View source for RFA Sir Tristram

{{Short description|Round Table-class landing ship logistics of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2020}}
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|Ship image=RFA Sir Tristram & MV Dan Lifter late 1982.JPG
|Ship caption= ''Sir Tristram'' being carried home by the [[heavy lift ship]] {{MV|Dan Lifter}} in 1983
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{{Infobox ship career
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|Ship country=United Kingdom
|Ship flag=[[File:British-Royal-Fleet-Auxiliary-Ensign.svg|60px|Royal Fleet Auxiliary ensign]]
|Ship name=''Sir Tristram''
|Ship namesake=[[Tristan]]
|Ship ordered=
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|Ship builder= [[Hawthorn Leslie]]
|Ship laid down=February 1966
|Ship launched= 12 December 1966
|Ship completed=
|Ship commissioned= 14 September 1967
|Ship decommissioned= 16 December 2005
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|Ship identification={{IMO Number|6704373}}
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|Ship status=[[Training ship]]
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{{Infobox ship characteristics
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|Ship class= {{sclass2|Round Table|landing ship logistics}}
|Ship displacement= {{Convert|6407|t|LT|0|lk=out|abbr=on}}
|Ship length= {{Convert|135.8|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
|Ship beam= {{Convert|17.1|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
|Ship draught= {{Convert|3.9|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
|Ship propulsion=*2 × 10-cylinder four-stroke turbo-charged [[MAN Diesel#British acquisitions|Mirrlees National]] ALSSDM10 diesel engines
*{{Convert|9400|hp|abbr=on}}, {{cvt|400|hp}} [[bow thruster]]
|Ship speed= {{Convert|16|kn|lk=in}}
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|Ship complement=51
|Ship armament=*4 × [[Oerlikon 20 mm cannon]]
*4 × 7.62 mm [[machine gun]]s
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|Ship aircraft=One spot for [[Westland Sea King]] or [[Westland Lynx]] aft, one spot for [[Boeing Chinook (UK variants)|Boeing Chinook]], Sea King or Lynx on main vehicle deck
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'''TV ''Sir Tristram'' (L3505)''' formerly '''RFA ''Sir Tristram''''', is a {{sclass2|Round Table|landing ship logistics}} that was converted to a Special Forces Training Vessel in 2008.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.historicalrfa.org/rfa-sir-tristram-ships-details | title=RFA Sir Tristram }}</ref> She was launched in 1966, and accepted into [[British Army]] service in 1967. As with others of her class, she was transferred to the [[Royal Fleet Auxiliary]] in 1970, and was crewed by British officers and [[British Hong Kong|Hong Kong]] Chinese sailors.<ref>{{cite book|last=Puddefoot|first=Geoff|title= Ready For Anything: The Royal Fleet Auxiliary 1905-1950 pp. 69-70|year=2010|publisher=Seaforth Publishing|isbn=978-1-848-32074-1}}</ref> The ship saw service in the [[Falklands War]] of 1982, and was badly damaged at [[Fitzroy, Falkland Islands|Fitzroy]] on 8 June.
==Early service==
From completion to early 1970 ''Sir Tristram'' was managed by [[British India Steam Navigation Company]]. In January 1972 ''Sir Tristram'' was part of an anti-invasion task force off [[British Honduras]], together with {{HMS|Fearless|L10|6}}, {{ship|RFA|Sir Bedivere|L3004|6}} and {{ship|RFA|Sir Geraint|L3027|6}}. In 1977 ''Sir Tristram'' was used as a guest ship for the [[Silver Jubilee of Elizabeth II|Queens Silver Jubilee]] [[Fleet review|Fleet Review]] at Spithead in the [[Solent]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://ships.toysoutofthepram.com/html/rfa_sir_tristram_l3505.html |title=RFA Sir Tristram |access-date=2011-09-27 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111007204505/http://ships.toysoutofthepram.com/html/rfa_sir_tristram_l3505.html |archive-date=7 October 2011 | website=Unofficial Royal Fleet Auxiliary Site: Toys Out Of The Pram}}</ref>
===Falklands War===
{{further|Bluff Cove air attacks}}
In April 1982 ''Sir Tristram'' was diverted from [[Belize]] to the Falkland Islands to take part in Operation Corporate, the British effort to retake the Falkland Islands.
