EML ''Ugandi'' is a commissioned by the
Estonian Navy
The Estonian Navy ( et, Merevägi) are the unified naval forces among the Estonian Defence Forces.
With only six commissioned ships and displacement well under 10,000 tonnes, the Estonian navy is one of the smallest navies in the world. Its sh ...
in 2009. ''Ugandi'' is a former British
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by Kingdom of England, English and Kingdom of Scotland, Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were foug ...
vessel built by Woolston Yard of
Southampton
Southampton () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire, S ...
-based shipbuilders
Vosper Thornycroft
VT Group is a privately held United States defense and services company, with its origins in a former British shipbuilding group, previously known as Vosper Thornycroft. The British part of VT Group was integrated into Babcock International in t ...
.
The ship is the third and final ''Sandown''-class vessel to join the naval force after its mine countermeasures vessel modernization programme.
She is named after an ancient Estonian county
Ugandi
Ugandi (Latin: ''Ungannia'' or ''Ugaunia''; lv, Ugaunija; Low German: ''Uggn'') was an independent county between the east coast of Lake Võrtsjärv and west coast of Lake Pskov, bordered by Vaiga, Mõhu, Nurmekund, Sakala, Tālava, and T ...
, between the east coast of Lake
Võrtsjärv
Lake Võrtsjärv (; german: Wirzsee) is a lake in southern Estonia with an area of 270 km² (104 mi²).
It is the second largest lake in Estonia (behind Lake Peipus), and the largest lake situated entirely within Estonia. The shall ...
and west coast of
Lake Pskov
Lake Peipus ( et, Peipsi-Pihkva järv; russian: Чудско-Псковское озеро, Псковско-Чудское озеро, Chudsko-Pskovskoye ozero, Pskovsko-Chudskoye ozero); is the largest trans-boundary lake in Europe, lying on ...
, bordered by
Vaiga
Vaiga was a small landlocked ancient Estonian county in the eastern part of the territory of Estonia. It territory now belongs to the eastern part of Jõgeva County.
See also
*Livonian Crusade
The Livonian crusade refers to the various mil ...
,
Mõhu
Mõhu was a small landlocked ancient Estonian county in the central part of the territory of Estonia. It was later conquered by the Teutonic Order during the Estonian Crusade.
See also
*Livonian Crusade
The Livonian crusade refers to the ...
,
Nurmekund
Nurmekund (Low German: ''Nurmegunde'') was a small independent country (ancient Estonian county) on the north coast of Lake Võrtsjärv in Central Estonia, bordered by Sakala, Alempois, Järvamaa, Mõhu, and Ugandi. Nurmekund had an area of ap ...
,
Sakala,
Latgale
Latgale ( ltg, Latgola; ; ger, Lettgallen; be, Латгалія, Łathalija; pl, Łatgalia; la, Lettgallia), also known as Latgalia is one of the Historical Latvian Lands. It is the easternmost region and is north of the Daugava River. While ...
, and
Pskov.
History
''Bridport'' was built by Woolston Yard of Southampton-based shipbuilders
Vosper Thornycroft
VT Group is a privately held United States defense and services company, with its origins in a former British shipbuilding group, previously known as Vosper Thornycroft. The British part of VT Group was integrated into Babcock International in t ...
as one of the 12 ship class of ''Sandown''-class minehunters.
In July 2004, the UK
Ministry of Defence
{{unsourced, date=February 2021
A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in state ...
announced that as part of the restructuring of the Navy, the two oldest and one other ''Sandown''-class minehunters would be retired by April 2005. ''Bridport'' was decommissioned and was then laid up awaiting a buyer or disposal. In September 2006,
Estonia
Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and t ...
signed a contract to acquire the three vessels.
The former HMS ''Bridport'' was modernized and overhauled in Bay 1 of the
Syncrolift
__NOTOC__
Syncrolift AS is a supplier of ship-handling equipment for shipyards. It manufactures the Syncrolift shiplift.
