RFA ''Sir Bedivere'' (L3004) was a Landing Ship Logistic of the Round Table class. She saw service in the

Falklands War The Falklands War () was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British Overseas Territories, British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and Falkland Islands Dependenci ...

, the

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf, sometimes called the Arabian Gulf, is a Mediterranean seas, mediterranean sea in West Asia. The body of water is an extension of the Arabian Sea and the larger Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.Un ...

and

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...

. In 2009, she was commissioned into the Brazilian Navy and renamed NDCC ''Almirante Saboia'' (G25), where she saw service in

Haiti Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, is a country on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of the Bahamas. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island, which it shares with the Dominican ...

Background

The ship was originally built for army service, and was taken over by the

Royal Fleet Auxiliary The Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) is a naval auxiliary fleet owned by the UK's Ministry of Defence. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service and provides logistical and operational support to the Royal Navy and Royal Marines. The RF ...

in 1970. Round Table class ships were exclusively crewed by Hong Kong Chinese sailors from their introduction in 1963 until 1989, when ''Sir Lancelot'' was the last RFA to be crewed in this way. She was commissioned in 1967 and saw extensive service in many of Britain's naval operations since. Her home port was

Marchwood Marchwood is a village and civil parish located in Hampshire, England. It lies between Totton and Hythe on the western shore of Southampton Water and directly east of the New Forest. The population of the village in the 2011 census was 6, ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

, which is a major military port.

Operational history

Falklands War

''Sir Bedivere'' first saw combat in the

of 1982, when along with all of the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

's other amphibious ships, she was sent to recapture the

Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; ), commonly referred to as The Falklands, is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and from Cape Dub ...

from an Argentine occupation force. At the start of the war, the ship was at

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

, Canada, but started back to Marchwood immediately. After loading at Marchwood, she left for

Ascension Island Ascension Island is an isolated volcanic island, 7°56′ south of the Equator in the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic Ocean. It is about from the coast of Africa and from the coast of South America. It is governed as part of the British Overs ...

where she picked up the sappers of 11 Field Squadron Royal Engineers. The ship suffered slight damage on 24 May whilst lying in

San Carlos Water San Carlos Water is a bay/fjord on the west coast of East Falkland, facing onto the Falkland Sound. Name Despite its Spanish language, Spanish-sounding name, there is a wide discrepancy with the Spanish usage, for in Spanish "Estrecho de San C ...

, when an Argentine Skyhawk dropped a bomb that glanced off the ship. The sappers disembarked for Port San Carlos on the evening of 25 May. On 16 November 1982, she returned from the Falklands with the bodies of 64 members of the British Forces (52 soldiers, 11 Royal Marines, and a Chinese laundryman) whose families had wanted their remains returned.

1983-2007

The ship deployed to the

in 1991 in support of Operation Granby. In 1994, the ship was modernised in a service life extension programme to give it an extra 15 years. The ship was lengthened by 12 metres, had its superstructure altered to a more modern design, the engines were replaced, and the ship's bow thrusters were changed for more powerful models. After returning to service in 1998, the ship was sent to

in 2000 when the U.K. intervened there. The ship operated as the command vessel for British and American mine countermeasures ships during

Operation Telic Operation Telic (Op TELIC) was the codename under which all of the United Kingdom's military operations in Iraq were conducted between the start of the invasion of Iraq on 19 March 2003 and the withdrawal of the last remaining British forces on ...

in 2003. ''Sir Bedivere'' left the U.K. in September 2002 for the Mediterranean and operation Argonaut in 2002.She was then diverted to the

accompanied by four British minesweepers. After minesweeping operations were complete, the vessel operated as a troop support ship for the

Royal Marines The Royal Marines provide the United Kingdom's amphibious warfare, amphibious special operations capable commando force, one of the :Fighting Arms of the Royal Navy, five fighting arms of the Royal Navy, a Company (military unit), company str ...

. The ship returned to the U.K. on 29 May 2003, carrying the boats and men of 539 Assault Squadron Royal Marines. In 2006, ''Sir Bedivere'' returned from Sierra Leone and its part in Operation Vela.

Decommissioning

Although originally intended to be used until 2011, ''Sir Bedivere'' was decommissioned on 18 February 2008.

