 NRPBérrio, 2007. | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | Blue Rover |
| Ordered | January 1968 |
| Builder | Swan Hunter |
| Yard number | 8 |
| Laid down | 30 December 1968 |
| Launched | 11 November 1969 |
| In service | 15 July 1970 |
| Out of service | 23 February 1993 |
| Identification |
|
| Honours & awards | Falkland Islands 1982 |
| Fate | Purchased by thePortuguese Navy and renamed NRPBérrio on 31 March 1993 |
| Badge |  |
 Portugal | |
| Name | NRPBérrio |
| Namesake | CaravelBérrio |
| Acquired | 31 March 1993 |
| Homeport | Lisbon Naval Base |
| Identification |
|
| Status | Decommissioned |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Rover-class tanker |
| Tonnage | |
| Displacement | 11,522 tons full load |
| Length | 461 ft 4 in (140.61 m) |
| Beam | 63 ft 2 in (19.25 m) |
| Draught | 24 ft 0 in (7.32 m) |
| Depth | 33 ft 6 in (10.21 m) |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | 18knots (33 km/h; 21 mph) |
| Range | 15,000 miles (24,000 km) at 15 knots (28 km/h) |
| Capacity |
|
| Complement |
|
| Sensors & processing systems |
|
| Electronic warfare & decoys |
|
| Armament |
|
| Aircraft carried | one flight spot for aSuper Lynx Mk.95 in Portuguese service andWestland Sea King in RFA service |
| Aviation facilities | Helicopter deck (no hangar) |
NRPBérrio (A5210) was a fleet support tanker of thePortuguese Navy. She was built bySwan Hunter in 1969 atHebburn, England asRFABlue Rover (A270) of theRover-class and from 1970 to 1993 was part of the BritishRoyal Fleet Auxiliary. In 1982 during her British service she participated in theFalklands War.[1]
In 1993, she was sold to the Portuguese Navy who renamed herBérrio. She participated in Operation Crocodile (Operação Crocodilo) in 1998, as part of the Portuguese naval task force that rescued foreign nationals caught up in the civil conflicts inGuinea-Bissau and then supported the mediators of theCPLP in the peace talks between the parties in the conflict.[1]
The vessel was decommissioned on 1 June 2020.[2]
RFABlue Rover, later NRPBérrio, was a single-hulledtanker of theRover-class, although not big enough to support a large task group, she was ideal for supporting individual warships or small groups on deployment.[3]
She was designed to carry a mixture offuel oil,aviation fuel,lubricating oil and afresh water supply; she could also carry 340 tonnes (330 long tons; 370 short tons) of limited dried stores, such as munitions and refrigerated goods.[3]
She was fitted with aflight deck large enough to accommodate two helicopters, although she had nohangar.[3]
The keel ofBlue Rover was laid at Swan Hunter's Hebburn yard on the River Tyne, England, on 30 December 1968, she was launched on 11 November 1969.[4] A fire in a fuel tank which was under construction was the cause of death of two plumbers, Lawrence Burdis (aged 24) and John Kinkaid (aged 21), on 9 March 1970. It took thirty firefighters two hours to extinguish it.[5] She commissioned on 15 July 1970. She was in service with the Royal Fleet Auxiliary from 1970 until 1993.[4]
One ofBlue Rover's early major deployments came in February 1971 when she supported theRoyal Yacht,HMYBritannia in thePacific Ocean. On 23 February she visited thePitcairn Islands in support of the visit ofPrince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh to the island.[5]
In August 1972Blue Rover was involved in "Project Stornoway".RAF Stornoway, on the Isle ofLewis, in theWestern Isles of Scotland, had fuelling tanks which required 1,500 tonnes (1,500 long tons; 1,700 short tons) ofAvtur in readiness for aNATOexercise. She was anchored offshore and delivered the fuel through a specially constructed 2.5 miles (4.0 km) long pipeline in a 22½ hour long operation.[5]
By March 1973 the refit to change unreliable original 16,000shpdiesel engines was completed, being replaced with two16-cylinderCrossley-Pielstick diesel engines.[4]
May 1973 sawBlue Rover deployed in support of Royal Navy units offIceland during theSecond Cod War until June, and then again during September and October. In December she again visited the Pitcairn Islands, in the Pacific, however, she had a fire in the engine room while again supporting the Royal Yacht. HMYBritannia towedBlue Rover toTahiti, the largest island of theWindward group, enabling temporary repairs prior to returning to the UK.[5]
She had a busy summer / autumn in 1978, initially she was open to the public during Portsmouth Navy Days over 26, 27 and 28 August and over 20,000 people came onboard during. The following month when the head cook signed off his replacement refused to sign on. The second cook took over, but then he threatened to leave uponBlue Rover's arrival atFaslane, on theGare Loch,Scotland. Then for the remainder of September she worked with the uniqueAmerican submarine NR-1, aUnited States Navy (USN) nuclear-powered ocean engineering and research submarine, in theIrish Sea.[5]
In November 1980, together with theLeaf-class support tankerRFA Brambleleaf, she deployed on theArmilla Patrol supporting theCounty-classdestroyerHMS Antrim and theLeander-classfrigateHMS Naiad.[5]
On 16 April 1982Blue Rover departedHMNB Portsmouth for theSouth Atlantic as an aviation fuel tanker duringOperation Corporate.[4] She arrived and then departed fromAscension Island on 26 April, entering theTotal Exclusion Zone (TEZ) around theFalkland Islands on 2 May. She joined with theTide-classreplenishment oilerRFA Tidespring and theLeaf-classreplenishment oilerRFA Appleleaf and this group was escorted by the County-class destroyer HMSAntrim and theRothesay-classfrigateHMS Plymouth on 4 May, before heading for the island ofSouth Georgia, around 1,400 kilometres (870 mi) east of the Falkland Islands, to act as the Station Tanker.[5]
On 18 November 1983, in Operation Offcut,Blue Rover was deployed offLebanon to assist British troops and civilians.[6] She was ordered to stand offBeirut to support the County-class destroyerHMS Glamorgan and theType 22 frigateHMS Brazen,[4] along with sister ship RFAGrey Rover, theLeaf-class support tankerRFA Brambleleaf and the helicopter support shipRFA Reliant.[5]
On 9 February 1993 she arrived atHMNB Devonport to remove supplies ready for her disposal. On 22 February she sailed forHMNB Portsmouth, arriving the following day. In March 1993 she was sold for £5.5m to the Portuguese Navy and on 31 March she was officially handed over, at Portsmouth.[5]
On 17 August 1984 RFABlue Rover received herFalklands Islands 1982Battle honour by Mr A. Kemp Director Ships and Fuel (DST (SF)).[7][8]
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