Reproduced with permission of the MOD
RFA Fort Grange entering Sydney, NSW, Australia 2 October 1986 © Kingsley Barr
Lower image RFA Fort Grange during the Falklands War © Brian Bilverstone
Subsequent name: Fort Rosalie
Official Number: 377648
Class: FORT CLASS Ammunition, Food, Explosive Stores Ship
Pennant No: A385
Laid down: 9 November 1973
Builder: Scott’s SB, Greenock
Launched: 9 December 1976
Into Service: 6 April 1978
Crew number: 90
Out of service: 2022
Fate: Sold to the Egyptian Navy
Items of historic interest involving this ship: –
Background Data: An order for two new Fleet Replenishment Ships was announced in November 1971 and the ships in this Class provided up to date replenishment facilities for both ammunition and general naval and victual ling stores. Both were fitted with extensive aviation facilities with a single spot flight deck and full hangar facilities. The roof of the hangar was also strengthened for use as an emergency landing spot which enabled them to operate up to four Sea King helicopters
November 1971 ordered
9 November 1973 laid down as AEFS 03
9 December 1976 launched by Scotts Shipbuilding Co Ltd., Cartsburn Yard, Greenock as Yard Nr: 737 named FORT GRANGE. The Lady Sponsor was Mrs E.M. Glue, wife of Mr G.T. Glue, DGST (N). Named after a Palmerston fort which is currently within the grounds of HMS SULTAN, Gosport, Hampshire
6 April 1978 completed and accepted into service. Was provided with the first Sea King Flight of 706 Squadron NAS to be permanently embarked aboard an RFA
11 April 1978 sailed Glen Douglas for Devonport
15 April 1978 arrival at Devonport
5 May 1978 sailed Devonport for Rig Trials
12 May 1978 arrived at Devonport
20 May 1978 sailed Devonport for First of Class Flying trials
31 May 1978 arrived at Devonport
8 June 1978 sailed Devonport for Mayport
15 June 1978 berthed at Mayport
17 June 1978 sailed Mayport to off Port Everglades received three Sea King Helicopters from HMS ARK ROYAL to assist with flying trials
27 June 1978 anchored off Union Island, Grenadies
28 June 1978 sailed Union Island
29 June 1978 at Roosevelt Roads
3 July 1978 sailed Roosevelt Roads
5 July 1978 berthed at Mayport
10 July 1978 sailed Mayport
18 July 1978 arrived at Plymouth
31 July 1978 sailed Plymouth
1 August 1978 at Greenock for refit and Guarantee Dry Docking
12 October 1978 sailed from Greenock
13 October 1978 arrived at Plymouth
28 October 1978 sailed Plymouth to FAlmouth arriving the same day
15 November 1978 sailed Falmouth for Exercises
16 November 1978 arrived at Plymouth
24 November 1978 sailed Plymouth
27 November 1978 arrived at Glen Douglas
11 December 1978 sailed Glen Douglas for Portland Exercise area
15 December 1978 berthed at Brest, France
18 December 1978 sailed Brest, France for the Portland Exercise Area
20 December 1978 berthed at Portland
4 January 1979 sailed Portland to Plymouth arriving the same day
7 January 1979 sailed Plymouth for degaussing within the harbour
8 January 1979 arrived at Portland
15 January 1979 sailed Portland for BOST in the Portland Exercise Area
20 January 1979 berthed at Portland
3 February 1979 sailed Portland for Exercise Test Gate
8 February 1979 berthed at Gibraltar
10 February 1979 sailed Gibraltar for exercises
16 February 1979 berthed at Gibraltar
19 February 1979 sailed Gibraltar for Exercise Spring Train 1979
5 March 1979 berthed at Gibraltar
7 March 1979 sailed Gibraltar
9 March 1979 berthed at Athens
13 March 1979 sailed Athens for Corfu arriving the same day
14 March 1979 sailed Corfu for Gibraltar
17 March 1979 berthed at Gibraltar
18 March 1979 sailed Gibraltar for Portland Exercise area
21 March 1979 arrived at Plymouth
30 April 1979 sailed Plymouth for weapon training
3 May 1979 arrived at Plymouth
9 May 1979 sailed Plymouth for Gibraltar diverted back to Plymouth
11 May 1979 at Plymouth
27 May 1979 sailed Plymouth
30 May 1979 arrived at Gibraltar sailing the same day
7 June 1979 arrived at Port Said and transitted the Suez Canal
8 June 1979 sailed Suez
15 June 1979 at Mahe, Seychelles
18 June 1979 sailed Mahe, Seychelles
21 June 1979 arrived at Peros Banhos Atoll
22 June 1979 sailed Peros Banhos Atoll for Diego Garcia arriving the same day
24 June 1979 sailed Diego Garcia
4 July 1979 at Hong Kong
9 July 1979 sailed Hong Kong
16 July 1979 along with RFA BACCHUS (3) she supported Operation Culex which was conducted following an influx of illegal immigrants in Hong Kong and delivered one Sea King helicopter
21 July 1979 berthed at Sydney, NSW
7 August 1979 sailed Sydney, NSW
11 August 1979 arrived at Auckland, New Zealand
18 August 1979 sailed Auckland, New Zealand for exercise
19 August 1979 at Auckland, New Zealand anchorage
21 August 1979 sailed Auckland, New Zealand
27 August 1979 anchored at Lautoka, Fiji
4 September 1979 sailed Fiji
13 September 1979 berthed at Sydney, NSW
17 September 1979 sailed Sydney, NSW for exercises
25 September 1079 berthed at Sydney, NSW
26 September 1979 sailed Sydney, NSW
28 September 1979 berthed at Brisbane, Queensland
3 October 1979 sailed Brisbane, Queensland
7 October 1979 her Ship’s Badge was officially presented to her
15 October 1979 arrived at Hong Kong
20 October 1979 sailed Hong Kong
24 October 1979 arrived at Singapore
3 November 1979 sailed Singapore
9 November 1979 arrived at Cochin
13 November 1979 sailed Cochin
27 November 1979 arrived at Suez Bay
28 November 1979 in transit Suez Canal and arrived at Port Said
29 November 1979 sailed Port Said
1 December 1979 arrived at Athens, Greece
4 December 1979 sailed Athens, Greece
10 December 1979 arrived at Gibraltar sailing the same day
13 December 1979 at Falmouth
14 December 1979 arrived at Plymouth
17 December 1979 at Plymouth
