RFA Wave Ruler

RFA Wave Ruler

RFA Wave Ruler (1)

 

 

Previous name:                     Empire Evesham
Subsequent name:

Official Number:                     180849

Class:                                      WAVE CLASS  Replenishment  Oiler (modified)

Pennant No:                            X135 / A212

Laid down:                               27 October 1944 
Builder:                                     Furness Shipbuilding Company, Teeside
Launched:                               17 January 1946
Into Service:                             April 1946 
Out of service:                         1971 became a fuel hulk at RAF Gan, Indian Ocean.
Fate:                                          Sold December 1975 for breaking up

 

Items of historic interest involving this ship: -

 

Background Data:  A need for fast tankers to bring oil into the country had been envisaged early in the Second World War, but by the time the material had been collected and the Yards had space to build them, the need had largely passed and the original design of diesel-engined ships was abandoned. Instead, the standard 12000t Class being built were given sharper bows and sterns and turbine engines with water tube boilers. In all, 21 of this type were built and were offered to the Admiralty, who wanted faster tankers for the Pacific Fleet Train. The Admiralty took 20 of them ( the final vessel being completed commercially for Oil and Molasses Tankers Ltd, London as BEECHWOOD) and renamed them with the WAVE nomenclature. Performance varied considerably from ship to ship and they underwent various modifications in their rigs for RAS work. The 8 best ones were finally given an extensive refit, with extra accommodation added to the Bridge Deck and extra turbo cargo pumps and derricks to make them more satisfactory for Fleet work. Initially expensive to run, they recouped some of their expensive repair bills by earning revenues from charter work after the Korean War. From this Class was evolved the TIDE CLASS oilers.

17 January 1946 Launched by Furness Shipbuilding Co Ltd, Haverton Hill as Yard Nr 373 named EMPIRE EVESHAM for the MoWT

February 1946 taken over by the Admiralty

April 1946 Completed and placed under initial management of Eagle Oil and Shipping Co Ltd, London

24 February 1947 Captain Arthur J D Gosney RFA appointed as Master and Mr R A Higgie RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

27 February 1947 acquired by the Admiralty

7 March 1947 renamed Wave Ruler (1) under Admiralty management

 

RFA Wave Ruler's 1948 Christmas Card - from the Captain Charles Noel RFA collection

 

February 1949 Captain E C Rogers RFA appointed as Master

9 June 1949 Captain H W Flint RFA appointed as Master

26 September 1949 Mr R B Burgh RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

17 September 1950 Captain W R Parker RFA appointed as Master

May 1951 the Master refused to enter the port of Cairns, Australia due to insufficient water under the keel. The Harbour Board purchased a dreger to deepen the depth of the channel.

27 July 1951 berthed at Malta from the Persian Gulf with a full load of oil to discharge

18 October 1951 Mr I M Macfarlane RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

3 April 1952 Firemen from Greenock, Paisley and Glasgow were called to a fire on Wave Ruler while anchored at Greenock. Crew not needed on board took to the life boats. Three of the Indian crew were injured and were taken to hospital.  The ship was fully laden with fuel from the Persian Gulf. The fire occurred in the pumproom forward of the bridge. The fire was brought under control after two hours by the Fire Service

5 April 1952 berthed at Finnart Wharf to discharge. Berthed under tow of four tugs as the fire (above) had damaged the steering gear.

21 June 1952 berthed at Sydney, NSW to discharge from Aruba

2 July 1952 sailed Sydney, NSW for Kuwait

26 August 1952 Mr D Meikle RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

3 October 1952 Supported Operation Hurricane 1 - the first British test atomic bomb explosion at Monte Bello Islands off NW Australia  - along with RFA’s FORT  BEAUHARNOIS, FORT CONSTANTINE, FORT ROSALIE(1), GOLD RANGER, WAVE PRINCE and WAVE SOVEREIGN

21 April 1953 Captain J Bottomley RFA appointed as Master

18 September 1953 disabled off Oporto, Portugal while enroute with a cargo of oil from the Persian Gulf to Swansea having lost all steam. Tugs HMS Careful and RFA Saucy sent from Plymouth.

