HMS Norfolk (F230)
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HMS ''Norfolk'' was a British
Type 23 frigate The Type 23 frigate or Duke class is a class of frigates built for the United Kingdom's Royal Navy. The ships are named after British Dukes, thus leading to the class being commonly known as the Duke class. The first Type 23, , was commission ...
, the sixth in the
Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...
to use this name, laid down in 1985 by
Yarrow Shipbuilders Yarrow Shipbuilders Limited (YSL), often styled as simply Yarrows, was a major shipbuilding firm based in the Scotstoun district of Glasgow on the River Clyde. It is now part of BAE Systems Surface Ships, owned by BAE Systems, which has also o ...
. She was launched on the
Clyde Clyde may refer to: People * Clyde (given name) * Clyde (surname) Places For townships see also Clyde Township Australia * Clyde, New South Wales * Clyde, Victoria * Clyde River, New South Wales Canada * Clyde, Alberta * Clyde, Ontario, a tow ...
by
Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, (Margaret Rose; 21 August 1930 – 9 February 2002) was the younger daughter of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, and the younger sister and only sibling of Queen Elizabeth  ...
in July 1987 and named for the Dukedom of Norfolk. She was commissioned on 1 June 1990. ''Norfolk'' was the 'first of class', as well as being the first of a new generation of 'lean manned' ships. She was commissioned into the Chilean Navy in 2006 as ''Almirante Cochrane''.


Operational history


Royal Navy

Following commissioning in 1990, HMS ''Norfolk'' completed a year on first of class trials culminating in BOST in November/December 1991. 1992 started with JMC following by a brief defect rectification period in early March. On 11 May, ''Norfolk'' deployed as part of the Orient 92 Task Group with (Flag), and . During her deployment she completed visits to the Eastern Med (Soudha in
Crete Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, and ...
,
Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...
in Egypt, Haifa in Israel), Mauritius and Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean, Malaysia (Lumut, Penang, Pulau Tioman), Thailand (Bangkok), South Korea (Pusan) and Hong Kong in the Far East and Oman in the Middle East. She returned to the UK at the end November 1992. In January 1993, ''Norfolk'' continued with first of class shock trials in Portsmouth before completing accommodation changes being the first Type 23 to host
Wren Wrens are a family of brown passerine birds in the predominantly New World family Troglodytidae. The family includes 88 species divided into 19 genera. Only the Eurasian wren occurs in the Old World, where, in Anglophone regions, it is commonly ...
ratings at sea. This was completed in June 1993 followed by a brief trip to Amsterdam, BOST and preparation for her Southlant deployment in 1994. In 1994, ''Norfolk'' became the first
Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...
warship to visit
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
in over 20 years, a visit designed to show that the Commonwealth was ready to accept South Africa as an ally resulting from the abolition of
apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
. Since then, she has conducted many operations, including a deployment to
Sierra Leone Sierra Leone,)]. officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered by Liberia to the southeast and Guinea surrounds the northern half of the nation. Covering a total area of , Sierra ...
in 2000 as part of a
Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...
task force to assist in restoration of peace and stability to the war-torn West African nation. 2000 was a busy year for ''Norfolk'' with a deployment under Commander Bruce Williams to the United States. Amongst the places visited were Savannah, Wilmington, Port Canaveral and Nassau. She has also served in the
Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ea ...
and the
Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Persis, Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a Mediterranean sea (oceanography), me ...
, as well as being involved in
Standing Naval Force Atlantic Standing NATO Maritime Group One (SNMG1) is one of NATO's standing naval maritime immediate reaction forces. SNMG1 consists of four to six destroyers and frigates. Its role is to provide NATO with an immediate operational response capability. Hi ...
. Other duties included acting as guardship for the
Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubouzet ...
, as well as the
Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...
. A chance encounter in 2000 attracted a local bottlenose dolphin whilst on exercises. A photograph of the encounter was taken and the dolphin, frequently seen in the area, was named Norfolk in honour of this encounter.


