HMS Apollo (F70) was a Batch 3B Broadbeam Leander-class

Leander class frigate

The Leander class, or Type 12I frigates, comprising twenty-six vessels, was among the most numerous and long-lived classes of frigate in the Royal Navy's modern history. The class was built in three batches between 1959 and 1973...

 frigate of the Royal Navy

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

 (RN). She was, like the rest of the class, named after a figure of mythology

Apollo

Apollo is one of the most important and complex of the Olympian deities in Greek and Roman mythology...

. Apollo was built by Yarrow Shipbuilders

Yarrow Shipbuilders

Yarrow Limited , often styled as simply Yarrows, was a major shipbuilding firm based in the Scotstoun district of Glasgow on the River Clyde...

 of Scotstoun

Scotstoun

Scotstoun is a historic district of Glasgow, Scotland, west of Glasgow City Centre. It is bounded by Yoker and Knightswood to the west, Victoria Park, Broomhill and Whiteinch to the east, Jordanhill to the north and the River Clyde to the south...

. She was launched on 15 October 1970 and commissioned on 28 May 1972 (the penultimate Leander).

Propulsion: 2 x steam turbines developing 30,000 HP providing a top speed of 28 Knots and a range of 4,000 miles at 15 Knots.

Dimensions: 2,500 tonnes (standard load)/2962 tonnes (full load) displacement; 372 ft length; 43 ft beam and 18 ft draught.

Both the Apollo and the Ariadne are easily distinguished from the other Leanders' by their 'witches hat' - fitted to the top of the foremast as a part of the electronic warfare array.

Apollo was fitted out as a general purpose frigate. Her armaments were: 2 x 4.5 inch (114mm) Vickers 45 Mk6 naval guns mounted in a single twin turret with MRS3/Plessey Type 904 gunnery control system; quadruple Seacat missile launcher platform with GWS22 guidance system; Mk10 anti-submarine triple barrel mortar tubes (auto-load, 92 kg warhead); Westland Wasp helicopter and two 20mm Oerlikon heavy machine guns.

She saw her first 'action' during the Second Cod War in 1973, during the fishing disputes with Iceland

Iceland

Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...

, when Apollo, while on a Fishery Protection Patrol, was rammed by the Icelandic gunboat V/s Ægir

V/s Ægir

ICGV Ægir is an Offshore Patrol vessel of the Icelandic Coast Guard built by Aalborg Værft a/s, in Denmark. She is the first ship of the Ægir class and is the sistership of the slightly improved ICGV Týr.She participated in the two last Cod Wars....

on 29 August 1973.

In January 1977 the UK extended its territorial waters from 12 miles to 200 miles to create an Exclusive Economic Zone for fishery rights. Apollo took turns with other frigates to police the North Sea pending the introduction into service of the Island Class fishery protection vessels. This short action was termed 'The Herring War'.

In 1977, Apollo took part in the last Fleet Review of the Royal Navy so far, in celebration of HM the Queen's

Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom

Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...

 Silver Jubilee. As Captain of the Second Frigate Squadron, Apollo was responsible for anchorages of all warships at the Royal Fleet Review. In recognition of this work, the admiralty awarded the ship four rather than two 1977 QEII Silver Jubilee Medals. Apollo was positioned in the middle of HM ships Hardy

HMS Hardy (F54)

HMS Hardy, Pennant number F54, was an anti-submarine warfare frigate of the Blackwood class or Type 14.She was named, as were the other HMS Hardys, after Thomas Masterman Hardy Captain of at Trafalgar....

 and Salisbury

HMS Salisbury (F32)

HMS Salisbury was a Salisbury-class or Type 61 aircraft direction frigate of the British Royal Navy. She was built at Devonport Dockyard, laid down 1 January 1952, launched 25 June 1953, and completed 27 February 1957....

.

Apollo was intended to be modernised, which would have included the removal of her one 4.5-in twin gun, which would have been replaced by the Exocet

Exocet

The Exocet is a French-built anti-ship missile whose various versions can be launched from surface vessels, submarines, helicopters and fixed wing aircraft. Hundreds were fired in combat during the 1980s.-Etymology:...

 anti-ship missile, but the modernisation was cancelled due to the 1981 Defence Review by the minister John Nott

John Nott

Sir John William Frederic Nott KCB is a former British Conservative Party politician prominent in the late 1970s and early 1980s...

. In July 1982, Apollo was sent to patrol the South Atlantic

Atlantic Ocean

The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...

 in the aftermath of the Falklands War

Falklands War

The Falklands War , also called the Falklands Conflict or Falklands Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the disputed Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands...

 and returned home in September. In late 1983, Apollo once again returned to the South Atlantic. On this occasion Apollo encountered heavy seas in the South Atlantic that damaged her hull.

In 1988, Apollo's Royal Navy career came to an end when she was decommissioned and subsequently sold to Pakistan

Pakistan

Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...

, being renamed PNS Zulfiqar. From 1991-93 she underwent a major refit - 20mm and seacat system replaced by twin 25mm mounts, Westland Wasp replaced by SA 319B Alouette III helicopter (standard PN helo). Zulfiqar continued in service for 18 years with the Pakistan Navy

Pakistan Navy

The Pakistan Navy is the naval warfare/service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. Pakistan's Navy is responsible for Pakistan's coastline along the Arabian Sea and the defense of important civilian harbors and military bases...

until 29 October 2006 when she was decommissioned into training (http://www.pakistantimes.net/2006/10/29/top6.htm).

On Friday 12 March 2010, Apollo was sunk as a target in the Arabian sea. Torpedoes and missiles were fired from a F-22P frigate, P3C aircraft and Agosta 90B submarine.( http://slide.mil.news.sina.com.cn/slide_8_240_3125.html#p=2 )

External links

• HMS Apollo Facebook group - http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=22720719674#!/group.php?v=wall&gid=22720719674