28 September 1953 ran aground off Swansea, South Wales.

1 October 1953 RFA Wave Monarch went alongside and removed Wave Ruler's cargo when she had run aground off Swansea.

3 October 1953 refloated off the sandbank off Swansea and entered Swansea docks for examination and repairs.

29 October 1953 Mr Ronald C Putt RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

 

Chief Engineer Officer Ronald C Putt RFA

1 September 1954 Mr K U Rapley RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

27 January 1955 Captain Herbert  A Shacklock RFA appointed as Master

13 July 1955 at Swansea Secunny Sk Samsoodeen s/o Mohedeen discharged dead - natural causes - heart attack

1 November 1956 Captain J L Mack DSO RFA appointed as Master

11 December 1956 Mr J A Swallow RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

22 December 1956 sailed Rosyth for Operation Grapple

1 December 1957 arrived Christmas Island for Operation Grapple

1957 - 1960 Supported Operation Grapple - the British H-bomb test at Christmas Island in the Pacific Ocean - along with 16 other RFA’s

 

January 1958 Captain Donald B C Ralph OBE DSC RFA appointed as Master

30 September 1958 deployed in support of RN units off Iceland during 1st Cod War until 6 November 1958

6 December 1958 Mr Ken Robinson RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

2 January 1959 Captain F G Evans RFA appointed as Master

13 January 1959 sailed the Tyne for Rosyth - arrived the next day

7 February 1959 deployed in support of RN units off Iceland during 1st Cod War until 19 February 1959

14 April 1959 deployed in support of RN units off Iceland during 1st Cod War until the end of the month

1 June 1959 deployed in support of RN units off Iceland during 1st Cod War until 23 June 1959

5 August 1959 deployed in support of RN units off Iceland during 1st Cod War until 23 August 1959

5 October 1959 deployed in support of RN units off Iceland during 1st Cod War until 18 October 1959

4 December 1959  Captain W H G Hine RFA appointed as Master

7 December 1959 Mr J A MacPherson RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

22 January 1960 deployed in support of RN units off Iceland during 1st Cod War until 8 February 1960

28 April 1960 deployed in support of RN units off Iceland during 1st Cod War until 22 May 1960

13 June 1960 deployed in support of RN units off Iceland during 1st Cod War until 4 July 1960

14 July 1960 Captain J Coule RFA appointed as Master

15 July 1960 while berthed at Leith, Scotland all crew members other than Officers and PO’s walked ashore at 05:30 just before the ship was due to sail to Rosyth. The ship was shortly to deploy off Iceland in support of HM Ships on Fishery Protection duty.

25 July 1960 deployed in support of RN units off Iceland during 1st Cod War until 14 August 1960

18 September 1960 arrived at Tail of the Bank. Two crew members went ashore despite having leave for the entire crew barred by the Master. Both appeared before Greenock Sheriff's Court accused of disobeying the lawful command of the Master in breach of the Merchant Shipping Act 1864. One was fined £20 and the other £15 with four weeks to pay or 30 days imprisonment

27 September 1960 deployed in support of RN units off Iceland during 1st Cod War until 24 October 1960

October/November 1960 at Henry Robb, Leith for boiler clean

28 November 1960 deployed in support of RN units off Iceland during 1st Cod War until 15 December 1960

December 1960 entered refit at Palmer's Yard Heburn on Tyne after breaking down while off Iceland on Fishery protection duty supporting RN units

23 April 1961 while on passage from Devonport to Freetown, Sierra Leone RASed with HMS Bermuda

16 May 1961 Mr S P Awati RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

July 1961 Saw service during the Kuwait Crisis along with 12 other RFA’s

6 December 1961 Commodore Thomas Elder DSC RFA appointed as Master until 17 January 1962

6 June 1962 Captain Chales E C Phipps RFA appointed as Master

7 June 1962 Mr B C Jeremiah RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

21 August 1962 an RAF launch with a RAF doctor deployed from Singapore to a seriously ill officer on board some 40 miles out in the Indian Ocean from Singapore. They returned and landed at Butterworth 6½ hours later with the officer who was conveyed by road to the British Military Hospital at Taiping.

10 September 1962 with RFA Wave Master, RFA Fort Dunvegan together with RN, RAN and RAAF units took part in Exercise Tucker Box Two in the Coral Sea

15 November 1962 with RFA Wave Sovereign, RFA Fort Charlotte and several RN units headed by HMS Tiger attended the Commonwealth Games at Perth Western Australia - ships of the RAN and RNZN were also present.