8 January 1980 exercise off Plymouth with HMS’s RHYL and ARDENT
15 January 1980 exercises off Plymouth with HMS HERMES and RFA LYNESS
17 January 1980 anchored in Mounts Bay
17 January 1980 along with RFA GREY ROVER she was part of the RN Task Force which was sent to the Mediterranean to co-operate with the USN due to the Iranian crisis
19 January 1980 sailed from Mounts Bay to Gibraltar arriving 21 January 1980
8 February 1980 sailed Gibraltar for Palermo arriving 15 February 1980
19 February 1980 sailed Palermo for Salonika arriving 23 February 1980
26 February 1980 sailed Salonika for Naples arriving 29 February 1980
4 March 1980 sailed Salonika to Istanbul, Turkey arriving 14 March 1980
18 March 1980 sailed Salonika for Trieste arriving 21 March 1980
25 March 1980 sailed from Trieste for Gibraltar arriving 30 March 1980
31 March 1980 sailed Gibraltar to Mounts Bay and Portland arriving 2 April 1980
8 April 1980 sailed Portland to Plymouth arriving the same day
29 April 1980 sailed Plymouth for Glen Douglas arriving the next day
17 May 1980 sailed Glen Douglas for Southampton arriving 18 May 1980
19 May 1980 at Southampton
22 July 1980 at Southampton
11 August 1980 sailed Southampton for Portland arriving the same day
13 August 1980 sailed Portland
14 August 1980 arrived at Plymouth
31 August 1980 berthed at Devonport
12 September 1980 sailed Plymouth
15 September 1980 at Glen Douglas
25 September 1980 sailed Glen Douglas
26 September 1980 berthed at Portland
29 September 1980 to 30 October 1980 BOST in the Portland area
1 November 1980 sailed Portland
2 November 1980 at Stavanger, Norway
10 November 1980 sailed Stavanger to Plymouth
14 November 1980 engaged in searching for survivors from the Jersey registered fishing vessel Pietje Antje J117 which had sunk in a storm 20 nmiles SE of Start Point
16 November 1980 at Plymouth
19 November 1980 sailed Plymouth for Portland arriving 21 November 1980
24 November 1980 sailed Portland for the Portland Exercise areas until 5 December 1980 arried at Plymouth
5 January 1981 sailed Plymouth to off Andros Island, Bahamas via Antigua arriving 21 January 1981
22 January 1981 sailed from off Andros Island, Bahams to Fort Lauderdale, Florida
26 January 1981 sailed Fort Lauderdale, Florida to Norfolk, Virginia arriving 28 January 1981
4 February 1981 sailed Norfolk Virginia to Devonport arriving 13 February 1981
7 March 1981 sailed Devonport for Gibraltar arriving 10 March 1981
14 March 1981 sailed Gibraltar for Port Said arriving 20 March 1981 thence in transit through the Suez Canal
21 March 1981 sailed Suez to Mombasa arriving 31 March 1981
16 April 1981 deployed from Mombasa to the Gulf area until 8 June 1981 when arrived at Suez Bay
9 June 1981 transitted the Suez Canal
10 June 1981 sailed Port Said to Souda Bay arriving the next day
12 June 1981 sailed Souda Bay to Toulon arriving 15 June 1981
20 June 1981 sailed Toulon to Mounts Bay arriving 24 June 1981
25 June 1981 sailed Mounts Bay to Portland for DG Ranging
26 June 1981 arrived at Plymouth
15 July 1981 sailed Plymouth to Glen Douglas arriving the next day
18 July 1981 sailed Glen douglas to Charleston arriving 27 July 1981
30 July 1981 sailed Charleston to Mayport Naval Station, Jacksonville, Florida arriving the same day
3 August 1981 sailed Mayport Naval Station, Jacksonville, Florida to Fort Lauderdale arriving 5 August 1981
10 August 1981 sailed Fort Lauderdale to Port Canaveral arriving the next day
14 August 1981 sailed Port Canaveral to Norfolk arriving the next day
21 August 1981 sailed Norfolk to take part in Exercises Ocean Venture, Magic Sword North and Ocean Safari
31 August 1981 ship developed a ME defect at 60°.62N 12°.19W – stopped for two days
19 September 1981 berthed at El Ferrol, Spain
23 September 1981 sailed El Ferrol, Spain to Portland arriving the next day
2 October 1981 sailed Portland to the Plymouth Exercise area returning to Portland the next day
6 October 1981 sailed Portland to the Portland Exercise area returning to Portland on 8 October 1981
10 October 1981 sailed Portland for Exercise North West Axe returning to Portland on 16 October 1981
19 October 1981 sailed Portland anchoring in Mounts Bay over night then exercises in the Portland Exercise area until 30 October 1981
4 November 1981 sailed Portland to the Portland Exercise area returning to Portland on 12 November 1981
16 November 1981 sailed Portland for exercises arriving at Plymouth on 19 November 1981
23 November 1981 sailed Portland to the Portland Exercise area and off Ushant returning to Plymouth Sound (on ‘D’ Buoy) on 27 November 1981 remaining there for Christmas & New Year
4 January 1982 sailed Plymouth Sound
16 January 1982 arrived off Andros Island at 24º 43.5N 77º 44 W
17 January 1982 sailed Andros Island for Fort Lauderdale, Florida arriving the next day
24 January 1982 sailed Fort Lauderdale, Florida for Charleston, SC arriving the next day
27 January 1982 sailed Charleston SC for Glen Douglas arriving 8 February 1982
17 February 1982 sailed Glen Mallen for Plymouth arriving 19 February 1982 to de-store
13 March 1982 sailed Plymouth for refit at Smiths, North Shields arriving the next day
21 April 1982 Captain D Avrill CBE RFA appointed in command
23 April 1982 floated out of dry dock
25 April 1982 suffered a fire in the engine room during the refit – extinguished with the assistance of the local civil fire brigade
28 April 1982 suffered a second fire in the engine room – extinguished with the assistance of the local civil fire brigade
29 April 1982 at Smiths, North Shields
2 May 1982 completed trials and sailed the River Tyne to Plymouth
4 May 1982 berthed at No 1 berth, Devonport loading AVCAT
7 May 1982 NAV Thorsk secured alongside
8 May 1982 NAV Thorsk cleared away
