The Bouchard-class minesweepers were a class of nine minesweepers, designed and built in Argentina, in service with the Argentine Navy from 1937 to the late 1960s. One of the class was lost after running aground in the Straits of Magellan and the remaining eight were discarded. Three were transferred to the Paraguayan Navy and remained in service as of late 1990s. In Paraguayan service, they were used for river patrol work. One of the class was docked in Asunción, Peru in 2009 with the intention of converting the vessel to a museum ship
The Bouchard-class minesweepers were the first large warships built in Argentina. They were intended to complement and eventually replace the Argentine Bathurst-class ships purchased from Germany after World War I. They were designed in the early 1930s and laid down in 1935–1937.[1]
The Bouchard class was based on the Bathurst-class design, with diesel engines instead of steam engines and larger calibre (99 mm Bethlehem-Vickers) main armament. However, these ships had poor stability, which eventually led to the loss of Fournier in 1949.[1]
The minesweepers were 59.00 m (193 ft 7 in) long overall and 49.99 m (164 ft 0 in) between perpendiculars with a beam of 7.30 m (23 ft 11 in) and a draught of 2.27 m (7 ft 5 in). The Bouchard class had a standard displacement of 450 long tons (457 t) and 520 long tons (528 t) at full load. They were powered by 2-cycle MAN diesel engines turning two shafts rated at 2,000 brake horsepower (1,500 kW). They had capacity for 50 long tons (51 t) of fuel oil, a maximum speed of 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph) and had a range of 3,000 nautical miles (5,600 km; 3,500 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph).[2][3][n 1]
The ships were armed with two single-mounted 99 mm (3.9 in)/47 calibre guns.[n 2] For anti-aircraft defence, the minesweepers were equipped with one twin 40 mm (1.6 in) mount. They also carried two 7.65 mm (0.301 in) machine guns and were initially equipped with two depth charges.[2][4] The Bouchard class had a complement of 62.[3]
The Bouchard class were all given names of famous Argentine naval commanders.[2] They were commissioned by the Argentine Navy in the late 1930s and remained in service until the late 1960s. The ships in the class were used in exercises with the main fleet, and very frequently assigned to the Patagonian seas where conditions are very rough. The stability problem of this design was worsened in those seas, which eventually led to the loss of Fournier with all hands during a storm in the Straits of Magellan on 22 September 1949.[1][2]Fournier had struck an uncharted rock at the entrance to the San Gabriel Channel.[3]
Three ships were transferred to the Paraguayan Navy after being decommissioned by Argentina, and remained in service as of the late 1990s. The three ships included Bouchard and Seaver, and Py[n 3] with Bouchard being renamed Nanawa and commissioned into the Paraguayan Navy on 14 March 1964. Seaver became Capitan Meza and commissioned on 6 May 1968. Py became Teniente Farina and commissioned on 6 May 1968.[n 4] In Paraguayan service they were used as river patrol craft and could carry naval mines. Their armament was modified to just one quad 40 mm mount and the two machine guns.[5][6]Teniente Farina was berthed at Asunción in 2009 with the intention of converting the vessel to a museum ship.[7]
^Chesneau has the maximum speed listed as 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph).
^The 47 calibre denotes the length of the gun. This means that the length of the gun barrel is 47 times the bore diameter.
^Some sources erroneously claim it was Parker that was the third ship.
^Nanawa sported the pennant numbers M 1 then P 01, Capitan Meza sported the pennant numbers M 2 then P 02 and Teniente Farina sported the pennant numbers M 3, then P 03.
Citationsedit
^ abc"Rastreadores" [Minesweepers]. Histarmar - Historia y Arqueología Marítima (in Spanish). Argentina: Fundación Histarmar. Retrieved 2016-12-03.
Blackman, Raymond V. B., ed. (1953). Jane's Fighting Ships 1953–54. London: Sampson, Low and Marston. OCLC 913556389.
Chesneau, Roger, ed. (1980). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946. Greenwich, UK: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN0-85177-146-7.
Gardiner, Robert; Chumbley, Stephen & Budzbon, Przemysław, eds. (1995). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1947–1995. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN1-55750-132-7.
McMurtrie, Francis E., ed. (1943) [1942]. Jane's Fighting Ships 1942. London: Sampson Low, Marston & Co. OCLC 28197961.