21 November 1962 received and responded to a SOS from US research vessel 'Horizon' in the Indian Ocean near St. Paul Island who had a critically ill member of the crew on board.

30 April 1963 Mr J Ross RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

July 1963 Supported the carrier HMS VICTORIOUS on her U.K. - Far East passage along with RFA’s RELIANT(2), RESURGENT and TIDESPRING

21 September 1963 Captain Basil V Dobbie RFA appointed as Master

21 April 1964 Mr L Cochrane RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

7 September 1964 Captain A M M Telfer RFA appointed as Master

10 February 1965 arrived Malta under escort of RFA Bustler after her engines broke down off Port Said and she was forced to sail at very slow speed to Grand Harbour for repair.

26 July 1965 Mr C D Reid RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

28 October 1965 Captain Donald G M Averill RFA appointed as Master

15 July 1966 Captain A L Paterson RFA appointed as Master

24 August 1966 Mr J R Speed RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

22 March 1967 Captain Alan W Stanley RFA appointed as Master

21 April 1967 Mr C E Prentis RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

July 1967 one of the last Royal Naval ships to be refitted at Malta.

12 May 1968 Mr B Nolan RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

16 May 1968 Captain Archibald Proudlock RFA appointed as Master

26 August 1970 Sailed Devonport for Gan in the Maldive Islands to replace RFA WAVE VICTOR as  a fuelling hulk for military aircraft there.

3 October 1970 arrived Gan

14 October 1970 her Colours were lowered for the last time

18 and 21 October 1975 offered for sale lying 'as is' at Gan in the Straits Times of this day.

11 November 1975 services no longer required after the closure of the fuelling base; remaining fuel stocks were transferred to RFA TIDESURGE

January 1976 sold to Straits Engineers Contracting Private Ltd., Singapore for demolition.

March 1976 Sailed Gan in tow

29 December 1976 reported to be laid up in Singapore Roads off Johore Shoal in very poor condition

1977 Broken up at Kaohsiung.

 

 

RFA Wave Ruler (2)

 

 

 

 

 

Previous name:
Subsequent name:

Class:                                      WAVE CLASS  Fast Fleet Tanker

Official No:                               9168609

Pennant No:                            A390

Laid down:                              22 May 1998
Builder:                                    BAE Systems, Govan, Scotland
Launched:                               9 February 2001
Into Service:                            27 April 2003
Out of service:
Fate:

 

Items of historic interest involving this ship: -

 

Background Data:  In June 1995 approval was given to invite tenders for the construction of 2 new Auxiliary Oilers to replace the ageing OL Class tankers. The full Invitation to Tender was issued the following year and the £200 million contracts were placed in March 1997. The ships were built in 12 modular sections which were then joined together. In the case of  WAVE KNIGHT (2), the cargo tankage was built at Harland and Wolff in Belfast, the 1000 tonne stern block was built at Cammell Laird in Newcastle and transported by sea around to Barrow while the funnel came from Appledore Shipbuilders in North Devon.  WAVE RULER (2) was constructed almost entirely at Govan, although she had originally been ordered from Barrow too, but with some of the steel work coming from Barrow. Both ships were double hulled and were fitted with extensive aviation facilities. Cargo capacity was 16000 cubic metres, including 3000 cubic metres aviation fuel, 380 cubic metres fresh water and 500 cubic metres of dry cargo. They could also accommodate up to 8 plug-in ISO 20 foot refrigerated containers.

 

September 1995  approval given to invite tenders.

10 October 1995  draft Invitation to tender issued.

2 February 1996   the Invitation to Tender was announced.

26 June 1996  full Invitation to Tender issued.

12 March 1997 ordered.

November 1999   original launch date.

October 2000 original completion date to replace RFA OLNA (3)

9 February 2001 launched  by  BAe Systems Marine at the Yarrows Shipbuilders complex at Govan  as Yard  Number 0321 named WAVE RULER (2). The Lady Sponsor was Ms Elaine Dumelow wife of Geoffrey Hoon, Secretary of State for Defence

10 May 2002 was towed from Govan Basin to the Inchgreen Dry Dock at Greenock.

June 2002 while being fitting out at Greenock's Inchgreen Dock an accident occured when a contractor's employee was hit by a door of a locker on deck six . The locker was under pressure test when the door blew open. The contractor has hurled across a deck into scaffolding and received head cuts and a suspected fracture to his sternum. On 20 June 2003 BAE Systems were fined £5,000 at the local Sheriffs Court for breach of the Health & Safety legislation which they admitted.

