RFA Resource (A480)

For Royal Navy and RFA ships named Resource, see HMS Resource.

History

United Kingdom
Name:	RFA Resource
Ordered:	24 January 1963
Laid down:	19 June 1964
Launched:	11 February 1966
Commissioned:	6 June 1967
Decommissioned:	1 May 1997
Renamed:	Resourceful in 1997
Struck:	1997
Identification:	Pennant number: A480
Fate:	Scrapped at Alang in 1997
General characteristics
Class & type:	Regent-class armament stores ship
Displacement:	22,890 tons full load
Length:	640 ft 1 in (195.10 m)
Beam:	77 ft 1.25 in (23.50 m)
Draught:	26 ft 3 in (8.00 m)
Propulsion:	2 × AEI steam turbines DR geared to a single shaft 2 × watertube boilers.
Speed:	20 knots (37 km/h)
Complement:	125 RFA personnel 44 RNSTS personnel 11 Naval Air dept
Aircraft carried:	1 × Wessex 5 helicopter
Aviation facilities:	Landing platform capable of landing several different classes of helicopter

RFA Resource was an armament stores ship of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary.

Falklands War

Resource served in the Falklands War, captained at that time by Captain Bruce Seymour. She was one of the first vessels on the scene to pick up survivors from HMS Sheffield, having just supplied her.

RFA Resource was one of several RFA munitions replenishment ships certified to store and supply the fleet with munitions, including WE.177A live nuclear weapons. Other ships capable of carrying (stored in deep magazines) or deploying these weapons were HMS Hermes, HMS Invincible, HMS Broadsword and HMS Brilliant, they were transferred to various Royal Fleet Auxiliary ships with their specialist magazines. This was initially RFA Regent, and when RFA Resource exited San Carlos, they were transferred to her, and then to RFA Fort Austin. After the end of the conflict they were transported back to Britain aboard RFA Fort Austin and RFA Resource.^[1] Inert practice weapons and surveillance weapons without fissionable material were also transported.^[2]

Yugoslavia

One of Resource's last duties before being decommissioned was to serve as a floating munitions storage for UN and IFOR troops in the former Yugoslavia. She spent much of the mid 1990s in Split, Croatia, fulfilling this role.

Decommissioning and scrapping

Resource sailed from Devonport on 24 June 1997, having been renamed Resourceful for the delivery run to the Indian breakers, and arrived at Alang for scrapping on 20 August 1997.

RFA Resource ship's badge.

Footnotes

Guardian Article mentioning RFA Resource - http://www.guardian.co.uk/falklands/story/0,,657867,00.html
Images of RFA Resource and a Wessex Helicopter - http://www.john.fotoblog.org.uk/p14552235.html
Images and information about RFA Resource and sister ship Regent - http://web.archive.org/web/20061212183624/http://www.btinternet.com/~warship/Feature/rfa/pics2.htm
Hansard entry mentioning final fate of RFA Resource - http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200203/cmhansrd/vo030227/text/30227w04.htm
Falklands day by day from Royal Navy - http://www.navynews.co.uk/falklands/day_april.asp

British Naval Forces of the Falklands War

Royal Navy	Active Alacrity Ambuscade Andromeda Antelope ^S Antrim Ardent ^S Argonaut Arrow Avenger Brilliant Bristol Broadsword Cardiff Conqueror Cordella Courageous Coventry ^S Dumbarton Castle Endurance Exeter Famella Fearless Glamorgan Glasgow Hecla Herald Hermes Hydra Intrepid Invincible Junella Leeds Castle Minerva Northella Onyx Penelope Pict Plymouth Sheffield ^S Spartan Splendid Valiant Yarmouth

Royal Fleet Auxiliary	Appleleaf Brambleleaf Bayleaf Blue Rover Engadine Fort Austin Fort Grange Plumleaf Pearleaf Olna Olmeda Regent Resource Sir Bedivere Sir Galahad ^S Sir Geraint Sir Lancelot Sir Percivale Sir Tristram Stromness Tidespring Tidepool

Ships Taken Up From Trade	Alvega Anco Charger Astronomer Atlantic Conveyor ^S Atlantic Causeway Avelona Star Balder London Baltic Ferry British Avon British Dart British Enterprise III British Esk British Tamar British Test British Trent British Wye Canberra Contender Bezant Eburna Elk Europic Ferry Fort Toronto G.A.Walker Geesport Iris Irishman Laertes Lycaon Nordic Ferry Norland Queen Elizabeth 2 Rangatira Salvageman Saxonia Scottish Eagle St Edmund St Helena Stena Inspector Stena Seaspread Strathewe Tor Caledonia Uganda Wimpey Seahorse Yorkshireman

Royal Maritime Auxiliary Service	Goosander Typhoon

^S - Sunk

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