On 8 June, while transporting men and equipment to Fitzroy Cove alongside the {{Ship|RFA|Sir Galahad|1966|2}}, ''Sir Tristram'' was attacked by [[Douglas A-4 Skyhawk]]s of the [[Argentine Air Force]]'s V ''Brigada Aérea'' (''FAA''), each loaded with three {{cvt|500|lb}} [[Mark 82 bomb]]s.<ref>Moro, Rubén Oscar (1985). ''La guerra inaudita: historia del conflicto del Atlántico Sur''. Pleamar, p. 462. {{ISBN|9505830432}}. {{in lang|es}}</ref> At approximately 14:00 local time the decks were strafed and two crew were killed. A 500&nbsp;lb bomb penetrated the deck, but failed to explode immediately, allowing the remaining crew to be evacuated. Following the later explosion, ''Sir Tristram'' was abandoned. Immediately following the end of the conflict, ''Sir Tristram'' was towed to [[Stanley, Falkland Islands|Port Stanley]], where she was used as an [[Barracks ship|accommodation ship]].<ref name="historicalrfa.org">{{Cite web|url=http://www.historicalrfa.org/rfa-sir-tristram-ships-details|title = RFA Sir Tristram}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tNR7AAAAMAAJ&q=tristram+Royal+Artillery+accommodation|title=5th Infantry Brigade in the Falklands 1982|first1=Nicholas Van der|last1=Bijl|first2=David|last2=Aldea|date=29 April 2019|publisher=Leo Cooper|isbn=9780850529487}}</ref> ''Sir Tristram'' then returned to the United Kingdom in 1983 on a heavy lift ship and was extensively rebuilt.<ref name="historicalrfa.org"/>
== Rebuilt==
[[File:RFA Sir Tristram (L3505) (28685493662).jpg|thumb|''Sir Tristram'', 2016]]
Following the rebuild, ''Sir Tristram'' re-entered active service in 1985, and saw service in the [[Gulf War]], and the [[Yugoslav Wars|Balkan conflicts]] of the 1990s. The ship supported relief operations for [[Hurricane Mitch]] off Central America. In 2000 the ship was deployed to [[Sierra Leone]] in support of British operations there, followed by a cruise to the [[Baltic Sea]] in support of [[mine countermeasure vessel]]s. In early 2001 ''Sir Tristram'' returned to Sierra Leone to take over from {{ship|RFA|Sir Percivale|L3036|6}} as the ship supporting British forces ashore there. In 2003 the ship was deployed as part of the largest British fleet for 20 years in support of the [[2003 invasion of Iraq|invasion of Iraq]].
The ship was decommissioned on 17 December 2005 but continues to be used for training purposes by the [[Special Boat Service]] and other elements of the [[United Kingdom Special Forces|UK Special Forces]] group. She is now based at [[Portland Harbour]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ap-group.co.uk/projects/ex-rfa-sir-tristram/|title=Ex RFA Sir Tristram|publisher=A&P Group|access-date=12 August 2011|quote=In 2006 it was decided to regenerate the ex LSL Sir Tristram for a new role as a special forces training platform to replace the aged Rame Head and relocate the facility from Portsmouth Harbour to Portland in Dorset under a project name of Project Newman.|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111005165252/http://www.ap-group.co.uk/projects/ex-rfa-sir-tristram/|archive-date=5 October 2011}}</ref>
==References==
{{reflist}}
==External links==
{{commons}}
{{Round Table class landing ship logistics}}
{{Falklands War British ships}}
{{1982 shipwrecks}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sir Tristram (L3505)}}
[[Category:Round Table-class landing ships logistics]]<!-- indexed this way since all begin with "Sir" -->
[[Category:1966 ships]]
[[Category:Falklands War naval ships of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in 1982]]
[[Category:Ships built on the River Tyne]]