9 May 1982 sailed Devonport for Glen Douglas
10 May 1982 arrived at Glen Douglas and berthed on Glen Mallen Jetty to load cargo
14 May 1982 sailed Glen Doulas for service during Operation Corporate – the Falklands Conflict – with 824 NAS C Flight embarked – 3 x Sea King HAS2 helicopters
22 May 1982 arrived Ascension Island
24 May 1982 sailed Ascension Island
25 May 1982 while on passage from Ascension to the TEZ (Total Exclusion Zone) ship stopped from 1815 to 1826 for main engine repairs
26 May 1982 main engine stopped again for further repairs between 1859 and 1929 – entered the TEZ (Total Exclusion Zone) around the Falkland Islands
31 May 1982 attacked by an Argentinian C -130 on its way to join the Carrier Battle Group
3 June 1982 joined the Carrier Battle Group to relieve RFA FORT AUSTIN
5 June 1982 commenced transferring stores from RFA FORT AUSTIN
6 June 1982 completed transfer of stores
9 June 1982 arrived San Carlos anchorage along with the ferry NORDIC FERRY
17 June 1982 in San Carlos Water with RFA SIR PERCIVALE berthed alongside transfering stores
18 June 1982 in San Carlos Water with RFA BLUE ROVER berthed alongside supplying 300 tons of fuel oil
19 June 1982 sailed San Carlos to Port Fitzroy
20 June 1982 sailed Port Fitzroy to San Carlos
23 June 1982 anchored in San Carlos water with RFA RESOURCE moored alongside
24 June 1982 tug Irishman secured alongside. RFA RESOURCE cast off
29 June 1982 sailed San Carlos Water
30 June 1982 Quartermaster William Frazer discharged dead – he suffered from an accute myocardial infraction. He was buried at sea at 52°.02.6S 54°.18.6W
3 July 1982 RASed (Vertrep) with HMS BRISTOL
4 July 1982 arrived at Port Stanley
5 July 1982 sailed Port Stanley
11 July 1982 the ships crash boat capsized throwing the 6 members of the crew into the sea. They were recovered. Also during a VERTREP with HMS LEEDS CASTLE with Sea King HAS1 helicopter No: XV698 suffered engine failure, ditched and sank in the South Atlantic Ocean – the crew were rescued. The helicopter was not salvaged
17 July 1982 at Port Stanley sailing for San Carlos the next day
28 July 1982 Captain Barry H Rutterford RFA appointed as Master
Captain Barry H Rutterford RFA
29 July 1982 sailed Port Stanley, Falkland Islands
31 July 1982 RASed (Vertrep) with HMS BRISTOL
6 August 1982 arrived at Berkley Sound
9 August 1982 sailed Berkley Sound
14 August 1982 arrived at Port Stanley, Falkland Islands
15 August 1982 sailed Port Stanley to Port San Carlos arriving the same day
18 August 1982 sailed Port San Carlos
22 August 1982 arrived at Berkley Sound then to Port Stanley and then to Port San Carlos
23 August 1982 at San Carlos Water alongside RFA REGENT
26 August 1982 sailed Port San Carlos to Port Stanley arriving 28 August 1982
1 September 1982 sailed Port Stanley returning there on 4 September 1982
5 September 1982 sailed Port Stanley for Port San Carlos arriving the same day
7 September 1982 sailed Port San Carlos returning there on 15 September 1982
17 September 1982 sailed Port San Carlos for Falmouth Bay arriving 1 October 1982
3 October 1982 arrived Plymouth Sound. on completion of Operation Corporate duties
5 November 1982 at Plymouth
8 November 1982 at Plymouth
21 November 1982 sailed Plymouth Sound for Ascension Island arriving 20 November 1982
30 November 1982 sailed Ascension Island for Port William Sound, Falkland Islands arriving 9 December 1982
13 December 1982 sailed Port William Sound for San Carlos Water arriving 18 December 1982
19 December 1982 sailed San Carlos Water to Port William Sound arriving the same day
22 December 1982 sailed Port William Sound for San Carlos Water arriving the same day
27 December 1982 sailed San Carlos Water for Port William Sound arriving the same day
30 December 1982 sailed Port William Sound for San Carlos Water arriving the next day
2 January 1983 sailed San Carlos Water for Port William Sound arriving the same day
4 January 1983 sailed Port William Sound to San Carlos Water arriving the next day
8 January 1983 sailed San Carlos Water to Port William Sound arriving the next day
13 January 1983 sailed Port William Sound to Bull Roads, Falkland Islands arriving the next day
15 January 1983 sailed Bull Roads to San Carlos Water arriving the next day
19 January 1983 sailed San Carlos Water to Swan Island anchorage arriving the next day
23 January 1983 sailed Swan Island anchorage to Port William, Stanley, Falkland Islands arriving the same day
24 January 1983 sailed Port William, Stanley, Falkland Islands to San Carlos Water arriving the same day
25 January 1983 sailed San Carlos Water to Roy Cove anchorage arriving 27 January 1983
11 April 1983 off the Falkland Islands with HMS ACTIVE and HMS CARDIFF
15 April 1983 at Port Stanley, Falkland Islands
9 May 1983 at Port Stanley, Falkland Islands
16 May 1983 sailed Port William to San Carlos Water
19 May 1983 sailed San Carlos Water to Port William, Stanley
22 May 1983 sailed Port William, Stanley to Fort Lauderdale, Floria arriving 4 June 1983
3 June 1983 time spent searching for an aircraft reported as having crashed into the sea off Cuba – nothing found
15 June 1983 sailed Fort Lauderdale, Florida to Charleston arriving the next day
17 June 1983 sailed Charleston to Plymouth Sound arriving 25 June 1983
30 June 1983 sailed Plymouth Sound to the River Clyde anchorage arriving the next day
10 July 1983 sailed River Clyde for Plymouth Sound arriving the next day
24 July 1983 sailed Plymouth Sound to Newcastle on Tyne arriving the next day
1 September 1983 Captain Rex A Cooper RFA appointed as Master
13 September 1983 undertook engine trials off the River Tyne
14 September 1983 sailed the River Tyne for Rosyth arriving the same day
