RFA ''Cherryleaf'' (A82) was a Leaf-class small fleet tanker of the

Royal Fleet Auxiliary The Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) is a naval auxiliary fleet owned by the UK's Ministry of Defence. It provides logistical and operational support to the Royal Navy and Royal Marines. The RFA ensures the Royal Navy is supplied and supported by ...

, in service from 1973 to 1980.

History

She was built by

Nordseewerke Nordseewerke Emden GmbH (sometimes abbreviated NSWE, in English: North Sea Company) was a shipbuilding company, located in the Emden Harbor of the north German city of Emden. Founded in 1903, shipbuilding ended in 2010, and the company was taken ...

Emden Emden () is an independent city and seaport in Lower Saxony in the northwest of Germany, on the river Ems. It is the main city of the region of East Frisia and, in 2011, had a total population of 51,528. History The exact founding date of E ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and launched in 1962 as ''Overseas Adventurer'' for London and Overseas Bulk Carriers, a subsidiary of

London & Overseas Freighters London & Overseas Freighters Ltd. (LOF) was an ocean-going merchant shipping company that for most of its history was based in the United Kingdom. Counties Ship Management In 1920 Manuel Kulukundis from the Aegean Sea, Aegean island of Kasos a ...

(LOF). She was

bareboat charter A bareboat charter or demise charter is an arrangement for the chartering or hiring of a ship or boat, whereby no crew or provisions are included as part of the agreement; instead, the people who rent the vessel from the owner are responsible f ...

ed for the RFA in February 1973 and renamed RFA ''Cherryleaf''. In 1980 she was returned to LOF and her name reverted to ''Overseas Adventurer''. In 1981 LOF sold her to Petrostar Co Ltd of Saudi Arabia who renamed her ''Petrostar XVI''. On 5 April 1986 during the

Tanker War The Tanker War was a protracted series of armed skirmishes between Iran and Iraq against merchant vessels in the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz from 1984 to 1988. The conflict was a part of the larger Iran–Iraq War. Background Prior to 1 ...

phase of the

Iran–Iraq War The Iran–Iraq War was an armed conflict between Iran and Iraq that lasted from September 1980 to August 1988. It began with the Iraqi invasion of Iran and lasted for almost eight years, until the acceptance of United Nations Security Council ...

she was off

Halul Island Halul Island ( ar, جَزِيرَة حَالُول, Jazīrat Ḫālūl) is one of the most important islands belonging to the State of Qatar. Lying about northeast of Doha, it serves as a storage area and loading terminal for oil from the surround ...

''en route'' from

Bahrain Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...

Sharjah Sharjah (; ar, ٱلشَّارقَة ', Gulf Arabic: ''aš-Šārja'') is the third-most populous city in the United Arab Emirates, after Dubai and Abu Dhabi, forming part of the Dubai-Sharjah-Ajman metropolitan area. Sharjah is the capital o ...

when Iranian helicopters hit her with

AGM-65 Maverick The AGM-65 Maverick is an air-to-ground missile (AGM) designed for close air support. It is the most widely produced precision-guided missile in the Western world, and is effective against a wide range of tactical targets, including armor, air ...

missiles. Her accommodation was gutted by fire and four crewmembers were killed. She was towed to

where she was declared a constructive

total loss In insurance claims, a total loss or write-off is a situation where the lost value, repair cost or salvage cost of a damaged property exceeds its insured value, and simply replacing the old property with a new equivalent is more cost-effecti ...

on 9 April 1986 and laid up for disposal. She was sold to National Ship Demolition Co Ltd of

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

, arrived

Kaohsiung Kaohsiung City (Mandarin Chinese: ; Wade–Giles: ''Kao¹-hsiung²;'' Pinyin: ''Gāoxióng'') is a special municipality located in southern Taiwan. It ranges from the coastal urban center to the rural Yushan Range with an area of . Kaohsi ...

on 24 January 1987 and her demolition began on 19 February 1987.

References

Sources and further reading

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External links

* 1962 ships Leaf-class tankers Maritime incidents in 1986 Ship fires Ships built in Emden Ships of London and Overseas Freighters Tankers of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary Tankers of the United Kingdom Iran–Iraq War Iran–United Kingdom military relations {{UK-aux-ship-stub