_enters_a_port_in_September_1985_(6421615).jpg) HMSBrilliant enters a port during exercise Ocean Safari 1985 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | HMSBrilliant |
| Operator | Royal Navy |
| Builder | Yarrow Shipbuilders |
| Laid down | 25 March 1977 |
| Launched | 15 December 1978 |
| Commissioned | 15 May 1981 |
| Decommissioned | 1996 |
| Identification | Pennant number: F90 |
| Fate | Sold to Brazil 31 August 1996 |
 Brazil | |
| Name | Dodsworth |
| Operator | Brazilian Navy |
| Identification | Pennant number: F-47 |
| Fate | Scrapped |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Type 22 frigate |
| Displacement | 4,400 tons |
| Length | 131.2 m (430 ft) |
| Beam | 14.8 m (48 ft) |
| Draught | 6.1 m (20 ft) |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed |
|
| Complement | 222 |
| Armament |
|
| Aircraft carried | 2 ×Lynx MK 3S helicopters |
| Aviation facilities | 1 × double hangar with refuelling facilities |
HMSBrilliant was a Batch 1Type 22 frigate of theRoyal Navy. She was named under the original convention that all Type 22s would bear ‘B’ names following the ‘A’ names of theType 21 frigates; this policy was revised after the Falklands War to commemorate the destroyersSheffield andCoventry, both sunk during the War, while the yet‑to‑be‑laidBloodhound was renamedHMS London (F95).[1]
Conceived as a specialistanti‑submarine escort, she combined high speed with an advanced sonar suite and a flight deck forWestland Lynx helicopters.[2] Ordered in February 1976, laid down byYarrow Shipbuilders atScotstoun and launched in May 1978, her construction cost was ~£110 million.[3]
She was decommissioned from Royal Navy service in 1996, sold to theBrazilian Navy on 31 August 1996, where she was renamedDodsworth.[4]Dodsworth was sold for scrap and broken up atAliağa, Turkey, during July 2012.[5]
Brilliant took part in the only armed ship-to-ship engagement of the Falklands War, when she andHMS Yarmouth chased the Argentine coasterARAMonsunen, in theBattle of Seal Cove.
Brilliant was part of thetask force that took part in the Falklands War, withCaptain John Coward in command.[6] She sailed south with twoWE.177A nuclear depth charges on board, to avoid complications arising from theTreaty of Tlatelolco, these were transferred toRFA Fort Austin on 16 April 1982.[7][8]
Brilliant was assigned toOperation Paraquet, the effort to retake the island ofSouth Georgia. On 25 April at 08:55, the submarineSanta Fe was located byHMS AntrimsWessex helicopter and engaged withdepth charges. One charge bounced off the boat's deck and exploded alongside, rupturing the portballast tank and piercing an external fuel tank. Now unable to diveSanta Fe reversed course towards Grytviken.
Brilliant launched her Lynx, which dropped aMk 46 torpedo, but as the weapon was configured for a submerged submarine it passed underneath its target, the Lynx thenstrafed the submarine with its pintle-mounted7.62mm Machine Gun.
Wasp helicopters fromHMS Plymouth andHMS Endurance firedAS-12air-to-surface missiles, andSanta Fe retreated back to Grytviken and was abandoned.
During the afternoon of 12 May 1982, Brilliant (Type 22 frigate) escortedGlasgow (Type 42 destroyer) in a “Type 64” pairing, a tactic designed to lure Argentine aircraft within range ofGlasgow’sSea Dart andBrilliant’s short‑rangeSea Wolf defence system.[9]
At around 14:00, four A‑4B Skyhawks from FAAGrupo 5 attacked at low altitude.Glasgow’s Sea Dart failed, leavingBrilliant’s Sea Wolf as the sole operational defence.Brilliant fired three Sea Wolf missiles: two hit and destroyed aircraft C‑206 and C‑208, piloted by Lt Mario Nivoli and Lt Jorge Ibarlucea; a third missile caused Lt Oscar Bustos in C‑246 to crash whilejinking. All three were killed.[10] The fourth aircraft, C‑228, flown by Lt Alfredo Vázquez, evaded but later crash‑landed on return due to a salt‑crusted canopy.[10]
Minutes later, a second wave ofGrupo 5 Skyhawks attacked.Brilliant's Sea Wolf failed and a bomb from Skyhawk C-248, flown by Lt Fausto Gavazzi, passed throughGlasgows aft engine room without exploding, but disabling bothTyne cruising engines.[11] Damage control plugged the entry hole, but the exit hole was harder to reach and only patched. Limited to 10 knots,Glasgow returned to Portsmouth for repair.[11][12][13] Lt Gavazzi was killed byfriendly fire over Goose Green on the flight home.
