RFA Fort George

	RFA Fort George (A388)
History
United Kingdom
Name	RFA Fort George
Namesake	Fort George
Ordered	18 Dec 1987
Builder	Swan Hunter, Tyne and Wear, United Kingdom[1]
Yard number	129
Laid down	9 March 1989
Launched	1 March 1991
Completed	16 July 1993
Commissioned	16 July 1993
Decommissioned	June 2011
Identification	IMO number: 8800690; Callsign: GCOG; Pennant number: A388;
Fate	Scrapped January 2013
General characteristics
Class and type	Fort Victoria-class replenishment oiler
Displacement	32,300 long tons (32,818 t) full load
Length	203.9 m (669 ft 0 in)
Beam	30.3 m (99 ft 5 in)
Draught	9.7 m (31 ft 10 in)
Installed power	47,360 hp (35,320 kW)
Propulsion	2 × Oil engines, PC2 type
Speed	22 knots (41 km/h)
Complement	95 RFA; 15 RN; 24 RNSTS- Lately known as AFSUP (Afloat Support) Ratings / STO(N) (Supply Transport Ordnance (Navy) Officers; 154 RN Air Squadron personnel;
Armament	2 × Phalanx CIWS; 2 × GAM-BO1 20 mm guns;

RFA Fort George was a combined fleet stores ship and tanker of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, and one of two Fort Victoria-class replenishment oilers.

Fort George was ordered from Swan Hunter in late 1987. The ship was laid down in 1989, launched by the wife of the Commander-in-Chief Fleet Admiral Sir Jock Slater in 1991 and commissioned in 1993. Along with RFA Fort Victoria, the ship was equipped with two Phalanx CIWS point defence guns during a refit at Tyne in 1999.

Operational history

In March 2000, the ship was equipped with five Westland Sea King helicopters and sent to Mozambique to help with disaster relief work following devastating floods. In May she accompanied the aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious to Sierra Leone to support British operations to restore stability to that country. Late in the year, during a deployment in the Mediterranean, the ship helped passengers of the Greek ferry Express Samina which had run aground and sunk during a storm on 26 September.

In September 2009, Fort George, whilst working with the Type 23 frigate HMS Iron Duke, was involved in the largest ever drugs seizure to date by the Royal Navy, when 5.5 tonnes of cocaine were seized from a converted fishing vessel MV Cristal in the Atlantic Ocean off South America.[2][3]

Disposal

Under the Strategic Defence and Security Review of 2010, the ship was identified for withdrawal.[4] From March 2011 she was being stripped of stores and fittings in Liverpool, where she remained for two years. She left Liverpool on 16 January 2013 under tow destined for a Turkish ship breakers.[5] Her sister ship, RFA Fort Victoria, remains in service as of 2023.

References

"RFA Fort George (1993)". www.tynebuiltships.co.uk. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
Royal Navy "Drug Smugglers Hit By Royal Navy In Massive Cocaine Seizure". 28 September 2009.
"drug-smugglers-hit-by-royal-navy-in-massive-cocaine-seizure". www.royalnavy.mod.uk. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
"Britain details plans to decimate Royal Navy". www.defense-aerospace.com. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
"RFA Fort George". www.irishseashipping.com. Archived from the original on 13 July 2011. Retrieved 5 June 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)

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[1] "RFA Fort George (1993)". www.tynebuiltships.co.uk. Retrieved 5 June 2017.

[2] Royal Navy "Drug Smugglers Hit By Royal Navy In Massive Cocaine Seizure". 28 September 2009.

[3] "drug-smugglers-hit-by-royal-navy-in-massive-cocaine-seizure". www.royalnavy.mod.uk. Retrieved 5 June 2017.

[4] "Britain details plans to decimate Royal Navy". www.defense-aerospace.com. Retrieved 5 June 2017.

[5] "RFA Fort George". www.irishseashipping.com. Archived from the original on 13 July 2011. Retrieved 5 June 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)