HMS Sutherland (F81)

For other ships with the same name, see HMS Sutherland.
HMS Sutherland, 2012
History
United Kingdom
Name: HMS Sutherland
Operator: Royal Navy
Ordered: January 1992
Builder: Yarrow Shipbuilders
Laid down: 14 October 1993
Launched: 9 March 1996
Sponsored by: Lady Christina Walmsley
Commissioned: 4 July 1997
Refit: Major 2013-2015
Homeport: HMNB Devonport, Plymouth
Motto:
  • Sans peur
  • "Without fear"
Status: in active service
Badge:
General characteristics
Class and type: Type 23 Frigate
Displacement: 4,900 t (4,800 long tons; 5,400 short tons)[1]
Length: 133 m (436 ft 4 in)
Beam: 16.1 m (52 ft 10 in)
Draught: 7.3 m (23 ft 9 in)
Propulsion:
Speed: In excess of 28 kn (52 km/h; 32 mph) (HMS Sutherland achieved 34.4 knots during high-speed trials in November 2008)
Range: 7,500 nautical miles (14,000 km) at 15 kn (28 km/h)
Complement: 185 (accommodation for up to 205)
Electronic warfare
& decoys:
Armament:
Aircraft carried:
Aviation facilities:

HMS Sutherland is a Type 23 frigate of the British Royal Navy. She is the thirteenth ship in the Duke class of frigates and is the third ship to bear the name, more than 200 years since the name was last used.

She was launched in 1996 by Lady Christina Walmsley, wife of Sir Robert Walmsley KCB. Before this occasion, Royal Navy ships had always been launched with a bottle of champagne, but Lady Walmsley broke with tradition and used a bottle of Macallan Scotch whisky.[2]

There is a keen golfing community on-board, and the crew sometimes use the facilities of their affiliate golf course in the Royal Burgh of Dornoch.[3]

Operational history

She was deployed to the Falkland Islands in the winter 1998/1999. In 2000, she was part of the task force NTG2000, the first time Royal Navy ships have circumnavigated the globe since 1986.[4] In December 2007, major upgrades worth £35 million were announced making Sutherland the "most powerful frigate in the fleet".[5] The upgrades included Sonar 2087, an upgrade to Seawolf, an improvement to the 4.5 inch gun to allow it to fire long-range ammunition, and a reshaped stern to cut fuel use.[6]

After berthing in Invergordon, HMS Sutherland was granted the freedom of the county of Sutherland at a ceremony in Dornoch on 18 September 2004.[7][8] A subsequent visit to Invergordon in March 2011 was cut short, with "operational commitments" as the given reason.[9][10] This was eventually revealed as her deployment as part of the UK Response Force Task Group's (RFTG) first deployment, named COUGAR' 11.[11] She returned to Invergordon in April 2013.[12]

In May 2011, she made a port visit to Patras, Greece following participation in exercises off Crete,[13] after which she became involved in the operations off the Libyan coast.[14]

On 16 June 2011, Sutherland visited Souda Bay in Crete to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Crete, before sailing to Kalamata in Greece to conduct further World War II memorials.[15]

On 24 July 2011 HMS Sutherland returned to the coast of Libya as part of Operation Ellamy.[16]

On 18 October 2011 HMS Sutherland passed through Tower Bridge in London and docked next to HMS Belfast, returning through the bridge on 22 October 2011.[17]

In 2012, she was part of the COUGAR 12 task group.[18]

She took part in Exercise Joint Warrior 2013.[19]

Sutherland is part of the 2016 Exercise Griffin Strike, a UK-French combined exercise.[20] Sutherland escorted the Russian Frigate Admiral Grigorovich through the English Channel in May 2016.[21]

Affiliations

References

  1. ↑ Royal Navy Frigates: Type 23 Frigate, royalnavy.mod.uk
  2. ↑ "Background on HMS Sutherland: Ship's Life Began with a Wee Dram", Navy News, archived from the original on 25 March 2008
  3. ↑ "HMS Sutherland strikes the right note at Royal Dornoch". Golf Business News. 13 December 2011. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
  4. ↑ Archived 10 May 2008 at the Wayback Machine.
  5. ↑ "HMS SUTHERLAND will emerge from Rosyth as 'Navy's most powerful frigate'". Shipping Times. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
  6. ↑ "HMS Sutherland gets upgrade". The Engineer. 7 December 2007. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
  7. ↑ ""Courtship" sealed by Freedom". The Northern Times. Golspie, Sutherland. 24 September 2004. Retrieved 8 May 2014.
  8. ↑ "Scots honour ship". Daily Telegraph. 19 September 2004. Retrieved 8 May 2014.
  9. ↑ "Change of programme for HMS Sutherland's visit to Invergordon". The Highland Council. 23 March 2011. Retrieved 8 May 2014.
  10. ↑ "HMS Sutherland's visit cut for operational reasons". BBC News. 24 March 2011. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
  11. ↑ "UK: Royal Navy Ships Set Sail to Mediterranean and Middle East". NavalToday.com. 8 April 2011. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
  12. ↑ "HMS Sutherland returns to Invergordon". BBC News. 27 April 2013. Retrieved 8 May 2014.
  13. ↑ "HMS Sutherland Visits Greece". Royal Navy. 6 May 2011. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
  14. ↑ Archived 10 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine.
  15. ↑ Royal Navy. "Sutherland Pays Tribute to the Fallen of Crete And Greece". Noodls. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
  16. ↑ Ministry of Defence (27 July 2011). "HMS Sutherland begins boarding operations off Libya". Gov.uk. Retrieved 13 February 2012.
  17. ↑ "Royal Navy fighting clan returns from Libya for Capital Engagement". Royal Navy. 17 October 2011. Retrieved 25 July 2012.
  18. ↑ "HMS Sutherland". Royal Navy. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
  19. ↑ http://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/News-and-Events/Latest-News/2013/October/02/131002-joint-warrior
  20. ↑ http://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/news-and-latest-activity/news/2016/april/12/160412-uk-and-french-forces-launch-exercise-griffin-strike-in-the-solent
  21. ↑ "Navy shadow Russian frigate through UK waters". Daily Telegraph. 11 May 2016. Retrieved 13 May 2016.
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