28 September 1983 sailed Rosyth to Glen Mallan arriving the next day
4 October 1983 sailed Glen Mallan to Plymouth Sound arriving 6 October 1983
12 October 1983 at Portland
17 October 1983 until 25 October 1983 BOST in Portland Exercise areas
25 October 1983 arrived at Plymouth Sound
29 October 1983 sailed Plymouth Sound to Ascension Island arriving 8 November 1983
8 November 1983 sailed Ascension Island to San Carlos Water, Falkland Islands arriving 19 November 1983
22 November 1983 sailed San Carlos Water to Port William, Falkland Islands arriving 24 November 1983
28 November 1983 sailed Port William to San Carlos Water, Falkland Islands arriving the same day
30 November 1983 sailed San Carlos Water, Falkland Islands to Port William arriving 2 December 1983 returning to San Carlos Water the next day
21 January 1984 sailed Port William for Grytviken, South Georgia arriving 23 January 1984
24 January 1984 at Stromness, South Georgia
25 January 1984 sailed Stromness, South Georgia to San Carlos Water, Falkland Islands arriving 29 January 1984
15 February 1984 sailed Port William to San Carlos
16 February 1984 sailed San Carlos to Port Albermarle arriving the next day
19 February 1984 sailed Port Albermarle for Fitzroy
20 February 1984 sailed Fitzroy to Port William
25 February 1984 sailed Port William, Stanley to San Carlos Water
3 March 1984 at San Carlos Water, Falkland Islands
7 March 1984 sailed San Carlos Water, Falkland Islands for Ascension Island arriving 14 March 1984
15 March 1984 sailed Ascenion Island to Mounts Bay arriving 24 March 1984 then sailed to Glen Mallan arriving 26 March 1984
3 April 1984 sailed Glen Mallan to Portland arriving the next day
6 April 1984 sailed Portland to Plymouth Sound arriving the same day
25 April 1984 sailed Plymouth Sound to Portland (A3 Buoy) arriving 26 April 1984
30 April 1984 sailed Portland to Plymouth Sound (D Buoy) arriving the next day
14 May 1984 sailed Plymouth Sound to Portland (A3 Buoy) arriving the same day
18 May 1984 sailed Portland for Ascension Island arriving 26 May 1984
27 May 1984 sailed Ascension Island for San Carlos Water, Falkland Islands arriving 3 June 1984
4 June 1984 sailed San Carlos Water, Falkland Islands for Port William, Stanley, Falkland Islands arriving the next day
7 June 1984 sailed Port William, Stanley to San Carlos Water arriving the next day
12 August 1984 sailed San Carlos Water for Grytviken, South Georgia arriving 15 August 1984
16 August 1984 sailed Grytviken, South Georgia to Stromness arriving the same day
18 August 1984 sailed Stromness to Grytviken, South Georgia arriving the same day
19 August 1984 sailed Grytviken, South Georgia to Port William, Stanley, Falkland Islands arriving the 22 August 1984
23 August 1984 sailed Port William, Stanley, Falkland Islands to San Carlos Water arriving the same day
24 August 1984 sailed San Carlos Water, Falkland Islands to Ascension Island anchorage arriving 1 September 1984
1 September 1984 sailed Ascension Island anchorage to Funchal, Maderia anchorage arriving 6 September 1984 moving Wessex HU5 Helicopter No: XS521 to the UK at the same time
14 September 1984 sailed Funchal, Maderia anchorage to Plymouth Sound arriving 17 September 1984 – made fast to ‘D’ Buoy
24 September 1984 sailed Plymouth Sound to Portland arriving the same day – made fast to ‘A3’ Buoy
5 October 1984 at Plymouth
7 October 1984 sailed Portland to Plymouth Sound arriving the same day – made fast to ‘D’ Buoy
8 October 1984 sailed Plymouth Sound taking part in Exercise Autumn Train
20 October 1984 anchored off Gibraltar
23 October 1984 sailed Gibraltar to Plymouth Sound arriving 26 October 1984 – made fast to ‘D’ Buoy
30 October 1984 sailed Plymouth Sound to Rosyth arriving 1 November 1984 making fast to No: 3 buoy
6 November 1984 sailed Rosyth for JMC returning on 16 November 1984 making fast to No: 3 buoy (again)
28 March 1985 at Glen Douglas
11 April 1985 was presented with her Falkland Islands 1982 Battle Honour at Plymouth by Captain C.G. Butterworth CMS
16 April 1985 at Plymouth
12 May 1985 at Plymouth
23 November 1984 sailed Plymouth Sound to Charleston arriving 3 December 1984
5 December 1984 sailed Charleston to Glen Douglas arriving 13 December 1984
16 January 1985 sailed Glen Douglas for Bigbury Bay anchorage arriving the next day
18 January 1985 sailed Bigbury Bay anchorage to Plymouth arriving the same day
28 January 1985 sailed Plymouth to Rosyth arriving 1 February 1985
5 February 1985 deployed in Exercise JMC 851 returning to Rosyth on 15 February 1985
20 February 1985 sailed Rosyth on exercises berthing at Glen Mallen on 27 February 1985
7 March 1985 sailed Glen Mallen on Exercise Cold Winter 1985
22 March 1985 sailed Lyngen Fjord to Glen Mallen arriving 24 March 1985
3 April 1985 sailed Gken Mallen to Devonport arriving the next day
15 April 1985 sailed Devonport to Charleston arriving 25 April 1985
28 April 1985 sailed Charleston originally to Ascension Island but diverted to Bridgetown, Barbados arriving 3 May 1985
4 May 1985 sailed Bridgetown, Barbados to Ascension Island arriving 11 May 1985
13 May 1985 sailed Ascension Island to Port William Sound, Falkland Islands arriving 20 May 1985
25 May 1985 in San Carlos Water
3 June 1985 anchored off Port Howard, Falkland Islands
4 June 1985 sailed from the Port Howard anchorage
8 June 1985 at Port William Sound, Falkland Islands returning on 12 June 1985
21 June 1985 at South Georgia
25 June 1985 sailed from South Georgia
27 July 1985 anchored off Port Howard, Falkland Islands
13 August 1985 sailed from North Falkland Sound to Ascension Island arriving 22 August 1985
22 August 1985 sailed Ascension Island to Las Palmas arriving 29 August 1985