Sharpe, Richard, ed. (1990). Jane's Fighting Ships 1990–91 (93 ed.). Surrey, United Kingdom: Jane's Information Group. ISBN0-7106-0904-3.
Further readingedit
Arguindeguy, Pablo (1972). Apuntes sobre los buques de la Armada Argentina (1810-1970) (in Spanish). Buenos Aires, Argentina: Comando en Jefe de la Armada.
Burzio, Humberto (1960). Armada Nacional (in Spanish). Secretaria de Estado de Marina.
Piccirilli, Ricardo; Gianello, Leoncio (1963). Biografías navales (in Spanish). Buenos Aires: Secretaría de Estado de Marina.
External linksedit
Media related to Bouchard class minesweepers at Wikimedia Commons
April 09, 2024
bouchard, class, minesweeper, were, class, nine, minesweepers, designed, built, argentina, service, with, argentine, navy, from, 1937, late, 1960s, class, lost, after, running, aground, straits, magellan, remaining, eight, were, discarded, three, were, transfe. The Bouchard class minesweepers were a class of nine minesweepers designed and built in Argentina in service with the Argentine Navy from 1937 to the late 1960s One of the class was lost after running aground in the Straits of Magellan and the remaining eight were discarded Three were transferred to the Paraguayan Navy and remained in service as of late 1990s In Paraguayan service they were used for river patrol work One of the class was docked in Asuncion Peru in 2009 with the intention of converting the vessel to a museum shipARA Bouchard M 7 circa late 1930sClass overviewNameBouchard classBuildersAFNE Rio SantiagoOperators Argentine Navy Paraguayan NavyIn commission1930s 1990sCompleted9Lost1Scrapped7Preserved1General characteristicsTypeMinesweeperDisplacement450 long tons 457 t standard 520 long tons 528 t full load Length59 00 m 193 ft 7 in oaBeam7 30 m 23 ft 11 in Draught2 27 m 7 ft 5 in Propulsion2 shafts 2 MAN 2 cycle diesel engines 2 000 bhp 1 500 kW Speed15 knots 28 km h 17 mph Range3 000 nautical miles 5 600 km 3 500 mi at 10 knots 19 km h 12 mph Endurance50 long tons 51 t fuel oilComplement62Armament2 single 99 mm 3 9 in guns 1 twin 40 mm 1 6 in AA guns 2 7 65 mm 0 301 in machine guns Contents 1 Design and description 2 Ships in class 3 Service history 4 See also 5 Footnotes 6 Citations 7 Bibliography 8 Further reading 9 External linksDesign and description editThe Bouchard class minesweepers were the first large warships built in Argentina They were intended to complement and eventually replace the Argentine Bathurst class ships purchased from Germany after World War I They were designed in the early 1930s and laid down in 1935 1937 1 The Bouchard class was based on the Bathurst class design with diesel engines instead of steam engines and larger calibre 99 mm Bethlehem Vickers main armament However these ships had poor stability which eventually led to the loss of Fournier in 1949 1 The minesweepers were 59 00 m 193 ft 7 in long overall and 49 99 m 164 ft 0 in between perpendiculars with a beam of 7 30 m 23 ft 11 in and a draught of 2 27 m 7 ft 5 in The Bouchard class had a standard displacement of 450 long tons 457 t and 520 long tons 528 t at full load They were powered by 2 cycle MAN diesel engines turning two shafts rated at 2 000 brake horsepower 1 500 kW They had capacity for 50 long tons 51 t of fuel oil a maximum speed of 15 knots 28 km h 17 mph and had a range of 3 000 nautical miles 5 600 km 3 500 mi at 10 knots 19 km h 12 mph 2 3 n 1 The ships were armed with two single mounted 99 mm 3 9 in 47 calibre guns n 2 For anti aircraft defence the minesweepers were equipped with one twin 40 mm 1 6 in mount They also carried two 7 65 mm 0 301 in machine guns and were initially equipped with two depth charges 2 4 The Bouchard class had a complement of 62 3 Ships in class editBouchard class minesweepers 2 3 4 5 Ship name Pennant number Builder Launched Service entry FateARA Bouchard M 7 Rio Santiago Naval Yard 20 March 1936 27 January 1937 Transferred to Paraguay February 1964 and renamed Nanawa ARA Drummond M 2 19 June 1936 1937 Discarded 28 March 1964ARA Granville M 4 27 January 1937 1937 Discarded 