Andres Bonifacio-class frigate

Class overview
Name: Andres Bonifacio class Frigate
Builders: Lake Washington Shipyard, USA
Operators: Philippine Navy
Active: 0
Retired: 4
General characteristics
Class & type: Andres Bonifacio class
Type: Frigate
Displacement: 1,766 tons standard, 2,800 tons full load
Length: 311.65 ft (94.99 m)
Beam: 41.18 ft (12.55 m)
Draft: 13.66 ft (4.16 m)
Installed power: 6,400 hp (4,800 kW)
Propulsion: 2 × Fairbanks Morse 38D Diesel Engines
Speed: 18.2 knots (33.7 km/h; 20.9 mph) (maximum)
Range: 8,000 nmi (15,000 km; 9,200 mi) at 15.6 knots (28.9 km/h)
Sensors and
processing systems:
  • Sperry AN/SPS-53 Surface Search Radar[1]
  • Westinghouse AN/SPS-29D Air Search Radar[1]
  • Mk.26 Mod.1 Fire Control System[1]
  • Mk.52 Mod.3 Gun Director
Armament:
Aircraft carried: MBB Bo 105 Helicopter
Aviation facilities: Helipad

The Andres Bonifacio class is a ship class of four frigates that served with the Philippine Navy from 1976 to the mid-1990s. These ships were formerly used by the US Navy as Barnegat-class small seaplane tenders and by the US Coast Guard as Casco class weather heavy endurance cutters. Under the Philippine Navy, the four vessels have undergone upgrades and modification, and were categorized as frigates. During their time, they were considered as the largest Philippine Navy combat ships of her time.

History

USS Chincoteague, a Barnegat class small seaplane tender

The Barnegat class small seaplane tenders also served in the US Coast Guard as the Casco class cutters. These were actually quite interesting little ships, but they get overlooked. The only class of purpose-built small seaplane tenders in the US Navy, they were designed to operate out of small harbors and atolls and had a shallow draft. The fact that the class was very seaworthy, had good habitability, and long range made them well suited to ocean-station duty. Fast, heavily armed and exceptionally versatile, they served in a wide variety of roles during and after WWII.[3]

Seven units were provided by the US Government to the South Vietnamese Navy between 1970 and 1972. On 29 April 1975, with the South Vietnamese government collapsing and North Vietnamese troops entering Saigon; six of the seven ships set sail and later made a rendezvous at Son Island, the last remaining morsel of free South Vietnam. They remained at anchor until 2 May, when they set sail for Subic Bay, still flying the South Vietnamese flag.

Once they arrived in the Philippines, they presented a slight legal dilemma to the USN as in theory they should have reverted to the new “provisional government” in the former South Vietnam. Eventually it was decided that since the United States did not recognize that government, they were nobody’s property, and were sold to the Philippine navy in 1976 to spare the US government from the expense of having to move them out of Subic Bay for disposal. All were in poor condition, the last pair so much that they were beyond economic restoration. In 1979, the entire aft deck on the remaining four was replaced by a helipad for one Bo-105 helicopter, and a 3’3” tub for a displaced aft 40mm mount was added. Final radar fit was AN/SPS-53, AN/SPS-29, and Mk26.[4]

Technical Details

There were changes made to the Andres Bonifacio class as compared to their original design during its service with the US Navy, US Coast Guard and the Republic of Vietnam Navy. The ships were passed to the Philippine Navy with fewer weapons on-board and old surface search radars, and these were addressed later on by the Philippine Navy through modernization programs, including the addition of a helicopter landing pad in 1979.

The single Mk. 12 5-inch/38-caliber (127 mm) gun was Andres Bonifacio's primary weapon. It was mounted in a Mark 30 Mod 0 enclosed base ring and had a range of up to 18,200 yards (16,600 m) yards. The gun was a dual-purpose type, capable of both antisurface and antiair warfare. She also carried a two twin Mk. 1 Bofors 40mm L/60 anti-aircraft guns and two single Bofors 40mm L/60 anti-aircraft guns, four twin 20mm Oerlikon cannons, four M2 Browning .50-caliber (12.7-mm) general-purpose machine guns, and two 81mm mortars.[2]

Radar system installed include the Sperry AN/SPS-53 Surface Search & Navigation Radar replacing the previously installed AN/SPS-23, while retaining both the AN/SPS-29D Air Search Radar and Mk.26 Mod.1 Fire Control Radar System.[1]

Hatch and Kirk, Inc, added a helicopter deck aft in 1979.[5] Although the ship had no permanently assigned aircraft and could provide no servicing for visiting helicopters, the helicopter deck could accommodate a visiting MBB Bo 105C helicopter, used by the Philippine Navy for utility, scout, and maritime patrol purposes.

The ship was powered by two Fairbanks-Morse 38D diesel engines with a combined power of around 6,200 brake horsepower (4.63 megawatts) driving two propellers. The main engines could propel the 1,766-ton displacement (standard load) ship at a maximum speed of around 18 knots (33 km/h). The ship had a maximum range of 8,000 nautical miles (14,820 km) at an economical speed of 15.6 knots (29 km/h).[2]

The Philippine Navy made plans were made to upgrade the entire ship class with new radar systems and the BGM-84 Harpoon long-range anti-ship cruise missile, but this did not materialize due to the worsening political and economic crisis in the Republic of the Philippines in the mid-1980s.[4]


Ships in Class

Bow number Ship name Acquired Commissioned Service Decommissioned Status
PF-7 BRP Andres Bonifacio 5 April 1976 27 July 1976 Patrol Force, Philippine Fleet 1993 Sold as scrap 2003.
PF-8 BRP Gregorio del Pilar 5 April 1976 7 February 1977 Patrol Force, Philippine Fleet April 1990 Sold as scrap 1991
PF-9 BRP Diego Silang 5 April 1976 5 April 1976 (unconfirmed) Patrol Force, Philippine Fleet April 1990 Discarded July 1990, sold as scrap 1993.
PF-10 BRP Francisco Dagohoy 5 April 1976 23 June 1979 Patrol Force, Philippine Fleet 9 June 1985 Discarded March 1993, sold as scrap 1993.

Gallery

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Jane's Fighting Ships 1982-1983
  2. 1 2 3 DLSU N-ROTC Office. Naming and Code Designation of PN Vessels.
  3. ↑ GlobalSecurity.org.AVP-10 Barnegat
  4. 1 2 Harpoon Database Encyclopedia AVP-10 Barnegat class
  5. ↑ Philippine Naval Forces News Bulletin Naval News Bulletin # 1.

External links

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