1 September 1985 sailed Las Palmas to Glen Douglas arriving 5 September 1985
14 September 1985 sailed Glen Douglas to Plymouth arriving 16 September 1985
19 October 1985 sailed Plymouth to Newcastle arriving 21 October 1985 for refit
29 January 1986 sailed Newcastle to Plymouth arriving 31 January 1986
18 February 1986 sailed Plymouth for Glen Douglas arriving 19 February 1986
25 February 1986 sailed Glen Douglas to Plymouth arriving 26 February 1986
3 March 1986 sailed Plymouth for Portland arriving 4 March 1986
11 March 1986 to 30 March 1986 Portland work up
2 April 1986 sailed Portland to Plymouth arriving 3 April 1986
14 April 1986 sailed Portsmouth as part of Task Group 318.4 – the Global 86 Deployment led by the carrier HMS ILLUSTRIOUS – along with RFA’s BAYLEAF(3) and OLMEDA
29 April 1986 arrived La Guaira
3 May 1986 sailed La Guaira to Acapulco via the Panama Canal (transitted on 6 May 1986) arriving 12 May 1986
14 May 1986 sailed Acapulco to San Diego arriving 9 May 1986
28 May 1986 sailed San Diego to Pearl Harbour, Hawaii arriving 18 June 1986
24 June 1986 sailed Pearl Harbour, Hawaii to Pusan, South Korea arriving 10 July 1986
14 July 1986 sailed Pusan, South Korea to Hong Kong arriving 19 Huly 1986
23 July 1986 sailed Hong Kong to anchor at Brunei Bay on 26 July 1986
28 July 1986 sailed Brunei Bay to Singapore arriving 31 July 1986
27 August 1986 sailed Singapore to Port Kelang arriving 2 September 1986
5 September 1986 sailed Port Kelang to Mackay, Queensland, Australia arriving 18 September 1986
24 September 1986 sailed Mackay, Queensland to Sydney, NSW via Jervis Bay arriving 29 September 1986
4 October 1986 TG 318.4 participated in the Australian Fleet Review in Sydney, NSW
13 October 1986 sailed Sydney NSW for Exercise Croweater and passage to Fremantle, Western Australia arriving 25 October 1986
30 October 1986 sailed Fremantle to Diego Garcia arriving 9 November 1986
10 November 1986 sailed Diego Garcia to Bombay arriving 14 November 1986
16 November 1986 sailed Bombay undertaking Exercise Sair Sareea. Anchoring off Khawr Al Hajr on 21 November 1986
22 November 1986 sailed and later returned to Khawr Al Jajr anchorage on 27 November 1986
29 November 1986 sailed Khawr Al Jajr anchorage to Suez Bay arriving 4 December 1986
5 December 1986 transit of Suez Canal
6 December 1986 sailed Port Said to anchorage at Akrotiri Bay, Cyprus
8 December 1986 sailed Akrotiri Bay, Cyprus to Gibraltar Bay arriving 12 December 1986
13 December 1986 sailed Gibraltar Bay to Plymouth arriving 15 December 1986
10 January 1987 sailed Plymouth to anchorage off Ardrossan arriving 11 January 1987
12 January 1986 berthed on Glen Douglas Jetty
17 January 1987 sailed from Glen Douglas to anchorage in Whitesand Bay on 18 January 1987
19 January 1987 arrived at Plymouth
9 February 1987 sailed Plymouth to anchorage at Portland arriving the same day
23 February 1987 sailed Portland to anchorage at Gibraltar arriving 28 February 1987
3 March 1987 sailed Gibraltar to D Buoy, Plymouth Sound arriving 5 March 1987
10 March 1987 sailed Plymouth for Exercise Cold Winter off Norway
22 March 1987 anchored at Oysundet, Norway during Exercise Cold Winter – day running
23 March 1987 anchored at Oysundet, Norway during Exercise Cold Winter – day running
25 March 1987 anchored at Fiskejord, Norway
26 March 1987 sailed Fiskejord, Norway for Spithead arriving 28 March 1987 and anchored
29 March 1987 sailed Spithead anchorage for Portland arriving the same day
30 March 1987 sailed Portland for Plymouth Sound arriving the next day – made fast to D Buoy
6 April 1987 sailed Plymouth Sound and anchored in Lyme Bay the same day
7 April 1987 sailed Lyme Bay to Portland arriving 9 April 1987
14 April 1987 and 15 April 1987 working for FOST at Portland
22 April 1987 sailed Portland for Devonport via the Bay of Biscay making fast to D Buoy, Plymouth Sound on 25 April 1987
28 April 1987 sailed Plymouth for exercises anchoring in Lyme Bay the next day
30 April 1987 arrived at Portland and made fast to A3 Buoy in Portland Harbour
4 May 1987 sailed Portland Harbour to Gibraltar Bay arriving and anchoring on 6 May 1987
11 May 1987 sailed Gibraltar Bay to Glen Douglas arriving 14 May 1987
29 May 1987 engaged in the Clyde Exercise Area
2 June 1987 sailed Glen Douglas arriving Plymouth Sound 15 June 1987 and making fast to ‘D’ Buoy
18 June 1987 sailed Plymouth Sound returning to ‘D’ Buoy the next day
23 June 1987 sailed Plymouth Sound to Gibraltar Bay arriving 25 June 1987 – anchored
29 June 1987 sailed Gibraltar Bay – Fleet Trial 109/86 – returning to anchor in Gibraltar Bay the next day
4 July 1987 sailed Gibraltar Bay to Glen Douglas arriving 7 July 1987
13 July 1987 sailed Glen Douglas for Devonport arriving 15 July 1987
25 July 1987 sailed Devonport for Glen Douglas arriving the next day
18 August 1987 sailed Glen Douglas for Devonport arriving 23 August 1987
20 September 1987 at Plymouth
29 January 1988 sailed Devonport for Glen Douglas arriving 1 February 1988
14 February 1988 sailed Glen Mallen for Portland arriving 16 February 1988
11 March 1988 sailed Portland to Plymouth Sound arriving the same day
12 March 1988 at Plymouth
22 March 1988 sailed Plymouth Sound to Souda Bay, Crete arriving 29 March 1988
30 March 1988 sailed Souda Bay, Crete to Port Said arriving 1 April 1988
2 April 1988 sailed Port Said, for Fujairah arriving 8 April 1988
11 April 1988 sailed Fujairah on Exercises and arrived at Suez Bay 23 April 1988
24 April 1988 sailed Port Said to Palermo arriving 26 April 1988
1 May 1988 sailed Palermo for Exercises and arrived at Devonport 16 May 1988
13 June 1988 sailed Plymouth as part of Task Group 318.1 – the Outback 88 Deployment led by the carrier HMS ARK ROYAL – along with RFA’s ORANGELEAF (3) and OLWEN (2) to Malta anchoring in St Paul’s Bay on 25 June 1988
