HMS Challenger (K07)

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For other ships with the same name, see HMS Challenger.

HMS Challenger 1985.jpg
History
United Kingdom
NameHMS Challenger
Ordered9 October 1979[2]
BuilderScotts Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, Greenock[1]
Launched19 May 1981[1]
Commissioned1983[2]
Decommissioned1990 (Royal Navy)
FateSold, 1993
NotesIn Royal Navy Service, equipped with a Towed Unmanned Submersible (TUMS), and could carry and deploy LR5 submarine rescue submersible.
Namibia
NameMV Ya Toivo
NamesakeAndimba Toivo ya Toivo
Operator
  • NAMCO (2000-2003)
  • De Beers (from 2003)
Acquired2000
In serviceDecember 2000
IdentificationIMO number: 7907697
StatusIn active service
NotesFitted out and operated as a mining vessel (seabed diamond extraction)
General characteristics (as built)
TypeSeabed Operations Vessel[1]
Displacement
  • 6,500 t (6,397 long tons) standard
  • 7,185 t (7,072 long tons) full[1]
Length134.1 m (440 ft 0 in) o/a[1]
Beam18 m (59 ft 1 in)[1]
Draught5 m (16 ft 5 in)[1]
Propulsion
  • Diesel-electric
    • 5 × 6,200 shp (4,623 kW) RKC Ruston 16-cylinder diesel engines, coupled to 2,500 kW alternators driving electric motors (main propulsion)
    • 2 × 6RKC diesel engines (auxiliary power)
    • 2 × Voith Schneider Propellers aft
    • 3 × bow thrusters[1][3]
Speed15 knots, approx.
Complement185[2]
Sensors and
processing systems		Sonar: Plessey Type 193M[2]
Aviation facilitiesHelicopter deck (in Namibian service)

HMS Challenger (pennant number K07) was a Royal Navy diving support vessel, operational from 1984 to 1990.

Challenger had a saturation diving system allowing 12 divers to live in relative comfort in a large decompression chamber amidships.[4]

History[]

In 1979 a paper describing the design for Challenger was presented at an conference.[5]

HMS Challenger was a unique vessel in Royal Navy service, purpose built to support deep sea operations and saturation diving. Built by Scotts at Greenock, the ship was launched on 19 May 1981, but not commissioned until 1984, during a time when the Royal Navy was cutting back on expenditure. The consequence was that the £80m Challenger was seen as an extravagance that the Admiralty could not afford.[2] After only a few years service, in 1990 the ship was laid up and offered for sale. The total cost for the construction of the ship was also increased by various errors and delays during construction.

In 1993 the ship was purchased by a company, Subsea Offshore, to be converted for work decontaminating hazardous waste dumped in the Baltic Sea and North Atlantic. By 1996 the ship was still laid up and may never have been used by Subsea.

In following years the navy used other DP diving vessels for its diving work including the MV Seaforth Clansman hired from , which had been used while Challenger was being built.[4]

The vessel was later bought by the Namibian Minerals Corporation (NAMCO), and fitted with equipment to recover diamonds from the sea floor.[6] The ship was converted at the Nauta Shipyard in Gdynia, Poland,[7] and made its first diamond recoveries in December 2000.[6] The ship was bought by De Beers in April 2003 when it offered US$20 million for several assets, among them Challenger.[8]

See also[]

  • Submarine rescue ship – Support ship for submarine rescue and deep-sea salvage operations
  • LR5 – Manned submersible for submarine rescue
  • Deep-submergence rescue vehicle – Submersible used for rescue of downed submarines and clandestine missions
  • Remotely operated underwater vehicle – A tethered underwater mobile device operated by a remote crew

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h "HMS Challenger". clydeships.co.uk. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
  2. ^ a b c d e Jane's Fighting Ships 1983-84. p. 602. ISBN 0-7106-0774-1.
  3. ^ "Ruston Diesels for the 80s". enginemuseum.org. Retrieved 4 October 2010.
  4. ^ a b Mike Crichley (1982). British Warships and Auxiliaries. Maritime Books. p. 58.
  5. ^ (Dynamic Positioning Conference)
  6. ^ a b "Floating diamond-recovery vessel performing well". miningweekly.com. Retrieved 4 October 2010.
  7. ^ "Stocznia Remontowa Nauta : M/V Ya Toivo (ex-Challenger)". nauta.pl. Archived from the original on 10 January 2005. Retrieved 4 October 2010.
  8. ^ "De Beers Marine Namibia Buys Namco Mining Assets For $20M". business.highbeam.com. Archived from the original on 1 March 2012. Retrieved 4 October 2010.
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