BRP Rizal (PS-74)

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Career (United States of America)
BRP Rizal (PS-74)
Name:	USS Murrelet (AM-372)
Builder:	Savannah Machine and Foundry Co., Savannah, GA
Laid down:	24 August 1944
Launched:	29 December 1944
Commissioned:	24 August 1945
Decommissioned:	14 March 1957
Struck:	1 December 1964
Fate:	Transferred to Philippine Navy in 1965, in active service as of 2008.
Badge:
Career (Philippines)
Name:	BRP Rizal (PS-74)
Namesake:	Dr. Jose Rizal (1861 – 1896) was a Filipino polymath, nationalist and the most prominent advocate for reforms in the Philippines during the Spanish colonial era. The national hero of the Philippines.
Operator:	Philippine Navy
Commissioned:	18 June 1965
Fate:	In service with the Philippine Navy
General characteristics
Class and type:	Rizal class
Type:	Patrol Corvette
Displacement:	890 tons standard, 1,250 tons full load
Length:	221.67 ft (67.57 m)
Beam:	32.67 ft (9.96 m)
Draft:	10.75 ft (3.28 m)
Installed power:	3,530 shp
Propulsion:	2 x EMP 16-645 Diesel Engines
Speed:	18 knots (maximum)
Range:	5,000 mi at 12 knots
Armament:	2 × 3"/50 caliber gun Mk22 dual purpose guns 2 × Twin Bofors 40 mm gun 2 x Twin 20 mm Oerlikon guns 4 x 50 caliber machine guns

The BRP Rizal (PS-74) is the first of two Rizal class ships in service with the Philippine Navy. She is formerly an ex-USN Auk class minesweeper that were produced during World War II, and is now classified as a patrol corvette protecting the vast waters of the Philippines. Along with other ex-World War II veteran ships of the Philippine Navy, she is considered as one of the oldest active fighting ships in the world today.^[1]

1 History
2 Present Status
3 Gallery
4 References
5 External links

[edit] History

as USS Murrelet (AM-372).

USS Murrelet (AM-372) was commissioned with the US Navy in 1945, her duty was to sweep mines along the Japanese and Korean waters from January 1946 until April the same year. She was decommissioned in 1948 and was placed with the Pacific Reserve Fleet.

another photo of USS Murrelet (AM-372).

She was again recommissioned in 1950. She arrived Yokosuka, Japan, in August 1961 to aid U.N. forces meeting the challenge of Communist aggression. Departing Yokosuka 21 August, she sailed to Korea, participating in operations north of Wonsan, in the Hungnam, Songjin, and Chongjin areas. She continued sweeping and patrol duties off Korea in 1952, capturing and destroying several enemy sampans, until July, when she returned to the west coast. Murrelet started a second tour of duty off Korea in April 1953, returning to Long Beach in December. Murrelet received five battle stars for Korean service

Redesignated MSF-372, 7 February 1955, she continued to operate off the west coast. She decommissioned 14 March 1957, and was assigned to the Pacific Reserve fleet. Struck from the Naval Register 1 December 1964, she was transferred June 1965 to the Philippine Republic under the Military Assistance Program.^[2]

as RPS Rizal (PS-69) before renumbering.

Under the Philippine Navy, she was reclassified and recoded a number of times. As a Minesweeper, she was first classified as RPS Rizal (PCE-69), then was reclassified as a Patrol Corvette under the new code RPS Rizal (PS-69). Later on she was renumbered as RPS (now BRP) Rizal (PS-74), which is used to this day. Together with her sister ship, she was one of the Navy's main warships during the 1960s up to the present.

Further minor refits were made between 1995 and 1996. Some of her weapons were also removed, mainly its anti-submarine equipments. This includes the five Mk6 depth charge projectors and two depth charge racks. This move totally removed her anti-submarine warfare capabilities, which is in fact outdated at present conditions.