26 June 1988 at Malta
27 June 1988 sailed St Paul’s Bay, Malta to anchor at Akrotiri, Cyprus on 28 June 1988
2 July 1988 sailed Akrotiri, Cyprus to Port Said anchorage arriving the same day
4 July 1988 after Suez Canal transit sailed Port Suez for Singapore arriving 23 July 1988
16 July 1988 major HDS (helicopter delivery service) undertaken using two Sea King Mk4s (SKA Commando version from 845 Naval Air Squadron) ‘leapfrogging’ from HMS ARK ROYAL via RFA FORT GRANGE and HMS EDINBURGH to Colombo in Sri Lanka (320 n.miles)
8 August 1988 sailed Singapore for Manila arrived 13 August 1988
19 August 1988 sailed Manila to Hong Kong arriving 21 August 1988
22 August 1988 at Hong Kong in collision with USS Omaha (SSN692) and USNS Sioux (T-AF-171)
1 September 1988 sailed Hong Kong to anchor at Platypus Bay, Newcastle, NSW arriving 21 September 1988
23 September 1988 sailed Platypus Bay, Newcastle to Sydney, NSW arriving 27 September 1988
7 October 1988 sailed Sydney, NSW for Jervis Bay anchorage arriving the next day
October 1988 HMS ARK ROYAL and RFA FORT GRANGE bound from Sydney, NSW for Melbourne but the Seamen’s Union announced a boycott of the ships and no tugs would be available and ships could not dock. Anchored at Melbourne 14 October 1988.
17 October 1988 sailed Melbourne anchorage for Fremantle where the crane drivers boycotted the ship. Arrived Fremantle 23 October 1988
2 November 1988 sailed Fremantle for Bombay arriving 16 November 1988
19 November 1988 sailed Bombay for Suez arriving 1 December 1988
2 December 1988 transit of the Suez Canal
3 December 1988 sailed Port Said to Augusta arriving 5 December 1988
6 December 1988 sailed Augusta to Gibraltar anchorage arriving 9 December 1988
10 December 1988 sailed to Gibraltar for Plymouth Sound arriving 13 December 1988
3 January 1989 sailed Plymouth Sound to Portland arriving the same day
10 January 1989 engaged in the Portland Exercise area until 19 January January 1989
20 January 1989 sailed Portland for Gibraltar anchorage arriving 27 January 1989
28 January 1989 sailed Gibraltar to Plymouth Sound arriving 30 January 1989
6 February 1989 sailed Plymouth Sound to Falmouth Bay anchorage arriving 8 February 1989
10 February 1989 sailed Falmouth Bay for exercises arriving at Plymouth Sound and making fast to ‘D’ Buoy on 18 February 1989
22 February 1989 sailed Plymouth Sound for futher exercises to Falmouth Bay anchorage arriving 10 March 1989
10 March 1989 sailed Falmouth Bay to Plymouth Sound making fast to ‘C’ Buoy the next day
2 April 1989 sailed Plymouth Sound to Gibraltar and Souda Bay, Crete arriving 8 April 1989
9 April 1989 sailed Souda Bay to Akrotiri Bay, Cyprus arriving the next day
11 April 1989 sailed Akrotiri Bay, Cyprus to Port Said arriving the same day
13 April 1989 sailed Port Suez for berth 64 at Jabal Ali arriving 20 April 1989
23 April 1989 sailed Jabal Ali for Suez Bay arriving 1 May 1989 and anchoring
3 May 1989 sailed Port Said for Souda Bay, Crete arriving the next day
5 May 1989 sailed Souda Bay, Crete to Gibraltar arriving 9 May 1989 and anchoring in the Bay
11 May 1989 sailed Gibraltar Bay to Funchal, Maderia arriving 13 May 1989
15 May 1989 sailed Funchal, Maderia to Portland arriving 18 May 1989 and making fast to A3 buoy
19 May 1989 sailed Portland to Gibraltar arriving 23 May 1989 and anchoring in the Bay
29 May 1989 sailed Gibraltar Bay to Portland arriving 31 May 1989 later the same day sailed to Plymouth Sound making fast to ‘D’ Buoy on 1 June 1989
14 June 1989 sailed Plymouth Sound to Glen Mallen arriving 16 June 1989
19 June 1989 sailed Glen Mallen engaging in JMC 892 until arriving at Plymouth Sound on 2 July 1989 and anchoring in No: 23 anchorage
13 July 1989 sailed Plymouth Sound to the Clyde Exercise areas and engaged in Exercise Lobster Pot until anchoring in St Brides Bay on 19 July 1989
21 July 1989 sailed St Brides Bay continuing with Exercise Lobster Pot until berthing at Glen Mallen on 22 July 1989
7 August 1989 sailed Glen Mallen to Plymouth Sound making fast to ‘D’ Buoy
23 January 1990 sailed Wallsend on Tyne to Plymouth arriving 24 January 1990
8 April 1990 sailed Plymouth to Glen Mallen arriving the next day
15 April 1990 sailed Glen Mallen to Portland arriving 16 April 1990 via Ushant
19 April 1990 at Portland on work up exercises until 3 May 1990
4 May 1990 sailed Portland to Earle arriving 11 May 1940
15 May 1990 sailed Earle to Charleston arriving 19 May 1990
30 May 1990 sailed Charleston to Halifax, NS arriving 15 June 1990
21 June 1990 sailed Halifax NS to Bermuda arriving 28 June 1990
2 July 1990 sailed Bermuda to Funchal, Maderia arriving 8 July 1990
10 July 1990 sailed Funchal, Maderia to Devonport arriving 13 July 1990
6 August 1990 at Plymouth
8 August 1990 decision taken to deploy her, along with RFA’s OLNA (3) and DILIGENCE to the Gulf following the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait
17 August 1990 at Plymouth
21 August 1990 sailed Plymouth for exercies berthing at Portland the next day
23 August 1990 sailed Portland for service during Operation Granby – the Gulf War – with 2 x Sea King HC4 helicopters from 846 NAS embarked – being no: ZF118 & ZF119
24 August 1990 along with RFA OLNA(3) she r/v off Gibraltar with HNMS’s WITTE DE WITH and PIETER FLORIS
30 August 1990 arrived at Port Said
31 August 1990 transitted the Suez Canal
1 September 1990 sailed Port Suez
8 September 1990 anchored at Fujayrah
10 September 1990 sailed Fujayrah to the Dubai area
16 September 1990 arrived at Jebel Ali
20 September 1990 sailed Jebel Ali
2 October 1990 berthed at Dubai
2 January 1991 berthed at Jebel Ali
11 April 1991 official Cease Fire comes into force
