HMS Ajax (F114)

HMS ''Ajax'' was a of the Royal Navy. She was built by the famous Cammell Laird company of Birkenhead. ''Ajax'' was launched on 16 August 1962 and commissioned on 10 December 1963. She was originally intended to be named , and laid down as a , but instead became part of Batch 1 of the ''Leander'' class.

Construction

''Ajax'' was built by Cammell Laird of Birkenhead. She was laid down, with the yard number 1285, as a to be called ''Fowey'' on 19 October 1959, but in 1960 it was decided to complete the ship as one of the new ''Leander'' class, with the new name ''Ajax''.Osborne and Sowdon 1990, pp. 32, 109, 112. ''Ajax'' was launched on 16 August 1962Osborne and Sowdon 1990, p. 33. and was commissioned on 11 December 1963. Total construction cost was £4,800,000Osborne and Sowdon 1990, pp. 36, 109.

The ship was long overall and at the waterline, with a beam of and a maximum draught of . Displacement was standard and full load. Two oil-fired boilers fed steam at and to a pair of double reduction geared steam turbines that in turn drove two propeller shafts, with the machinery rated at , giving a speed of .Osborne and Sowdon 1990, p. 111.

A twin Mark 6 gun mount was fitted forward. While the ''Leander'' class was planned to be fitted with the Sea Cat surface-to-air missile, ''Ajax'' was completed with two Bofors 40 mm anti-aircraft guns as a temporary substitute until Sea Cat could be fitted. A Limbo anti-submarine mortar was fitted aft to provide a short-range anti-submarine capability, while a hangar and helicopter deck allowed a single Westland Wasp helicopter to be operated, for longer range anti-submarine and anti-surface operations.Osborne and Sowdon 1990, pp. 33–34.

As built, ''Ajax'' was fitted with a large Type 965 long range air search radar on the ship's mainmast, with a Type 993 short range air/surface target indicating radar and Type 974 navigation radar carried on the ship's foremast. An MRS3 fire control system was carried to direct the 4.5-inch guns.Osborne and Sowden 1990, pp. 33, 35. The ship had a sonar suite of Type 177 medium range search sonar, Type 162 bottom search and Type 170 attack sonar, while the ship was designed to carry a Type 199 variable depth sonar (VDS), this was not installed on ''Ajax''.Osborne and Sowdon 1990, pp. 33–34, 112.Marriott 1983, p. 79.

Service history

In 1964, ''Ajax'' deployed to the Far East, becoming the leader of the 24th Escort Group. It was a long deployment, and she did not return to the UK until 1968.Critchley 1986, p. 116. Activities included taking part in the Beira Patrol, covering the withdrawal of British forces from operations off Aden, and acting as guardship for Hong Kong. In 1970, ''Ajax'' became the Gibraltar guard ship, a required deployment at that time due to the tense fears of invasion by General Franco.

In September 1970, ''Ajax'' began a modernisation at Devonport Dockyard that lasted until 1973, having her 4.5-inch gun turret replaced by an Ikara anti-submarine missile system. A pair of quadruple GWS22 SeaCat launchers were fitted aft while the two Bofors guns were retained but moved forward to abreast the ship's mainmast. The Limbo anti-submarine mortar and Wasp helicopter were retained. The long-range Type 965 radar was removed, with improved navigation and target indicating radars fitted, and the ADAWS 5 computer-aided combat direction system added to direct Ikara operations, while the Type 199 VDS was restored.Osborne and Sowdon 1990, pp. 55–57, 111.Marriott 1986, pp. 80, 82.

Following her conversion she became leader of the 8th Frigate Squadron. In 1974, she assisted in the evacuation of British citizens after the Turkish invasion of Cyprus. In 1976, while on a visit to Canada, ''Ajax'' visited the town of Ajax, Ontario, which had been named in honour of her predecessor, the ''Leander''-class cruiser ''Ajax'' made famous by the Battle of the River Plate during the Second World War. The 'new' ''Ajax'' was granted the freedom of the city.

In 1977, ''Ajax'' underwent a refit at Devonport Dockyard, deploying in 1979 to the Mediterranean. In 1980, she underwent a refit at Gibraltar which was completed in 1981. That year, ''Ajax'' became the leader of the 1st Frigate Squadron. She did not take part in the 1982 Falklands War, but was deployed as Persian Gulf guard ship; she later completed a four-month deployment around the Falklands as part of the South Atlantic Protection Force in 1984. She participated in further deployments that culminated in the highlight of her final year in 1985 when she escorted , which took a number of the Royal Family on a tour of Italy.

Fate

She was decommissioned 31 May 1985, then replaced as a static training ship at Devonport. On 3 August 1988, ''Ajax'' arrived at Millom, Cumbria to be broken up.

Her anchor is now located at the local Royal Canadian Legion Branch (Hunt Street) and bell hangs in the Ajax Town Council Chamber in Ajax, Ontario.

Commanding officers

References

Publications

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Ajax (F114)
Leander-class frigates
Ships built on the River Mersey
1962 ships