Brazilian Navy

In December 2008, ''Sir Bedivere'' was sold to Brazil, joining her sister ship . ''Sir Bedivere'' was handed over to the Brazilian Navy on 21 May 2009, after a major refit by

A&P Group A&P Group Ltd is the largest ship repair and conversion company in the UK, with three shipyards located in Hebburn, Middlesbrough and Falmouth, Cornwall, Falmouth. The company undertakes a wide variety of maintenance and repair work on commerci ...

at the Company's ship repair facility in Falmouth,

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

. She was commissioned into service with the Brazilian Navy, and renamed ''Navio de Desembarque de Carros de Combate'' (Landing Ship, Tank) NDCC ''Almirante Saboia'' (G-25), after ''Almirante de esquadra'' Henrique Sabóia, minister of the Navy from 1985 to 1990 under the

José Sarney José Sarney de Araújo Costa (; born José Ribamar Ferreira de Araújo Costa; 24 April 1930) is a Brazilian politician, lawyer, and writer who served as the 31st president of Brazil from 1985 to 1990. He briefly served as the 20th vice presiden ...

administration. Admiral Saboia's widow and other members of the family were present at the handover ceremony.A&P Press Release June 2009 As ''Almirante Saboia'', she undertook several voyages between

Port-au-Prince Port-au-Prince ( ; ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Haiti, most populous city of Haiti. The city's population was estimated at 1,200,000 in 2022 with the metropolitan area estimated at a population of 2,618,894. The me ...

and

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

in support of

Brazilian Army The Brazilian Army (; EB) is the branch of the Brazilian Armed Forces responsible, externally, for defending the country in eminently terrestrial operations and, internally, for guaranteeing law, order and the constitutional branches, subordina ...

and

Marine Corps Marines (or naval infantry) are military personnel generally trained to operate on both land and sea, with a particular focus on amphibious warfare. Historically, the main tasks undertaken by marines have included raiding ashore (often in supp ...

troops in

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

service during

MINUSTAH The United Nations Stabilisation Mission in Haiti (), also known as MINUSTAH, an acronym of its French name, was a UN peacekeeping mission in Haiti from 2004 to 2017. It was composed of 2,366 military personnel and 2,533 police, supported by int ...

. In 12 January 2010, she joined the task force that took part in the Brazilian Navy's ASPIRANTEX yearly training exercise, which included the frigates

Niterói Niterói () is a List of municipalities in Rio de Janeiro, municipality in the state of Rio de Janeiro (state), Rio de Janeiro, in the Southeast Region, Brazil, southeast region of Brazil. It lies across Guanabara Bay, facing the city of Rio de ...

, Constituição and Independência, the tanker Almirante Gastão Motta, as well as the submarines Tupi and Tikuna, sailing under the command of ''Contra-Almirante'' César Sidonio Daiha Moreira de Souza. During the course of ASPIRANTEX 2010, Almirante Saboia visited the ports of Salvador, Recife, Cabedelo and Natal. However, she was requisitioned after the

earthquake An earthquakealso called a quake, tremor, or tembloris the shaking of the Earth's surface resulting from a sudden release of energy in the lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from those so weak they ...

, leaving Rio de Janeiro on 1 February with 700 tons of supplies, including both humanitarian aid as well as military supplies for the Brazilian MINUSTAH contingent. She arrived on 17 February, spending the next 30 days in the Caribbean country. She later took part in the Haiti XIV commission between 21 May and 2 August 2012, carrying 260 tons of Marine Corps and Army supplies to MINUSTAH, and returning to Rio with roughly 300 tons of damaged vehicles and equipment for maintenance.

Gallery

File:RFA Sir Bedivere, Portsmouth Naval Base, July 1989.jpg, RFA Sir Bedivere in

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

, 1989. File:Royal navy auxilliary and carrier, Portsmouth Naval Dockyard, July 1989.jpg, Sir Bedivere docked alongside a Royal Navy aircraft carrier in Portsmouth, 1989. File:G-25 NDCC Almirante Saboia (26657617855).jpg, NDCC Almirante Saboia unloads UN equipment in Port-au-Prince. File:Ajuda humanitária no Haiti - Navio de Desembarque de Carros de Combate Almirante Saboia (G25) (52319250391).jpg, A Brazilian Marine stands guard as NDCC Almirante Saboia docks in Port-au-Prince, 2013. File:Fragata União (F-45) 25264359247 c5083e7fa8 o (51966715583).jpg, Almirante Saboia sails alongside ''União'' during naval exercises, 2018.

Citations

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sir Bedivere (L3004) Bedivere (L3004) Round Table-class landing ships logistics of the Brazilian Navy 1966 ships Amphibious warfare vessels of Brazil Amphibious warfare vessels of the Brazilian Navy Falklands War naval ships of the United Kingdom Ships built on the River Tyne