NAVY NEWS FEBRUARY 1994
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Ships of the Royal Navy
No. 459 PARTY TIME A PARTY of ex-Valiants, most of whom had been in the crew when she first commissioned in 1966 or during that first commission, found "the ghosts soon started to appear" when they revisited the submarine as she lay alongside in Faslane. Among the party was exChief Mechanician Ernie Newton, who was literally first-of-crew in January 1963 (along with the late CERA Reg Samson) and is now secretary of the HM Submarine Valiant Association. Legacies of. a severe stroke six years ago meant his passage down the accommodation hatch wasn't the simple matter it once was for him, but many helpers "organised, assisted and otherwise persuaded" him down! The Valiant Decommissioning Dance will take place at the Glasgow Hilton on Friday, July 22. It is open to all ex-Valiant members and details can be obtained from the Decommissioning Officer, HMS Valiant, BFPO 417. Ex-Valiant officers, their wives and partners, are invited to attend a buffet supper on board HMS Victory on Friday, June 24. Applications for tickets (priced £30 to include supper and all drinks) should be addressed to the Commanding Officer, HMS Valiant, BFPO 417, with cheques made payable to "HMS Valiant Commemorative Evening."
Valiant to the finish
SHE MAY be decommissioning in the autumn, but HMS Valiant will remain busy right up to the moment of her going. A period of operational work-up followed her final refit, but details of her closing months' programme cannot be revealed for security reasons. In the period running up to the refit in Rosyth, the Valiant took part in a naval exercise and was the vessel used for the Submarine Command Qualifying Course, the "Perisher". The first all-British nuclearpowered s u b m a r i n e , HMS V a l i a n t was laid down at Vickers Ltd, Barrow-in-Furness in J u n e 1959, launched by Lady Thorneycroft in December 1963 and commissioned in July 1966. From commissioning until 1970 she was based at the Third Submarine Squadron in Faslane. In 1967 she completed a record-breaking submerged passage from Singapore to the UK in 25 days. During that first commission she also visited Mauritius, Hamburg, La Spezia, Gibraltar, the United States and the West Indies. In 1970 she began an extensive, pre-planned refit at HM Naval Base Chatham, which included a nuclear refuel. She was recommissioned in May 1972, the first of a new squadron of nuclear submarines to be based at Devonport.
Purification She travelled as far as the United States again in her second c o m m i s s i o n a n d t o w a r d s the end of 1976 docked down for essential defect repairs. Due to problems with feed water purification, this maintenance period was extended until June 1977. HMS Valiant took part in the Silver Jubilee Spithead Review prior to arriving to Chatham in November 1977 for her second, pre-planned major refit. Again this included a nuclear refuel, in which she was given a new, high-power nuclear core. POSTCARDS of Ships of the Royal Navy are obtainable at 65p each (minimum order £1.95) from Navy News, HMS Nelson, Portsmouth PO1 3HH. An order for 12 cards is priced at £7 and a standing order for the supply of each of 12 cards on publication can be arranged on receipt of F.10.50/ foreign £12. Prices include postage and packing, and postcards will be despatched on receipt of stamps, postal order or cheque. No postcards are stocked of ships which paid off before 1956.
On completion of this refit, the Valiant again joined the Third Submarine Squadron in Faslane. Her third commission took her from the north polar ice to the waters of the South Atlantic, and saw her, for the first time, at war, where the power of the nuclear submarine was demonstrated. Having completed her third refit, at Rosyth Royal Dockyard in 1989, HMS Valiant embarked on her fourth commission.
Pennant no: S102. Displacement, tons: 4,300 standard; 4,800 dived. Length: 285 feet. Beam: 33.2 ft. Draught: 27.5 ft. Main machinery: nuclear — Rolls Royce pressurised water reactor; 2 English Electric turbines, 15,000 hp (11.2 MW); 1 shaft; 2 diesel alternators; 2,200hp (1.64 MW); 1 motor for emergency drive; 1 auxiliary retractor prop. Complement: 130 (13 officers). Missiles: Sub-Harpoon surface-to-surface missiles; active radar homing to 130 km. Torpedoes: six 21 inch bow tubes, Marconi Tigerfish, wire-guided; 26 reloads. Mines: can be carried in place of torpedoes.
STALWART OVER THIRTY YEARS "FALKLAND Islands", a seventeenth battle honour, was won by the present HMS Valiant in 1982 and added to the impressive list garnered by previous ships of the name. The first two HM ships ment of Tripoli. During the Valiant were third rates, Crete operation in May she launched in 1759 at Chatham was damaged by a bomb, and and 1807 on the Thames rein December was damaged by spectively. The third ship of limpet mine at Alexandria. the name was an iron arJuly 1943 saw the Valiant moured ship of 6,710 tons, engaged on Operation Husky launched at Poplar in 1863. (Sicily). While two months Lady Jellicoe launched the she was involved in the fourth HMS Valiant in Novem- later Salerno landing. She also parber 1914. This 31,000 ton batt- ticipated in the bombardment leship, armed with eight 15 of the Japanese-occupied ininch guns, 12 six inch guns, stallations at Sabang, Sumatwo 13 pounder anti-aircraft tra, in July 1944. guns and four 21 inch torpedo The Valiant finished her tubes, was destined to distinguish herself in both world career as one of the four ships forming Imperieuse, wars. Built by Fairfield, Glasgow, Stokers' Training Ship at she commissioned for the Devonport. She was sold to Grand Fleet in 1916 and British Iron and Steel Corporaserved at the Battle of Jut- tion in March 1948, arriving at land. She was present at the Cairnryan for breaking up in surrender of the German Fleet the August. in 1918. Between the Wars she served mainly in the Mediterranean and Atlantic Fleets. She was engaged in Norway Belle He 1761 Havana II1762 operations in 1940, including Ushant 1781 The Saintes 1782 the bombardment of Narvik, First of June 1794 Groix Islater joining Force H (Gibralland 1795 Basque Roads 1809 tar) and taking part in the Jutland 1916 Norway 1940 bombardment of Oran. Mediterranean 1940-43 Malta The following year was Covoys 1941 Matapan 1941 Crete 1941 Sicily 1943 Saeventful for her — the bombardment of Bardia, the Battle lerno 1943 Sabang 1944 Falkof Matapan and the bombardland Islands 1982
Battle honours
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