According to information published on December 17, 2020, the British Royal Navy today welcomed HMS Tamar into the bosom Fleet, as for the fourth new River-Class offshore patrol vessel (OPV) was commissioned in Portsmouth
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New British Royal Navy HMS Tamar River-Class offshore patrol vessel OPV. (Picture source British Navy)
The HMS Tamar is the fourth of five Batch 2 River Class OPVs to join the Fleet, having arrived in Portsmouth from BAE Systems’ shipyards on the Clyde at the end of March 2020. Twelve months to the day that ten sailors mustered in a dry dock in Glasgow and began Tamar’s transformation from lifeless hull to warship, the 2,000-tonne vessel joined the Naval family as a fully-fledged member of the Overseas Patrol Squadron.
On 6 November 2013 it was announced that the Royal Navy had signed an Agreement in Principle to build three new offshore patrol vessels, based on the River-class design, at a fixed price of £348 million including spares and support. In August 2014, BAE Systems signed the contract to build the ships on the Clyde in Scotland. The Ministry of Defence stated that the Batch 2 ships are capable of being used for constabulary duties such as "counter-terrorism, counter-piracy and anti-smuggling operations".
The HMS Tamar is a Batch 2 River-class offshore patrol vessel built for the Royal British Navy. The River class is a class of offshore patrol vessels built primarily for the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom. A total of nine were built for the Royal Navy (RN), four Batch 1 and five Batch 2.
The Batch 2 ships are fundamentally different in appearance and capabilities from the preceding Batch 1. Notable differences include the 90.5 meters long hull, a top speed of 24 knots (44 km/h; 28 mph), Merlin-capable flight deck, a displacement of around 2,000 tonnes and greatly expanded capacity for accommodating troops. The Batch 2 ships also have a different (full width) superstructure, and a fundamentally different above-water hullform shape (greater bow flare, different and less-pronounced forward knuckle line compared to the Batch 1 ships, lack of the distinctive forward and aft bulwarks of the Batch 1 vessels). The class is also fitted with the Kelvin Hughes SharpEye integrated radar system for navigation, the Terma Scanter 4100 2D radar for air and surface surveillance,[8] and a BAE CMS-1 Combat Management System.
The HMS Tamar is powered by two diesel engines rated at 7,350kW each. The propulsion system also consists of two Wärtsilä propellers. The ship can reach 24 kn (44 km/h) with a maximum cruising range of 5,500 nmi (10,200 km). She has an endurance of 35 days with a crew of 34 people.
The HMS Tamar is armed with one DS30B 30mm Mark 44 Bushmaster automatic cannon, two General purpose 7.62mm caliber machine guns and two Miniguns. The ship has a flight deck at the aft to operate a Merlin helicopter.
