HMNZS Wellington (P55)
 HMNZS Wellington first arrival into Devonport Naval Base, June 2010 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 New Zealand
| |
| Namesake: | HMNZS Wellington (F69) |
| Ordered: | 29 July 2004 |
| Builder: | Tenix[1] |
| Homeport: | Wellington[2] |
| Status: | Active as of 2015 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Protector class off-shore patrol vessel |
| Displacement: | 1900 tonnes[3] |
| Length: | 85 m (279 ft)[1] |
| Beam: | 14 m (46 ft)[1] |
| Draught: | 3.6 m (12 ft) |
| Propulsion: | 2 × MAN B&W 12RK280 diesel engines, each with a continuous rating of 5,400 kW at 1,000 rpm |
| Speed: |
|
| Range: | 6,000 nmi (11,000 km; 6,900 mi)[1] |
| Boats & landing craft carried: |
|
| Capacity: |
|
| Complement: | 35 + 10 flight personnel + 4 personnel from Government agencies[1] |
| Sensors and processing systems: | Optical fire control |
| Armament: |
|
| Armour: | None |
| Aircraft carried: | 1 × SH-2G Super Seasprite helicopter. Can be armed with a combination of homing torpedoes, depth charges, Maverick Air to Surface missiles, MAG58M Machine Gun. |
HMNZS Wellington (P-55) is a Protector class off-shore patrol vessel in the Royal New Zealand Navy. The ship was built by Tenix as part of the New Zealand government's Royal New Zealand Navy plans,[1] and was originally expected to enter service during the winter of 2008. However, in late 2008, it became known that the vessel was considered "sub-standard", and did not fulfill a number of specifications, such as being 100 tonnes overweight, making it unfit for Antarctic duties. The future crew that was already stationed with the vessel was sent back to New Zealand after the ship returned to Melbourne, until the dispute with the contractor was resolved.[4] Wellington was accepted into the Royal New Zealand Navy on 6 May 2010 and arrived at the Devonport (Auckland) Naval Base the following month. The ship was also involved in the recent search for the crewmembers of the 47 ft. yacht the Berserk, but had to turn back due to the weather which the captain called the worst storm he had ever seen in 19 years. During that mission the ship lost three 50-person life rafts of which one was discovered by the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society vessel the MY Steve Irwin.
On January 14, 2015, HMNZS Wellington intercepted three fishing vessels, the Songhua the Kunlun and the YongDing, who were allegedly fishing illegally in Antarctic waters. The fishing vessels refused to be boarded and poor weather and sea conditions prevented the Wellington from forcing the issue. [5][6]
The ship is named in honour of HMNZS Wellington (F69), a Leander class frigate serving in the Royal New Zealand Navy from 1987 until 1999.[2]
Upgrades
Both HMNZS Otago and HMNZS Wellington have recently gone through minor upgrades, including sensors and weapons. Replacing the 25mm Bushmaster to the Rafael Typhoon 25 mm stabilised naval gun. [7]
See also
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Project Protector: Protecting New Zealand's interests at sea and across the region" (Press release). Royal New Zealand Navy. 2004. Retrieved 2007-09-01.
- 1 2 "Navy names seven new ships" (Press release). Royal New Zealand Navy. 31 March 2006. Retrieved 2007-09-01.
- ↑ Wellington - P55 RNZN website. Retrieved 23 August 2015.
- ↑ Gower, Patrick (11 December 2008). "Navy ships project hard to keep afloat". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 3 October 2011.
- ↑ Davison, Isaac (14 January 2015). "NZ Navy in standoff with fishing vessels". NZ Herald. Retrieved 14 January 2015.
- ↑ Field, Michael; Vance, Andrea (16 January 2015). "Toothfish poachers fly false flags". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
- ↑ Ridzwan, Rahmat. "New Zealand's OPVs complete Typhoon gun acceptance trials". IHS Janes 360. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to HMNZS Wellington (P55). |