The ''River'' class is a
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 ...
of four
minehunters
A minehunter is a naval vessel that seeks, detects, and destroys individual naval mines. Minesweepers, on the other hand, clear mined areas as a whole, without prior detection of mines. A vessel that combines both of these roles is known as a ...
built for the South African Navy. They have a secondary role as Inshore Patrol Vessels.
Development
In order to circumvent United Nations military sanctions during the apartheid-era, the minehunters were originally ordered and operated by the
Department of Transport and designated as
research vessels
A research vessel (RV or R/V) is a ship or boat designed, modified, or equipped to carry out research at sea. Research vessels carry out a number of roles. Some of these roles can be combined into a single vessel but others require a dedicated ...
.
The initial names of the vessels were ''Navors'' (Afrikaans for 'research'), and numbered 1 to 4.
Ordered in 1978, the first vessel, ''Navors I'', was shipped to
Durban
Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...
from Germany in June 1980 for fitting out, shortly followed by the ''Navors II''.
The second pair were constructed in Durban. The vessels were painted blue with white upper works and formed the First Research Squadron.
In 1982, the four vessels were renamed after South African rivers but continued to fly the national flag rather than the naval ensign.
Only in February 1988 was the prefix RV changed to SAS when they were formally accepted as naval ships.
Current Status
As of 2022, two River-class vessels are still in service with the South African Navy, however, they are believed to have lost their mine-hunting capabilities due to the retirement of the antiquated PAP104
autonomous underwater vehicles
In developmental psychology and moral, political, and bioethical philosophy, autonomy, from , ''autonomos'', from αὐτο- ''auto-'' "self" and νόμος ''nomos'', "law", hence when combined understood to mean "one who gives oneself one's ow ...
(AUVs).
Whilst still maintaining a decompression chamber for operational diving, the River class are now deployed on general coastal defence duties, and are equipped with a single Oerlikon 20 mm cannon, two 12.7 mm machine guns, and a RHIB for boarding operations.
See also
*
List of decommissioned ships of the South African Navy
The following is a list of decommissioned ships of the South African Navy.
Pennant numbers
South African Navy used the below pennant number prefix designations:
* A — auxiliaries
* C — cruisers
* D — destroyers
* F — frigates
* H — sh ...
*
List of ships of the South African Navy
This is a list of active South African Navy ships as of 2023. There are approximately 47 ships in commission, this includes 4 frigates, 3 submarines, 2 minesweepers, 1 replenishment vessel, 1 Survey vessel 5 tugboats and 31 patrol vessels.
Sub ...
References
*
{{South African Navy
Mine warfare vessels of the South African Navy