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Sunday 19 September 2010

Kv Barentshav



Kv Barentshav, Norwegian OPV at Shieldhall

HMS Belos (A214)

HMS Belos is a submarine rescue ship in the Swedish Navy's 1st Submarine flotilla. She carries Sjöugglan, Argus, Mantis and URF.

Originally built as a diving platform to serve offshore oil platforms, she was bought and converted to a submarine rescue ship. HMS Belos is the largest ship (by displacement) in the Swedish Navy.

Information courtesy of wikipedia

Saturday 18 September 2010

HMS Monmouth (F235)






HMS Monmouth (F235) is the sixth Type 23 frigate of the Royal Navy. She is the seventh ship to bear the name and was launched by Lady Eaton in 1991, being commissioned two years later.

Affectionately known as 'The Black Duke', Monmouth is the only ship in service with the Royal Navy that has its name painted in black and flies a plain black flag in addition to the ensign. This is due to the dissolution of the title and the blacking out of the Coat of Arms of the Duke of Monmouth in 1685 following the Monmouth Rebellion against James II of England.

Information courtesy of Wikipedia

MV Bute

MV Bute at Rothesay Harbour

Wednesday 15 September 2010

Aasli






Aasli passing Port Glasgow after unloading her cargo at Sheildhall in Glasgow.

Tuesday 14 September 2010

Monday 13 September 2010

RFA Argus (A135)






RFA Argus (A135) is an aviation training ship with a secondary role of primary casualty receiving ship in the Royal Fleet Auxiliary. Italian-built, Argus was formerly the container ship MV Contender Bezant. The ship was requisitioned in 1982 for service in the Falklands War and purchased outright in 1984.
After a four year conversion at Harland and Wolff in Belfast the ship entered RFA service in 1988. Having been initially designed as a container ship, her stability when unloaded would be excessive making her motion at sea uncomfortable or even dangerous. Therefore, her superstructure is deliberately heavily built (weighing some 800 tons), and she has 1,800 tons of concrete ballast carried in former hatch covers, which have been inverted to form tray-like structures .

Being a former container ship, Argus does not have a traditional aircraft carrier layout - the ship's superstructure is located forward, with a long flight deck aft. The ship has a small secondary superstructure approximately 2/3 of the way down the flight deck, containing the ship's exhaust funnel. This is used by small helicopters to simulate landing on the flight deck of a destroyer or frigate.

Argus was fitted with a fully functional hospital for the 1991 Gulf crisis, which has since been added to, providing 100 beds. It is equipped with the best of equipment: x-ray facilities, CAT scanner, ITU ward etc. Casualties can be quickly transferred from the deck directly into the assessment area. In recent conflicts, the ship's role as a Primary Casualty Receiving Ship (referred to as such rather than a hospital ship as the vessel is armed, thus not meeting the Geneva Convention definition of a hospital ship) has been more prominent than its aviation training duties.

In 2007 the ship was refitted with upgraded hospital facilities (replacing the forward aircraft lift with a ramp for emergency exit for hospital trollies and patients as well as two 50-man passenger lifts that lead to a new structure erected on the flight deck), generators and aviation systems (the ship is due to receive an upgrade to its night-vision capabilities enabling the use of AH-64 Apache helicopters) to give an operational life until 2020.


Argus entered service with the RFA in 1988, replacing RFA Engadine in the aviation training role. The ship deployed to the Persian Gulf in 1991 for service in the Gulf War, and also saw service in the Adriatic in 1993 and 1999 supporting British operations in Bosnia and over Kosovo respectively. During this period, Argus operated in part as an LPH. Her unsuitability for this role was a major factor in the commissioning of HMS Ocean. In 2003 Argus was deployed again to the Gulf as part of a 33 ship fleet to support a British amphibious assault of the Al-Faw Peninsula. Argus operated in its PCRS role.

In 2008 she deployed to the Middle East to act as a platform for Sea King ASaCs7 helicopters.

A program to replace Argus called the Joint Casualty Treatment Ship (JCTS) was put on hold in December 2001 after passing initial approval. The Integrated Project Team (IPT) managing the project was subsequently disbanded in 2005. The ship was most recently stationed in's home port is Falmouth in Cornwall England although being an RFA ship means that she also uses the former naval dockyard in Portland in Dorset England.

During times of war RFA Argus acts as a floating hospital with two full wards and mortuary. The last time the hospital was utilised in this way was off the coast of Freetown in 2000-01, in support of British operations against the rebel West Side Boys.

Information courtesy of Wikipedia.


Thursday 9 September 2010

Tuesday 7 September 2010

Loch Long

A rather moody picture of Loch Long as the rain and mist moves over the hills.
The entrance to Loch Long taken from Cove.

Friday 3 September 2010

RFA Largs Bay







RFA Largs Bay anchored in Largs Bay.
Click HERE for pictures from a previous visit.

Wednesday 1 September 2010

Cimbris


At Ayr harbour with a cargo of wind turbine parts.
Click HERE for pictures of her making her way up to Glasgow