Shiplift
The Syncrolift shiplift is a piece of equipment for lifting boats, ships and vessels onto land and back at se ...
at
Rosyth
Rosyth ( gd, Ros Fhìobh, "headland of Fife") is a town on the Firth of Forth, south of the centre of Dunfermline. According to the census of 2011, the town has a population of 13,440.
The new town was founded as a Garden city-style subur ...
. The project was started ahead of schedule to deconflict the programme. On 22 January 2009, the Estonian Navy flag was hoisted on the ship and she was named ENS ''Ugandi'' during a ceremony at
Rosyth Dockyard
Rosyth Dockyard is a large naval dockyard on the Firth of Forth at Rosyth, Fife, Scotland, owned by Babcock Marine, which formerly undertook refitting of Royal Navy surface vessels and submarines. Before its privatisation in the 1990s it was ...
. It reached Estonia on 24 February 2009, the Estonian Independence Day, under the command of
Lieutenant Senior Grade Marek Mardo. Since 28 October 2012, the ship carries the coat of arms of
Otepää
Otepää (formerly Nuustaku) is a town in Valga County, southern Estonia, it is the administrative centre of Otepää Parish. Otepää is a popular skiing resort, popularly known as the "winter capital" of Estonia (in contrast to the "summer c ...
.
Between 2012-2013, the ship had three of its Perkins CV8 generators replaced with SDMO V300 generators. On 30 August 2013, Lieutenant Senior Grade Marek Mardo became the commander of the ship, replacing
Lieutenant Commander
Lieutenant commander (also hyphenated lieutenant-commander and abbreviated Lt Cdr, LtCdr. or LCDR) is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander. The corresponding rank i ...
Villu Klesmann, who had been its commander since 2009. On 17 December 2018, Lieutenant Senior Grade Martin Aeltermann replaced
Lieutenant Junior Grade
Lieutenant junior grade is a junior commissioned officer rank used in a number of navies.
United States
Lieutenant (junior grade), commonly abbreviated as LTJG or, historically, Lt. (j.g.) (as well as variants of both abbreviations), i ...
Jaanus Pulk-Piatkowski as commander of the ship. The ship would go through a modernization programme the following year.
Characteristics
The vessel carries clearance divers and Remote Control Mine Disposal Systems. Unlike the previous , the vessel was built from
glass reinforced plastic
Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass cloth ...
to reduce her magnetic signature. Other parts of the ship were constructed from non-ferrous metals for a similar reason. They are propelled by
Voith Schneider Propeller
The Voith Schneider Propeller (VSP) is a specialized marine propulsion system (MPS) manufactured by the Voith Group based on a cyclorotor design. It is highly maneuverable, being able to change the direction of its thrust almost instantaneously. ...
s and are very maneuverable due to two bow thrusters which gives an advantage when working with mines.
She differs from the previous two ''Sandown''-class vessels delivered to the Estonian Navy, as she has been fitted with a
ZU-23-2
The ZU-23-2, also known as ZU-23, is a Soviet towed 23×152mm anti-aircraft twin-barreled autocannon. ZU stands for ''Zenitnaya Ustanovka'' (Russian: Зенитная Установка) – anti-aircraft mount. The GRAU index is 2A13.
Develop ...
twin mount, 23mm cannon system
and a Klein 5000 sidescan sonar.
[
The ship's motto is in ]Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...
: ''Semper Ante'' - which in English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national id ...
means: "Always In Front". The coat of arms was designed by Priit Herodes
Priit Herodes (born 14 January 1948) is an Estonian heraldist.
From 2000 to 2006, Herodes was the chairman of the Estonian Heritage Society and is currently a member of their board.
He has designed numerous hues and flags, including the emblems ...
.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ugandi (M315)
Sandown-class minehunters of the Estonian Navy
Ships built in Southampton
1992 ships
Estonian Mineships Division
Minehunters of Estonia