| Aircraft | Pilot | Fate |
|---|---|---|
| C‑206 | Lt Mario Nivoli † | Shot down by Sea Wolf[10] |
| C‑208 | Lt Jorge Ibarlucea † | Shot down by Sea Wolf[10] |
| C‑246 | Lt Oscar Bustos † | Crashed evading a Sea Wolf missile[10] |
| C‑228 | Lt Alfredo Vázquez | Evaded missiles; crash-landed on returning to base[10] |
| C‑248 | Lt Fausto Gavazzi † | Shot down byArgentine anti-aircraft fire during return flight[10] |
During the Britishamphibious landings at San Carlos,Brilliant wasstrafed by anArgentine Air ForceMirage V "Dagger", one of four Daggers from Grupo 6 de Caza tasked with attacking British warships. As the formation approached, three of the aircraft were shot down bySea Harriers usingAIM-9L Sidewinder missiles.[10] The surviving aircraft pressed on and carried out a strafing run with its30 mm DEFA cannons, scoring several hits(image of the damage) One shell penetrated the wall of theOperations room, while splinters from others damaged the Sea Wolf launcher and several live missiles. The damaged Sea Wolf nose cone and hull plate are on display at theNational Museum of the Royal Navy, located in thePortsmouth Historic Dockyard section ofHMNB Portsmouth,Hampshire, England.
Brilliant joinedHMSYarmouth in thechase of the Argentinian supply ship ARAMonsunen.
Brilliant rescued 24 survivors from the burningSS Atlantic Conveyor, which had been hit by two ArgentineExocetanti-ship missiles.Brilliant, operating nearby, responded quickly, launching boats to recover crew from the water and providing medical support.[14]
In 1987 she became leader of the2nd Frigate Squadron. On 14 May 1989, the ship's helicopter, LynxXZ244, crashed nearMombasa, Kenya, while en route to the city's airport for a period of shore leave. A door had detached when opened inflight and collided with the tail rotor, resulting in the aircraft splitting in half and the death of all nine personnel on board.[15]
In October 1990 she saw the first members of theWomen's Royal Naval Service to serve officially on an operational warship.[16] In January 1991,Brilliant deployed to thePersian Gulf as part of theOperation Granby Task Force, in theFirst Gulf War.Brilliant starred in aBBC documentary series calledHMS Brilliant – In a Ship's Company by the journalistChris Terrill in 1994, while she was undertaking an operational tour off the coast of formerYugoslavia enforcing aUnited Nations arms embargo in the Adriatic sea.[17]
She was decommissioned from Royal Navy service in 1996 and sold to theBrazilian Navy on 31 August 1996 and renamedDodsworth.
F47Dodsworth was sold for scrap and broken up atAliağa, Turkey, during July 2012.[18]
The silhouette of HMSBrilliant is painted, with the date 21 May, on the side ofArgentine Air ForceIAI Finger serial number C-412. Also painted on C-412 is the silhouette ofHMSArrow and the date 1 May. These kill markings (without crossing) have to do with damage to both ships in the Falklands War, HMSArrow being slightly damaged by cannon fire 1 May 1982 and HMSBrilliant also being slightly damaged by cannon fire on 21 May. C-412's markings were painted soon after the war; they were seen during the November 2005 multi-national Exercise Ceibo in Argentina.
 Royal Navy | |
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 Brazilian Navy |
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 Chilean Navy |
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 Romanian Naval Forces |
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