ARA Hércules (B-52)
ARA Hércules after her conversion
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History | |
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Argentina | |
Name | Hércules |
Namesake | After a Guillermo Brown in 1814 |
Ordered | 18 May 1970 |
Builder | Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering |
Laid down | 16 June 1971 |
Launched | 24 October 1972 |
Acquired | 10 May 1976 |
Commissioned | 12 July 1976 |
Decommissioned | March 2024 |
Reclassified | 1999 |
Homeport | Puerto Belgrano Naval Base |
Identification | B-52 |
Status | Decommissioned |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Type 42 destroyer |
Displacement | 4,100 tons (4,170 t) |
Length | 125 m (410 ft) |
Beam | 14.6 m (48 ft) |
Draught | 5.2 m (17 ft) |
Propulsion |
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Speed | 28 knots (52 km/h) |
Complement |
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Armament |
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Aircraft carried |
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ARA Hércules was a former
amphibious force in 1999. She was formally decommissioned in 2024 after having been non-operational for several years.[1]
History
The ship was ordered on 18 May 1970 and completed on 10 May 1976 at the
Vickers Shipbuilding yard in Barrow-in-Furness, United Kingdom. During construction, an explosion on HMS Sheffield caused damage in the hull.[2] The hull of Hércules replaced a section of the ship, as both were identical in build.[3] She was delivered to Argentina and entered service on 19 September 1977. As built, Hércules was identical to the initial Type 42 units being commissioned by the Royal Navy. The Argentine Navy upgraded the warship by enhancing her offensive capabilities with MM-38 Exocet anti-ship missiles. The original boat decks by the funnel were modified in order to mount the launchers.[4][5]
In 1982, along with her newly built sister ship, Santísima Trinidad, Hércules was part of the escort of the aircraft carrier Veinticinco de Mayo during the Falklands War.[6]
The ship had a major conversion at
AM-39 Exocet anti-ship missiles.[7]
As of 2020, Hércules was reported to be non-operational.[8] She was formally decommissioned in 2024.
References
Notes
- ^ Videla Solá, Mariano Germán (22 March 2024). "After years without sailing, the Argentine Navy confirms the definitive decommissioning of the Multipurpose Fast Transport ARA "Hércules"". Zona Militar. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
- ^ "Commons debate - Royal Navy". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Parliament of the United Kingdom. 4 May 1971. Retrieved 20 June 2015.
- ^ "A Rip in Time for Sheffield". Navy News. Royal Navy. April 2007. p. 7. Retrieved 20 June 2015.
- ISBN 0-946378-31-2
- ^ Tecnología militar, Volume 26. Grupo Editorial Mönch, 2004, page 103 (in Spanish)
- ISBN 1-84753-950-5.
- ^ Transporte Multiproposito B52 ARA Hercules official site (in Spanish) Archived October 13, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "El retroceso operacional de la Armada Argentina en la últimas décadas". 3 August 2021.
Bibliography
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