2001–2005

2002 saw a busy year for ''Norfolk'', commanded by Commander Richard Talbot. She was deployed with vessels from Portugal, Norway, Spain, Germany, Italy and the United States of America as part of her role within the Standing Naval Force Atlantic (SNFL). As part of SNFL she was involved in a simulated volcanic eruption disaster relief exercise. March saw Exercise 'Strong Resolve' off Northern Norway, then in April she was in the Mediterranean as part of Operation Direct Endeavour for NATO. During the Mediterranean deployment there was a visit to Malta, including hosting the Princess Royal, for the celebration of the anniversary of the award of the
George Cross The George Cross (GC) is the highest award bestowed by the British government for non-operational gallantry or gallantry not in the presence of an enemy. In the British honours system, the George Cross, since its introduction in 1940, has been ...
to the island. The voyage was also the last for Mr Chick MBE, a laundryman who served for 50 years including the Yangtze Incident, Korea and Suez through to the Falklands Campaign and Gulf War. ''Norfolk'' then attended the 2002 Navy days at Devonport. 2002/2003 saw the crew of ''Norfolk'' deployed with '
Green Goddess The Green Goddess is the colloquial name for the RLHZ Self Propelled Pump manufactured by Bedford Vehicles, a fire engine used originally by the Auxiliary Fire Service (AFS), and latterly held in reserve by the Home Office until 2004, and a ...
' fire engines to compensate for the fire service strike. ''Norfolk'' spent 169 days alongside the wall at HMNB Portsmouth. May 2003 saw ''Norfolk'' sail to her home base of Devonport and resume her active role, training ready for her deployment to the Gulf on Operation Telic 1/2. Amongst the simulations were attack runs by small attack craft, similar to the one which attacked . ''Norfolk'' was the first ship to be armed with the Vertical Launch Seawolf missile system. ''Norfolk'' was also the first Royal Navy warship to be re-armed with the new 4.5–inch (114 mm) Mod 1 gun system. 2004 saw ''Norfolk'' involved in the celebrations of the centenary of the Entente Cordiale with
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
. ''Norfolk'' also took part in the 2004 amphibious warfare-themed Devonport Navy days. In July 2004, it was announced that ''Norfolk'' would be one of three Type 23 frigates decommissioned by the end of 2007. ''Norfolk'' entered her home port for the last time at the end of November 2004 was decommissioned at Devonport on 15 April 2005, the guest of honour being then Commander-in-Chief Fleet, Admiral Sir
Jonathon Band Admiral Sir Jonathon Band (born 2 February 1950) is a retired Royal Navy officer who was the First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff from 2006 to 2009. Before serving as First Sea Lord he was Commander-in-Chief Fleet. Since becoming First S ...
, who had been ''Norfolk''s first commanding officer.


Chilean Navy

In June 2005 it was announced that ''Norfolk'' would be sold to the
Chilean Navy The Chilean Navy ( es, Armada de Chile) is the naval warfare service branch of the Chilean Armed Forces. It is under the Ministry of National Defense. Its headquarters are at Edificio Armada de Chile, Valparaiso. History Origins and the Wars ...
. She was commissioned into the Chilean Navy on 22 November 2006 as ''Almirante Cochrane'' (named after
Thomas Cochrane, 10th Earl of Dundonald Thomas Cochrane, 10th Earl of Dundonald, Marquess of Maranhão (14 December 1775 – 31 October 1860), styled Lord Cochrane between 1778 and 1831, was a British naval flag officer of the Royal Navy, mercenary and Radical politician. He was a ...
). Along with other Chilean vessels of her class, ''Almirante Cochrane'' underwent a significant upgrade from March 2018 to November 2019. The CMS 330 combat management architecture was installed along TRS-4D G-Band active scanning radars and 32 CAMM Sea Ceptor vertical-launch surface-to-air missile silos to replace the previous Sea Wolf SAM system.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Norfolk (F230), HMS Ships built on the River Clyde 1987 ships Type 23 frigates of the Royal Navy Type 23 frigates of the Chilean Navy