SAS ''Protea'' is a

survey vessel A survey vessel is any type of ship or boat that is used for underwater surveys, usually to collect data for mapping or planning underwater construction or mineral extraction. It is a type of research vessel, and may be designed for the pu ...

of the

South African Navy The South African Navy (SA Navy) is the naval warfare branch of the South African National Defence Force. The Navy is primarily engaged in maintaining a conventional military deterrent, participating in counter-piracy operations, fishery prote ...

, part of the s built for the British

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 ...

. ''Protea'' was the fifth ''Hecla''-class vessel and was commissioned on 23 May 1972 As of 2023, ''Protea'' remains in service.

Role

''Protea'' is a specialist hydrographic

, although its equipment has been used in

search and rescue Search and rescue (SAR) is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger. The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, typically determined by the type of terrain the search ...

operations using ''Protea''s shallow water route survey system (SWRSS). She is the only ship in the South African Navy that is painted white, denoting that she is not a

warship A warship or combatant ship is a naval ship that is used for naval warfare. Usually they belong to the navy branch of the armed forces of a nation, though they have also been operated by individuals, cooperatives and corporations. As well as b ...

. Her

hull Hull may refer to: Structures * The hull of an armored fighting vehicle, housing the chassis * Fuselage, of an aircraft * Hull (botany), the outer covering of seeds * Hull (watercraft), the body or frame of a sea-going craft * Submarine hull Ma ...

is strengthened for navigation in ice and she is fitted with a transverse

bow thruster Manoeuvering thrusters (bow thrusters and stern thrusters) are transversal propulsion devices built into or mounted to either the Bow (watercraft), bow or stern (front or back, respectively) of a ship or boat to make it more manoeuvrable. Bow th ...

unit, for increased manoeuvrability in harbour.

History

''Protea'' was commissioned at

Scotstoun Scotstoun () is an area of Glasgow, Scotland, west of Glasgow City Centre. It is bounded by Garscadden and Yoker to the west, Victoria Park, Jordanhill and Whiteinch to the east, Jordanhill to the north and the River Clyde (and Braehead ...

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

and arrived in South Africa on 14 June 1972. In 1978 ''Protea'' took part in an international

krill Krill ''(Euphausiids)'' (: krill) are small and exclusively marine crustaceans of the order (biology), order Euphausiacea, found in all of the world's oceans. The name "krill" comes from the Norwegian language, Norwegian word ', meaning "small ...

research project, becoming the first South African Navy vessel to round

Cape Horn Cape Horn (, ) is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island. Although not the most southerly point of South America (which is Águila Islet), Cape Horn marks the nor ...

. She also acted as the guardship for the 1976 and 1979 Transatlantic Yacht races. In 1981 she was involved in Operation Kerslig, a clandestine operation to attack oil facilities in

Luanda Luanda ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Angola, largest city of Angola. It is Angola's primary port, and its major industrial, cultural and urban centre. Located on Angola's northern Atlantic coast, Luanda is Ang ...

, Angola. She remained active in the post-apartheid navy and as late as February 2023 was reported to be participating in joint South African-Russian-Chinese exercises which involved the frigate '' Admiral Gorshkov'' and tanker ''Kama'' from the Russian Navy along with the destroyer ''

Huainan Huainan () is a prefecture-level city with 3,033,528 inhabitants as of the 2020 census in north-central Anhui province, China. It is named for the Han-era Principality of Huainan. It borders the provincial capital of Hefei to the south, Lu' ...

'', the frigate ''

Rizhao Rizhao (), alternatively romanized as Jihchao, is a prefecture-level city in southeastern Shandong province, China. It is situated on the coastline along the Yellow Sea, and features a major seaport, the Port of Rizhao. It borders Qingdao to th ...

'' and the support ship '' Kekexilihu'' from the Chinese Navy, as well as other units from the South African Navy including the frigate ''Mendi''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Protea Hecla-class survey vessels Ships of the South African Navy Military units and formations in Cape Town 1971 ships

Role

History

See also

References