19 December 1967ARA Parker M 11 Sanchez Shipyard San Fernando 2 May 1937 1937 Discarded 23 July 1963ARA Spiro M 13 Rio Santiago Naval Yard 7 June 1937 1938 Discarded 14 March 1962ARA Robinson M 3 Hansen y Puccini San Fernando 18 August 1938 1939 Discarded 19 December 1967ARA Seaver M 12 18 August 1938 20 May 1939 Discarded 20 November 1967 transferred to Paraguayan Navy and renamed Capitan Meza ARA Py aka Comodoro Py M 10 Rio Santiago Naval Yard 30 March 1938 1 July 1939 Discarded 20 November 1967 transferred to Paraguayan Navy and renamed Teniente Farina ARA Fournier M 5 Sanchez Shipyard San Fernando 1939 1940 Ran aground and sank on 22 September 1949Service history editThe Bouchard class were all given names of famous Argentine naval commanders 2 They were commissioned by the Argentine Navy in the late 1930s and remained in service until the late 1960s The ships in the class were used in exercises with the main fleet and very frequently assigned to the Patagonian seas where conditions are very rough The stability problem of this design was worsened in those seas which eventually led to the loss of Fournier with all hands during a storm in the Straits of Magellan on 22 September 1949 1 2 Fournier had struck an uncharted rock at the entrance to the San Gabriel Channel 3 Three ships were transferred to the Paraguayan Navy after being decommissioned by Argentina and remained in service as of the late 1990s The three ships included Bouchard and Seaver and Py n 3 with Bouchard being renamed Nanawa and commissioned into the Paraguayan Navy on 14 March 1964 Seaver became Capitan Meza and commissioned on 6 May 1968 Py became Teniente Farina and commissioned on 6 May 1968 n 4 In Paraguayan service they were used as river patrol craft and could carry naval mines Their armament was modified to just one quad 40 mm mount and the two machine guns 5 6 Teniente Farina was berthed at Asuncion in 2009 with the intention of converting the vessel to a museum ship 7 See also editList of ships of the Argentine NavyFootnotes edit Chesneau has the maximum speed listed as 16 knots 30 km h 18 mph The 47 calibre denotes the length of the gun This means that the length of the gun barrel is 47 times the bore diameter Some sources erroneously claim it was Parker that was the third ship Nanawa sported the pennant numbers M 1 then P 01 Capitan Meza sported the pennant numbers M 2 then P 02 and Teniente Farina sported the pennant numbers M 3 then P 03 Citations edit a b c Rastreadores Minesweepers Histarmar Historia y Arqueologia Maritima in Spanish Argentina Fundacion Histarmar Retrieved 2016 12 03 a b c d e Blackman p 126 a b c d Chesneau p 421 a b McMurtrie p 115 a b Sharpe p 439 Gardiner Chumbley amp Budzbon p 302 Py 6110896 Miramar Ship Index Retrieved 17 November 2018 Bibliography editBlackman Raymond V B ed 1953 Jane s Fighting Ships 1953 54 London Sampson Low and Marston OCLC 913556389 Chesneau Roger ed 1980 Conway s All the World s Fighting Ships 1922 1946 Greenwich UK Conway Maritime Press ISBN 0 85177 146 7 Gardiner Robert Chumbley Stephen amp Budzbon Przemyslaw eds 1995 Conway s All the World s Fighting Ships 1947 1995 Annapolis Maryland Naval Institute Press ISBN 1 55750 132 7 McMurtrie Francis E ed 1943 1942 Jane s Fighting Ships 1942 London Sampson Low Marston amp Co OCLC 28197961 Sharpe Richard ed 1990 Jane s Fighting Ships 1990 91 93 ed Surrey United Kingdom Jane s Information Group ISBN 0 7106 0904 3 Further reading editArguindeguy Pablo 1972 Apuntes sobre los buques de la Armada Argentina 1810 1970 in Spanish Buenos Aires Argentina Comando en Jefe de la Armada Burzio Humberto 1960 Armada Nacional in Spanish Secretaria de Estado de Marina Piccirilli Ricardo Gianello Leoncio 1963 Biografias navales in Spanish Buenos Aires Secretaria de Estado de Marina External links edit nbsp Media related to Bouchard class minesweepers at Wikimedia Commons Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Bouchard class minesweeper amp oldid 1184357906, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
