HMS Penelope

1962 PENELOPE Fourth ship of the very successful Leander class of frigates, constructed for the Royal Navy during the 1 960s, the best ships of that type then serving anywhere in the world.

THE LEANDER CLASS

The Leanders can be traced back to the Type 12s, the Whitby class, of the early
1950s, one of the outstanding small ship designs of the modern era, with a sharp V-form hull forward to cut through the water and a deep, broad section amidships for stability. A decade later, the Whitbys weapons suite was outdated, and the new ships received that of the interim Tribal class. HMS Penelope (F 127) was constructed by Vickers Armstrong on Tyneside; laid down on 14 March 1961, she was launched on 17 August 1962 and compeleted on 1 November 1 963. She was transferred to Ecuador in 1991, where she served as the Presidente Eloy A/far.

WEAPONS AND EQUIPMENT

As originally constructed, the Leanders had an all-gun armament, with twin 4.5in (115mm) and twin 40mm Bofors, together with a Mk 10 Limbo AS mortar. They all soon gained a single Seacat SAM launcher aft, together with two 20mm cannon. Penelope was one of the eight Batch Two ships which later lost their twin forecastle-mounted 4.5in (115mm) Mk 6 DP guns to allow them to mount the MM38 Exocet surface-to-surface missile system. They also gained an improved version of the Seacat, with twin launchers, and their 40mm Bofors were replaced. The conversion was completed in January 1982.

TECHNICAL DATA

Type: Guided-missile frigate
Machinery: 2-shaft geared turbines delivering 30,000shp
Dimensions (overall): Length, 11 3.4m (372ft); beam, 1 2.5m (41 ft}
Displacement: 2350t standard; 2860t full load
Draught: 5.5rn (1 9ft) full load
Complement: 251-263
Speed: 28 knots (52km/h}

THE ARMAMENT OF 1 960s FRIGATES

Two 4.5in (114mm) Mk 6 DP guns
Two 40mm Mk 9 AA guns
One Limbo Mk 10 AS mortar
One helicopter