The ship was built as HMS Swallow with the yard number of 991 at the Aberdeen yard of Hall Russell. She was launched on 30 March 1984 and completed on 17 October 1984. In 1988 she was sold to the Republic of Ireland and renamed LÉ Ciara.[2]
Etymologyedit
In Irish service, the ship took her name from Saint Ciara, born in Tipperary in the 7th century who, after taking religious vows in her teens, founded a convent in Kilkeary, near Nenagh.[3] The ship's coat-of-arms depict three golden chalices which represent the three ancient dioceses among which Tipperary was divided. Also featured is a Celtic cross as a representation of the North Cross at Ahenny, County Tipperary. The coat of arms incorporates the Tipperary colours of Blue and Yellow as well as the background or field colours of the Tipperary Arms which is Ermine - white with a pattern of black arrowhead shaped points.
Weapons and equipmentedit
Command bridge and 76 mm gun of Ciara
The ship's principal armament is an OTO Melara 76 mm Compact gun. This has a 20-kilometre (12 mi) range and can fire 85 rounds per minute. It can be used in both anti-aircraft and anti-ship roles. It holds an 80-round magazine that can easily be reloaded by a two-man team.[4] There are also two single 20 mm Rh202 Rheinmetall cannons and two 12.7 mm machine guns.[3]
She is equipped with surveillance equipment and a fishery protection information system which is regularly updated via a satellite link to the Irish Naval Service base at Haulbowline Island near Cobh.
Ciara has a cruising speed of 25 knots (46 km/h; 29 mph) and a sprint speed of 30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph), making her the fastest ship in the Irish Navy;[5] the crew have nicknamed her "Road Runner" after the speedy cartoon character, which is portrayed on the funnel.[5]
Historyedit
Throughout her career, LÉ Ciara has been involved in fisheries protection patrols as well as search and rescue missions.[6][7]
In 2011, the vessel was temporarily taken out of service to address an issue with the hull,[8] and was again kept out of commission for several months in mid-2014 for removal of asbestos.[9]
On 8 July 2022, LÉ Ciara was decommissioned together with LÉ Orla and LÉ Eithne.[10]
Referencesedit
^"House of Commons Hansard Debates for 23 Oct 1989". publications.parliament.uk. Department of the Official Report (Hansard), House of Commons, Westminster. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
^ ab"Fleet - LÉ Ciara P42". military.ie. Irish Defence Forces. Retrieved 23 June 2019.
^(PDF). otomelara.it. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 January 2009.
^ ab. Irishseashipping.com. Archived from the original on 18 March 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
^"Sea search for crewman". The Irish Times. 6 March 2012. Retrieved 23 June 2019.
^"Navy's Night-Time Detention of Belgium Fishing Vessel". afloat.ie. Afloat Magazine. 3 August 2011. Retrieved 23 June 2019.
^"LE Ciara Returns to Sea after Hull Repairs". afloat.ie. Afloat Magazine. 19 December 2011. Retrieved 23 June 2019.
^"Asbestos found on board third naval vessel". Irish Examiner. 28 August 2014. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
^"Irish Navy decommissions a third of its fleet". irishtimes.com. Irish Times. 8 July 2022.
External linksedit
Wikimedia Commons has media related to IMO 8119326.
