaim was assigned to HMS Lochinvar, Port Edgar for service as a Mine Counter Measures Support Ship and Diving Trials Ship. From January and May 1961 she carried out diving trials in the Canary Isles. She was later relieved as Mine Counter Measures Support Ship by the minelayer HMS Abdiel, which enabled her to concentrate on her roles as deep diving support vessel.
  • 1962: Deep Diving Trials programme begun, culminating in ten dives off Toulon in 1965 to 600 ft (180 m).
  • 1968: Reclaim took part in the salvage operation on the Air Lingus Viscount 803 Aircraft EI-AOM, the “Saint Phelim”, which had crashed into the Irish Sea off Tuskar Rock on 24 March 1968. Over a period of 26 days, divers working from the Reclaim performed 91 dives in depths of 250 ft (76 m), managing to salvage a third of the aircraft’s wreckage. Unfortunately, when Reclaim attempted to raise the fuselage to the surface using straps instead of nets, the wreckage broke apart upon reaching the surface and sank.
  • 1974: Reclaim despatched to Harstad in Norway in May to recover a ditched Wessex helicopter from HMS Hermes. The Wessex was only located when Reclaim, using its underwater camera capability snagged the helicopter with the camera. A largely successful operation was spoiled when the gearbox and engine pulled out of the body of the aircraft.
  • 1977: Reclaim attended the 1977 Silver Jubilee Fleet Review off Spithead. Reclaim was the only ship to attend both the Coronation and Silver Jubilee reviews.[3]
  • 1979: Reclaim (at that time the oldest ship in the Navy), was paid off, to be replaced by the new Seabed Operations Vessel Challenger.
  • 15 May 1982 arrived at Bruges, Belgium for demolition.[1]

Trivia[edit]

HMS Reclaim served as a filming location for the Doctor Who serial “The Sea Devils” in 1971.[4]

It was the last British warship to have sails. Although rarely used, they could add half a knot to her speed

https://www.mcdoa.org.uk/HMS_Reclaim_A_World_Record_Breaker.htm

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