13 April 1991 berthed at Jebel Ali
1991 was awarded the Kuwait 1991 Battle Honour,along with 10 other RFA’s
23 April 1991 to 3 June 1991 Humanitarian relief – was in Operation Manna – the relief operations in Bangladesh following major damage and flooding in the wake of a cyclone
10 May 1991 Sea King HC4 Helicopter no: ZG820 – in ship at Al Jubayl to Cox’s Bazaar, Bangladesh during Operation Mana (see above)
1 June 1991 – Sea King HAS2 helicopter no: XZ577 with 826 NAS was assisting in relief operation following cyclone and floods in Bangladesh – rotor blades hit ship’s rigging – ditched and sank ahead of ship in Bay of Bengal off Cox’s Bazaar. No casualties.
28 June 1991 Chief Petty Officer (Deck) Michael Caley awarded the British Empire Medal (Military Division) details in the London Gazette of this date on page 30
24 November 1991 at Devonport
13 December 1991 at Devonport
23 April 1992 was at RNAD Crombie, River Forth
5 May 1992 arrived at North Shields on the River Tyne for a refit
3 November 1992 Captain (E) Edward M Quigley RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer
17 January 1993 joined HMS ARK ROYAL deployed on peacekeeping and humanitarian aid duties in the Adriatic. 820NAS helicopters farmed out with four aircraft in RFA’s FORT GRANGE and two in RFA OLWEN. This included RFA ARGUS acting as an interim LPH with six 105mm light guns from 29 Commando Regiment Royal Artillery, two batteries and HQ element of 94 Locating regiment RA and Mortar Locating Troop of 29 Cdeo Regiment RA + 176 vehicles and trailers and 329 military personnel.
24 April 1994 start of Operation Grapple at Split, Croatia and she was based there to act as an accommodation and storage ship for food and ammunition for the British Forces operating in Croatia
12 December 1994 was relieved at Split by RFA RESOURCE
21 August 1995 at Amsterdam
11 September 1995 at Portsmouth
20 December 1995 at Bari
21 February 1996 at Barcelona, Spain
7 April 1996 at Plymouth
6 July 1996 Captain David Gerrard RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
Captain David Gerrard RFA
14 December 1996 berthed at Malaga, Spain
5 April 1997 again arrived Split, Croatia
14 April 1997 replaced RFA RESOURCE on Operation Grapple duties
1 December 1997 Captain (E) Kenneth Holder RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer
9 June 1998 Captain (E) E M Quigley RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer
October 1998 Captain Steven Hodgson RFA in command
6 October 1998 at Split
10 December 1998 at Split
14 February 1999 while berthed alongside at Split, Croatia Staff Sergeant Jacqueline O’Rourke and Petty Officer John Walker were married
April 1999 Captain Jeremy R J Carew OBE RFA in command
17 April 1999 at Split
17 July 1999 at Split
December 1999 Captain John Stones RFA in command
14 December 1999 at Split
6 January 2000 sailed Split for the UK on the termination of Operation Grapple duties there
RFA Fort Grange sailing from Split, Croatia
1 June 2000 renamed Fort Rosalie (2) to obviate confusion with RFA FORT GEORGE during a refit period on the Tyne
11 June 2000 undocked from Camel Lairds, Tyneside
12 June 2000 Captain C R Knapp RFA appointed Commanding Officer
14 June 2000 sailed from the Tyne after official renaming
20 June 2000 arrived Gibraltar to act as an accommodation ship for the crew of the submarine HMS/m TIRELESS during the submarine’s lengthy repairs
HMS/m TIRELESS
6 October 2000 berthed at Gibraltar
10 November 2000 at Gibraltar and Captain Pat Thompson OBE RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
Captain Pat Thompson OBE RFA
24 November 2000 berthed at Gibraltar
30 March 2001 to 30 April 2001 berthed at Gibraltar
7 May 2001 sailed Gibraltar after supporting HMS/m Tireless
10 July 2001 berthed at Glen Mallan – Captain David Pitt RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
Captain David Pitt RFA
3 September 2001 sailed on the Argonaut 2001 deployment together with HMS ILLUSTRIOUS, fourteen other Royal Naval Warships and RFA’s FORT VICTORIA, BAYLEAF (3), SIR TRISTRAM, SIR BEDIVERE, SIR PERCIVALE, SIR GALAHAD (2), FORT AUSTIN, OAKLEAF (2) and DILIGENCE
25 Novermber 2001 VERTREP with RFA FORT VICTORIA
29 November 2001 Captain (E) E M Quigley RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer
8 January 2002 Captain Pat Thompson OBE RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
31 March 2002 Captain David Pitt RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
20 April 2002 to 24 April 2002 berthed at Malaga, Spain
2 September 2002 to 5 September 2002 berthed at Cadiz, Spain
24 October 2002 in refit at Hebburn on Tyne, Captain Pat Thompson OBE RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
15 January 2003 sailed UK for service during Operation Telic – the 2nd Gulf War – along with 13 other RFA’s
9 February 2003 to 28 May 2003 deployed on Operation Telic
28 May 2003 arrived Plymouth Sound on completion of Operation Telic duties
21 June 2003 Captain D I Gough RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
16 December 2003 Captain J M Stones RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
5 April 2004 Captain D I Gough RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
1 September 2004 with RFA Sir Bedivere berthed at Tema Harbour, Accra, Ghana to off load supporting logistics and supplies for a bilateral military training exercise. The six-week exercise code-named “Ex-Western Rhumba 2004” is a joint military exercise aimed at practicing tactics, techniques and procedures required to operate in the jungle
23 October 2004 Temporary Acting Captain (X) Paul B Minter RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
Captain (X) Paul Minter RFA