30 October 2002 completed

31 October 2002 handed over at Govan

December 2002 original in-service date

11 January 2003 conducted First of Class Flying Trials for Merlin and Lynx during which time she steamed 6402 miles

27 April 2003 entered RFA service

24 March 2004 sailed Portland to assume APT(N) duties

7 September 2004 to 16 September 2004 Hurricane Ivan hit the Islands of Grenada and Cayman Islands with at least 10 deaths. Wave Ruler and HMS Richmond attended to provide humanitarian assistance

November 2004 seized 1.8 tonnes of cocaine in the Caribbean with an estimated value of £72 million

January 2005 seized 1.8 tonnes of cocaine in the Caribbean with an estimated value of £72 million

January 2005 seized 1.7 tonnes of cocaine in the Caribbean with an estimated value of £68 million

February 2005 seized 0.93 tonnes of cocaine in the Caribbean with an estimated value of £37 million

28 June 2005 was present at the International Fleet Review in the Solent for Trafalgar 200 along with  RFA’s ARGUS, FORT GEORGE, FORT VICTORIA, ORANGELEAF,(3), SIR  BEDIVERE, SIR GALAHAD (2) and SIR TRISTRAM.

July 2005 seized an assessed 3.0 tonnes of cocaine in the Caribbean (jettisoned by smugglers) with an estimated value of £120 million

6th/7th March 2006 with Stromness Life Boat and with HMS Edinburgh and other ships searched and area to the west of Hoy Sound after red flares had been reported. Nothing found and the search was called off.

10 September 2006 seized 2.5 tonnes of cocaine in the Caribbean with an estimated value of £100 million

October 2006 seized 2.789 tonnes of cocaine in the Caribbean with an estimated value of £112 million

November 2006 seized 4.0 tonnes of cocaine in the Caribbean with an estimated value of £`60 million

November 2006 seized 2.4 tonnes of cocaine in the Caribbean with an estimated value of £82 million

1 November 2006 to 4 November 2006 acted as Host Ship at the Silver Jubilee Independence Day of Antigua and Barbuda.

2 November 2006 received the first visit by the Commodore-in-Chief RFA Service, HRH Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex.

29 November 2006 while operating  north east of Barbados with an embarked Lynx helicopter and a USCG Law Enforcement Detachment successfully seized 2.9 tonnes of cocaine, with a street value of £300 million, from the Venezuelan registered fishing boat mv OLIANA 1. The crew were detained on WAVE RULER and a prize crew were placed  aboard the fishing boat until it was handed over to the Venezuelan Coast Guard.

2007 was awarded the RFA Centenary Wedgewood Bowl 2006

3 February 2007 with RFA Wave Knight, HMS Portland, two Sea King rescue helicopters from Chivenor in north Devon and Culdrose in Cornwall, and Salcombe and Torbay lifeboats involved in the rescue of four members of the crew of a yacht which overturned in the English Channel seven miles of Prawle Point on the south Devon coast. One other member of the crew was drowned.

22 August 2007 provided humanitarian assistance to to the remote village of Xaibe in Belize after it had been hit by Hurricane Dean with the HMS Portland

20 November 2007 arrived Merseyside for dry docking

9 February 2008 visited Little Cayman after Hurricane Gustav struck the island

1 September 2008 with HMS Iron Duke stood by the Cayman Islands after Hurricane Gustav to provide assistance

3 October 2008 visited Havana, Cuba for a 5 day visit.

10 October 2008 visited Cayman Brac after Hurricane Paloma had hit the island. First Officer (E) Paul Davis, Petty Officer John Swift, First Officer (SE) John Evans, and Cadet (E) Luke Gibson - worked at the airport Monday fixing the fuel farm so that jets could refuel on the Brac 

1 February 2009 Captain (E) E M Quigley RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer

14 March 2009 Captain Shaun Jones RFA appointed as Commanding Officer until 21 July 2009

29 June 2009 at the Maldives

26 August 2009 Captain Shaun Jones RFA appointed as Commanding Officer until 23 April 2010

28 August 2009 alongside at Portland

1 September 2009 at St Peter Port, Gurnsey

9 October 2009 in Plymouth Sound

January 2010 RFA's Argus, Lyme Bay, Wave Knight and Wave Ruler together with RN units have been honoured by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) for their work to repress piracy off the coast of Somalia and in the Gulf of Aden at the 26th Session of the IMO

