''Parnaíba'' (U-17) is a river monitor of the

Brazilian Navy ) , colors= Blue and white , colors_label= Colors , march= "Cisne Branco" ( en, "White Swan") (same name as training ship ''Cisne Branco'' , mascot= , equipment= 1 multipurpose aircraft carrier7 submarines6 frigates2 corvettes4 amphibious warf ...

. She is currently one of the last

monitors Monitor or monitor may refer to: Places * Monitor, Alberta * Monitor, Indiana, town in the United States * Monitor, Kentucky * Monitor, Oregon, unincorporated community in the United States * Monitor, Washington * Monitor, Logan County, West Vir ...

in service.

History

She was built for the navy in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

and commissioned on 9 March 1938. She participated in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and is, as of 2022, the world's oldest commissioned warship still in active service. She is assigned to the

Mato Grosso Mato Grosso ( – lit. "Thick Bush") is one of the states of Brazil, the third largest by area, located in the Central-West region. The state has 1.66% of the Brazilian population and is responsible for 1.9% of the Brazilian GDP. Neighboring ...

Flotilla. During the Second World War, the ship was assigned for service in the port of

Salvador, Bahia Salvador (English: ''Savior'') is a Brazilian municipality and capital city of the state of Bahia. Situated in the Zona da Mata in the Northeast Region of Brazil, Salvador is recognized throughout the country and internationally for its cuisine ...

, where she underwent light escort missions and coastal patrols against the threat of German submarines, mainly because of her extreme shallow draft which in theory would let any torpedo attack pass under her without any damage to the ship. Her escort missions were mainly in coastal waters because of her poor seaworthiness in open waters, which demanded from the navy constant repairs on the ship.

Modernization

She underwent a modernisation program at the Ladario Riverine Naval Base between January 1998 and 6 May 1999, during which her original reciprocating engine plant was replaced with diesel engines to increase her range and endurance. One of her original engines was placed on display at the Sixth Naval District's Lieutenant Maximiano Memorial Hall. A helicopter platform has been fitted over the

fantail Fantails are small insectivorous songbirds of the genus ''Rhipidura'' in the family Rhipiduridae, native to Australasia, Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent. Most of the species are about long, specialist aerial feeders, and named as "f ...

, allowing her to operate the IH-6B Bell Jet Ranger III, replacing the

Eurocopter AS350 Airbus Helicopters SAS (formerly Eurocopter Group) is the helicopter manufacturing division of Airbus. It is the largest in the industry in terms of revenues and turbine helicopter deliveries. Its head office is located at Marseille Provence Ai ...

References

Notes

Bibliography

External links

Brazilian Navy: Parnaíba U-71
(in Portuguese) * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6LlpWhH6nQ4 {{DEFAULTSORT:Parnaiba Monitors of the Brazilian Navy 1937 ships Ships built in Brazil World War II monitors Naval ships of Brazil Riverine warfare