''Dat Assawari'' was a

frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and ...

operated by the

Libyan Navy Libyan Navy ( ar, قوات البحرية الليبية) is the branch of the Libyan military responsible for naval warfare. Established in November 1962, Libyan Navy has been headed by Admiral Mansour Bader, Chief of Staff of the Libyan Naval F ...

. The ship was built by VT Group in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. It was ordered in February 1968 and delivered in 1973. The ship's design, the Vosper Mk 7 is a modified version of the built for the Iranian Navy. The ship had an extensive refit in Italy by CNR Riva Trigoso 1979–1980 when new sensors and missiles were installed. During the refit, the ship was mined by French commandos from SDECE. The vessel returned to service in 1983, but returned to Italy for repairs in 1984–1985 and 1989–1990. The frigate was reportedly scrapped in the late 1990s.

Design and description

''Dat Assawari'' was a modified version of the Vosper Thornycroft Mark 7 design, based on the s constructed for the Iranian Navy. It was larger and had different armament than the Iranian ships. As built, ''Dat Assawari'' had a standard displacement of and at full load. The frigate measured

long between perpendiculars Length between perpendiculars (often abbreviated as p/p, p.p., pp, LPP, LBP or Length BPP) is the length of a ship along the summer load line from the forward surface of the stem, or main bow perpendicular member, to the after surface of the ster ...

and overall with a

beam Beam may refer to: Streams of particles or energy *Light beam, or beam of light, a directional projection of light energy **Laser beam *Particle beam, a stream of charged or neutral particles **Charged particle beam, a spatially localized grou ...

of and a draught of . The vessel was powered by a combined diesel or gas system composed of two Rolls-Royce Marine Olympus gas turbines turning two shafts rated at , giving the frigate a maximum speed of and two Paxman Ventura 16Y JACM

diesel engine The diesel engine, named after Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which ignition of the fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to mechanical compression; thus, the diesel engine is a so-call ...

s rated at . ''Dat Assawari'' had a range of at . ''Dat Assawari'' was initially armed with a triple Seacat

surface-to-air missile A surface-to-air missile (SAM), also known as a ground-to-air missile (GTAM) or surface-to-air guided weapon (SAGW), is a missile designed to be launched from the ground to destroy aircraft or other missiles. It is one type of anti-aircraft syst ...

launcher, a Mk 8 gun, a pair of single Bofors L/70 guns, an Oerlikon GDM-A turret mounting twin Oerlikon guns, and a Mk.10 Limbo Anti-submarine mortar. The frigate's sensor suite comprised

Plessey The Plessey Company plc was a British electronics, defence and telecommunications company. It originated in 1917, growing and diversifying into electronics. It expanded after World War II by acquisition of companies and formed overseas compani ...

AWS-1 air-search

radar Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance (''ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, w ...

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label * Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label * Decca Studios, a recording facility in We ...

629 navigation radar, two

Contraves Rheinmetall Air Defence AG is a division of German armament manufacturer Rheinmetall, created when the company's Oerlikon Contraves unit was renamed on 1 January 2009 and integrated with Rheinmetall's other air-defence products. Oerlikon Contr ...

Sea Hunter fire-control radars and Types

162 Year 162 ( CLXII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. In the Roman Empire, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Rusticus and Plautius (or, less frequently, year 915 '' Ab ...

170 Year 170 ( CLXX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Clarus and Cornelius (or, less frequently, year 923 ''Ab urbe condita ...

and

174 Year 174 ( CLXXIV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Gallus and Flaccus (or, less frequently, year 927 '' Ab urbe condi ...

sonar Sonar (sound navigation and ranging or sonic navigation and ranging) is a technique that uses sound propagation (usually underwater, as in submarine navigation) to navigation, navigate, measure distances (ranging), communicate with or detect o ...

Modifications

During the 1979–1981 refit, ''Dat Assawari''s armament and sensors were both modified. The Limbo mortar was removed, its well plated over, and four single Mk I Otomat

anti-ship missile An anti-ship missile (AShM) is a guided missile that is designed for use against ships and large boats. Most anti-ship missiles are of the sea skimming variety, and many use a combination of inertial guidance and active radar homing. A good ...

s and two triple ASW

torpedo tube A torpedo tube is a cylindrical device for launching torpedoes. There are two main types of torpedo tube: underwater tubes fitted to submarines and some surface ships, and deck-mounted units (also referred to as torpedo launchers) installed aboa ...

s fitted in the space thus created. The Seacat launcher was replaced by a quadruple launcher for Aspide surface-to-air missiles. The complete sensor suite was replaced by

TM 1229 navigation radar, Selenia RAN-10S and RAN-12L/X air/surface search radars, two Italian fire-control radars, Thomson-CSF Diodon sonar and an Italian combat date information system were installed.

Construction and career

''Dat Assawari'' was ordered by Libya from Vosper Thornycroft in February 1968. The frigate was

laid down Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a ship's construction. It is often marked with a ceremony attended by dignitaries from the shipbuilding company and the ultimate owners of the ship. Keel laying is one o ...

on 27 September 1968 and launched on 13 October 1969. Following

sea trial A sea trial is the testing phase of a watercraft (including boats, ships, and submarines). It is also referred to as a " shakedown cruise" by many naval personnel. It is usually the last phase of construction and takes place on open water, and ...

s the ship performed work up training at

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...

, United Kingdom. The ship sailed for

Tripoli Tripoli or Tripolis may refer to: Cities and other geographic units Greece *Tripoli, Greece, the capital of Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (region of Arcadia), a district in ancient Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (Larisaia), an ancient Greek city in ...

in 1973 and was commissioned on 1 February 1973. In 1979, the frigate underwent modernisation at CNR

Riva Trigoso Riva may refer to: People * Riva (surname) * Riva Castleman (1930–2014), American art historian, art curator and author * Riva Ganguly Das (born 1961), Indian diplomat * Riva (footballer), Brazilian former footballer Rivadávio Alves Pereir ...

, Italy. On 29 October 1980, while undergoing modernisation, the vessel was rocked by an explosion. The vessel had been mined by swimmers from the French Service Action of SDECE.https://www.usni.org/magazines/naval-history-magazine/2022/october/operation-octopus-sabotage-dat-assawari Despite the setback, the vessel's modernisation was completed after sea trials in 1983. The following year, ''Dat Assawari'' returned to Italy to undergo engine repairs which were completed in 1985. By 1989, the vessel had returned to Italy again, in a partially disarmed and non-operational state.

Citations

Sources

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dat Assawari Ships built in Southampton 1969 ships Frigates of the Libyan Navy