IDF LÉ Ciara webpage
April 25, 2024
ciara, swallow, p242, redirects, here, other, ships, with, same, name, swallow, peacock, class, patrol, vessel, irish, naval, service, like, rest, class, originally, designed, british, royal, navy, hong, kong, waters, delivered, 1984, hall, russell, company, s. HMS Swallow P242 redirects here For other ships with the same name see HMS Swallow LE Ciara P42 was a Peacock class patrol vessel in the Irish Naval Service Like the rest of her class she was originally designed for use by the British Royal Navy in Hong Kong waters and was delivered in 1984 by Hall Russell amp Company as HMS Swallow P242 1 The ship was passed to the Irish Naval Service in 1988 and was commissioned under her current name by the then Taoiseach Charles Haughey on 16 January 1989 She is the sister ship of Orla Ciara at Haulbowline in March 2008United Kingdom NameHMS Swallow BuilderHall Russell Yard number991 Launched30 March 1984 Completed17 October 1984 IdentificationPennant number P242 FateSold to Irish Naval Service 1988 Ireland NameLE Ciara NamesakeSaint Ciara Acquired1988 Commissioned16 January 1989 Decommissioned8 July 2022 HomeportHaulbowline Naval Base IdentificationIMO number 8119326 MMSI number 250104000 Callsign EIYT Hull number P42 Nickname s Road Runner StatusAwaiting disposal General characteristics TypePeacock class patrol vessel Displacement712 tonnes full load Length62 6 m 205 ft Beam10 m 33 ft Draught2 72 m 8 ft 11 in Propulsion2 diesels 2 shafts 10 600 kW 14 200 bhp Speed46 3 km h 25 0 kn cruising 55 6 km h 30 0 kn sprint Boats amp landing craft carriedX2 Avon 5 4 m 18 ft seariders Complement39 6 officers and 33 ratings Armament1 76 mm OTO Melara Cannon 2 Rh202 Rheinmetall 20 mm 2 12 7 mm GPMG ArmourBelted Steel Contents 1 Royal Navy service 2 Etymology 3 Weapons and equipment 4 History 5 References 6 External linksRoyal Navy service editThe ship was built as HMS Swallow with the yard number of 991 at the Aberdeen yard of Hall Russell She was launched on 30 March 1984 and completed on 17 October 1984 In 1988 she was sold to the Republic of Ireland and renamed LE Ciara 2 Etymology editIn Irish service the ship took her name from Saint Ciara born in Tipperary in the 7th century who after taking religious vows in her teens founded a convent in Kilkeary near Nenagh 3 The ship s coat of arms depict three golden chalices which represent the three ancient dioceses among which Tipperary was divided Also featured is a Celtic cross as a representation of the North Cross at Ahenny County Tipperary The coat of arms incorporates the Tipperary colours of Blue and Yellow as well as the background or field colours of the Tipperary Arms which is Ermine white with a pattern of black arrowhead shaped points Weapons and equipment edit nbsp Command bridge and 76 mm gun of Ciara The ship s principal armament is an OTO Melara 76 mm Compact gun This has a 20 kilometre 12 mi range and can fire 85 rounds per minute It can be used in both anti aircraft and anti ship roles It holds an 80 round magazine that can easily be reloaded by a two man team 4 There are also two single 20 mm Rh202 Rheinmetall cannons and two 12 7 mm machine guns 3 She is equipped with surveillance equipment and a fishery protection information system which is regularly updated via a satellite link to the Irish Naval Service base at Haulbowline Island near Cobh Ciara has a cruising speed of 25 knots 46 km h 29 mph and a sprint speed of 30 knots 56 km h 35 mph making her the fastest ship in the Irish Navy 5 the crew have nicknamed her Road Runner after the speedy cartoon character which is portrayed on the funnel 5 History editThroughout her career LE Ciara has been involved in fisheries protection patrols as well as search and rescue missions 6 7 In 2011 the vessel was temporarily taken out of service to address an issue with the hull 8 and was again kept out of commission for several months in mid 2014 for removal of asbestos 9 On 8 July 2022 LE Ciara was decommissioned together with LE Orla and LE Eithne 10 References edit House of Commons Hansard Debates for 23 Oct 1989 publications parliament uk Department of the Official Report Hansard House of Commons Westminster Retrieved 2 November 2015 Swallow 6127593 Miramar Ship Index Retrieved 18 June 2020 a b Fleet LE Ciara P42 military ie Irish Defence Forces Retrieved 23 June 2019 OTO Melara 76 62 C PDF otomelara it Archived from the original PDF on 17 January 2009 a b J H L PHOTOGRAPHY John H Luxton Photography Irishseashipping com Archived from the original on 18 March 2008 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint unfit URL link Sea search for crewman The Irish Times 6 March 2012 Retrieved 23 June 2019 Navy s Night Time Detention of Belgium Fishing Vessel afloat ie Afloat Magazine 3 August 2011 Retrieved 23 June 2019 LE Ciara Returns to Sea after Hull Repairs afloat ie Afloat Magazine 19 December 2011 Retrieved 23 June 2019 Asbestos found on board third naval vessel Irish Examiner 28 August 2014 Retrieved 2 November 2015 Irish Navy decommissions a third of its fleet irishtimes com Irish Times 8 July 2022 External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to IMO 8119326 IDF LE Ciara webpage Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title LE Ciara amp oldid 1217609562, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
