RFA ''Olwen'' (A122) was an
''Ol''-class "fast 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 ...
(RFA), the naval
auxiliary fleet of the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
. She was the
lead ship
The lead ship, name ship, or class leader is the first of a series or class of ships all constructed according to the same general design. The term is applicable to naval ships and large civilian vessels.
Large ships are very complex and may ...
of her
class
Class or The Class may refer to:
Common uses not otherwise categorized
* Class (biology), a taxonomic rank
* Class (knowledge representation), a collection of individuals or objects
* Class (philosophy), an analytical concept used differentl ...
, and launched in 1964 as RFA ''Olynthus'', the second ship to bear this name. She was renamed ''Olwen'' in 1967 to avoid confusion with the ,
HMS ''Olympus''.
Operational history
1970
In November and December 1970 ''Olwen'' was involved in
Operation Burlap giving humanitarian assistance to
East Pakistan
East Pakistan was a Pakistani province established in 1955 by the One Unit Scheme, One Unit Policy, renaming the province as such from East Bengal, which, in modern times, is split between India and Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India ...
after a
cyclone
In meteorology, a cyclone () is a large air mass that rotates around a strong center of low atmospheric pressure, counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere as viewed from above (opposite to an anti ...
caused extensive damage and flooding.
1973
In the
Second Cod War
The Cod Wars ( is, Þorskastríðin; also known as , ; german: Kabeljaukriege) were a series of 20th-century confrontations between the United Kingdom (with aid from West Germany) and Iceland about fishing rights in the North Atlantic. Each o ...
, ''Olwen'' supported Royal Navy ships three times.
Decommissioning
She was decommissioned in 1999 and laid up at Portsmouth, before being broken up at Alang, India in 2001.
References
O Class Fleet Replenishment Tankers
Ol-class tankers (1965)
1964 ships
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