15 March 2010 with HMS York and RAF Sea King helicopter from 1564 Search & Rescue (SAR) Flight from the Falkland Islands involved in the recovery of a trawler's crew member who required urgent medical assistance some 300 miles South East. The crew member was collected and flown directly to Port Stanley's hospital

25 March 2010 arrived at Cumberland Bay East, South Georgia

9 April 2010 at Port Stanley, Falkland Islands

17 May 2010 sailed Falkland Islands to take up position of APT(N)

29 May 2010 to 2 June 2010 visited Santos, Brazil

8 July 2010 sailed Norfolk, Virginia after a 3 week assisted maintenance period

16 August 2010 at Grand Cayman collecting shelter kits for up to 2,000 families from the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID) disaster relief stores from the Cayman Islands’ Red Cross managed warehouse

18 to 21 September 2010 visited Tortola, British Virgin Islands on a Regional Engagement visit

20 September 2010 torrential rain hit the British Virgin islands causing major flooding to some areas of the Virgin Islands, blocking roads and causing some businesses and homes to suffer serious damage. The storm, a lingering product of Hurricane Igor, brought 3.6 inches of rain. Crew members from the Wave Ruler landed and assisted  alongside fire local officials to clear and sanitise the Purcell area of Tortolla.

11 October 2010 refuelled USS FFG52 Carr

31 October 2010 Captain Shaun Jones RFA appointed as Commanding Officer until 22 May 2011

4 November 2010 after Hurricane Tomas hit the Island of St Lucia deployed to Castries (the Islands Capital) to supply 160 tons of fresh water and 32,000 water purification tablets 

30 November 2010 anchored off  Jackson Point, off South Sound, Grand Cayman for an R & R visit and to stock up on its disaster relief stores held by the Cayman Islands Red Cross on behalf of Department for International Development (DFID) emergency response items

23 December 2010 entered Fort Lauderdale, USA

3 March 2011 visited Bermuda for R & R to sail on Sunday 6 March 2011

3 April 2011 arrived at and berthed at Castries, Saint Lucia

16 June 2011 visited Grand Turk on a Regional Engagement visit - sailed 20 June 2011

26 June 2011 during a visit to Road Town, Tortola, British Virgin Islands two members of the crew were robbed at gun point by a lone gunman. The BVI Police are investigating the offence

22 July 2011 anchored off George Town, Grand Cayman - the crew met with government officials and representatives of key industries to assess local capabilities and ensure communication and disaster relief plans were in place for the upcoming hurricane season.

23 August 2011 sailed Curacao for the Turks & Caicos Islands which had been a victim to Hurricane Irene

25 August 2011 arrived off Grand Turk and delivered  stores and equipment, including tarpaulins, for further distribution throughout the islands. Damage on the islands included flooding and minor structural damage,  with hurricane winds of 90mph (145km/h) having blowing down power lines and roofs. The embarked Lynx helicopter, from 815 NAS, conducted an aerial survey with the islands' Deputy Governor on board to assess damage to outlying islands and settlements.

23 September 2011 berthed alongside at Fort de France (Martinique - FWI

11 October 2011 RASed USS Car (FFG52)

31 October 2011 to 4 November 2011 visit to Antigua to participate in Independence celebrations.

12 December 2011 returned to Portland Harbour, Dorset after her 21 month deployment in the North Atlantic and the Caribbean

23 December 2011 arrived Cammell Laird, Birkenhead

3 May 2012 alongside at Glen Mallen, Loch Long - sailed at 15.00hrs

5 May 2012 arrived at Portland at 07.00hrs

13 May 2012 sailed Portland

14 May 2012 arrived Plymouth Sound and sailed the same day

17 May 2012 off the Dorset Coast assisted with searching for a missing fishing vessel 'Isle of Purbeck' together with the Coast Guard, RNLI vessels HMS York and USNS 2nd Lt John P Bobo (T-AK 3008) together with other fishing vessels

 

 

Notes:

 

In the Spring of 2001 it emerged that BAe Systems  had placed an unsolicited bid with the MoD to build a further 2 WAVE CLASS tankers at significant cost savings in comparison with the first 2 but the MoD declined to accept the bid.