RFA Pearleaf (A77)
Encyclopedia
RFA Pearleaf (A77) was a Leaf-class
Leaf class tanker
The Leaf class is a class of support tanker of the British Royal Fleet Auxiliary . The class is somewhat unusual as it is an amalgam of various civilian tankers chartered for naval auxiliary use and as such there have been many different designs of ship in this particular class...
support tanker
Tanker (ship)
A tanker is a ship designed to transport liquids in bulk. Major types of tankship include the oil tanker, the chemical tanker, and the liquefied natural gas carrier.-Background:...
of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary
Royal Fleet Auxiliary
The Royal Fleet Auxiliary is a civilian-manned fleet owned by the British Ministry of Defence. The RFA enables ships of the United Kingdom Royal Navy to maintain operations around the world. Its primary role is to supply the Royal Navy with fuel, ammunition and supplies, normally by replenishment...
of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. She was the second ship to bear the name.
Service history
Pearleaf and her sister-ship were originally built by Blythswood Shipbuilding Co. Ltd, in ScotstounScotstoun
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...
, Glasgow, for and owned by Jacobs & Partners Ltd, London. They were both taken over on completion by the Ministry of Defence
Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)
The Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
, on a 20 year bareboat charter
Bareboat charter
A bareboat charter is an arrangement for the chartering or hiring of a ship or boat, whereby no crew or provisions are included as part of the agreement; instead, the people who rent the vessel from the owner are responsible for taking care of such things....
.
Chartered in 1960, she served until 1986 and saw service during 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...
.
Pearleaf was returned to owners, and then sold to Petrostar Co. Ltd of Saudi Arabia. Renamed Nejmat el Petrol XIX, she served as a static fuel storage facility.
In 1993 she was sold to shipbreakers Nasir Trading Co. at Gadani Beach
Gadani Beach
Gadani Beach is a beach on the Arabian Sea located near the Hub River and Cape Monze in Gadani, Lasbela District, Balochistan, Pakistan.Gadani Beach is the location of Gadani ship-breaking yard, which is one of the world's largest ship-breaking yards....
, Pakistan, where demolition commenced on 8 March 1993.