8 November 2004 Temporary Acting Captain (X) Paul Minter RFA promoted Captain and remained in Command
12 January 2005 arrived Loch Striven and later sailed to anchor off Tail of Bank
16 January 2005 returned to Loch Striven from Tail of Bank
19 January 2005 Captain (X) J Murchie RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
27 February 2005 Captain (X) D I Gough RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
4 March 2005 berthed at Gibraltar
27 May 2005 sailed Gibraltar
31 May 2005 anchored off the Isle of Arran
August 2005 at Rosyth
30 May 2006 Captain (X) D I Gough RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
26 August 2006 at Devonport
5 September 2006 arrived Marchwood
3 October 2006 berthed at Norfolk Naval Base, VA
15 October 2006 arrived Marchwood from Norfolk, VA with a 20ft replica of Discovery aboard
20 October 2006 at Devonport
23 October 2006 sailed Devonport
24 October 2006 arrived Portsmouth
5 November 2006 Captain (X) I Pilling RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
14 November 2006 sailed Portsmouth
20 November 2006 commenced FOST work-up
1 December 2006 in Plymouth Sound
5 December 2006 anchored in Falmouth Bay
9 December 2006 berthed at Portland
11 December 2006 arrived at Devonport
15 December 2006 the Commodore in Chief HRH the Earl of Wessex visit the ship at Portland
12 February 2007 Captain (X) D I Gough RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
17 February 2007 at Loch Striven
27 March 2007 was granted the Freedom of the Borough of Tarnworth
5 April 2007 at the Clyde Area
6 April 2007 anchored in Douglas Bay, Isle of Man
May 2007 on Operation Carina 07 Deployment to the Baltic with RFA’s LYME BAY and MOUNTS BAY
June 2007 following a collision between an Italian freighter and a French yacht off Finistere at the request of the French coastguards assisted the Italian freighter by keeping other vessels away from her as she made her way to Southampton in a damaged condition and in heavy weather
14 June 2007 paid a brief visit to Falmouth Bay
5 August 2007 at Brest, France
21 September 2007 in Exercise Grey Heron which commenced off Browndown, Solent along with RFA’s LYME BAY and MOUNTS BAY
27 September 2007 sailed from the Solent to Weymouth Bay anchorage
5 December 2007 at DM, Crombie, River Forth
10 December 2007 Captain (X) S P Smart RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
January 2008 arrived Birkenhead for a lengthy refit
19 July 2008 suffered a fire while undergoing refit at Birkenhead
5 December 2008 Captain (X) W G Tait RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
8 January 2009 ship visited by the Defence Secretary John Hutton as she was coming to the end of a refit at Birkenhead
10 January 2009 towed from Birkenhead No: 7 dock to an alongside berth at Birkenhead
17 April 2009 Captain (X) R G Ferris OBE RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
April 2009 at Devonport with FOST
20 June 2009 to 25 June 2009 together with RFA MOUNTS BAY, HMS’s WESTMINSTER and LANCASTER together with INS Delhi, INS Brahmaputra and the Indian Navy replenshipment ship INS Aditya enaged in Exercise KONKAN in the English Channel
29 June 2009 at Glen Mallen
14 July 2009 visited Cherbourg, France for a port visit
29 July 2009 anchored off Pothoustock, Cornwall after being engaged in exercises in Falmouth Bay
12 October 2009 sailed from Portland. RASed with RFA Wave Ruler (2)
27 January 2010 while at sea off Portsmouth Sergeant Andrew Pearson, Royal Marines fell while attempting to board the ship from a RIB and died from a combination of having his breathing restricted, falling from a height and drowning. An inquest touching on the cause of his death was held at Portsmouth on the 23 August 2011 where a verdict of ‘accidental death’ was returned by the jury.
19 -23 March 2010 paid an informal visit to Den Helder
5 May 2010 Temporary Acting Captain (X) Vernon Ramsey-Smith RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
Captain Vernon Ramsey-Smith RFA
16 June 2010 members of the ships company attended a ceremony at the Commonwealth Cemetery at La Boule, France
17 June 2010 Commanding Officer and a party made up from all sections of the ships company attended the commemorative service at the Lancastria memorial on the sea front in St. Nazaire, where wreaths were laid by the Commanding Officer Captain Vernon Ramsey-Smith for the RFA and by 2/O Ian Gill for the Royal Navy, alongside those of the various Lancastria associations, families and affiliates.
3 September 2010 berthed at Greenock
4 September 2010 ship open to the public between 10am and 4pm at the Clydeport GOT Terminal with 3000+ visitors
5 September 2010 sailed Greenock
19 February 2011 in Plymouth Sound
8 June 2011 off Cyprus loaded an Apache helicopter and ferried it to HMS OCEAN off Libya
10 August 2011 entered Grand Harbour, Malta and berthed alongside Dock No 2 at French Creek
24 October 2011 anchored off Kirkcaldy, Scotland
27 November 2011 entered Plymouth Sound and moored to C Bouy
28 November 2011 sailed Plymouth Sound to sea returned later the same day
29 November 2010 Captain (X) R G Ferris OBE RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
17 June 2011 Captain (X) Phillip T Hanton RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
8 November 2011 Captain (X) R G Ferris OBE RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
20 January 2012 berthed at Grenada to provide support to the seventh UK-Caribbean Ministerial Forum
15 February 2012 at Guntanamo Bay to refuel loading 246,000 gallons
23 February 2012 and 24 February 2012 at Bridgetown, Barbados the Prince Edward, the Commodore in Chief of the RFA with the Countess of Wessex made a formal visit to the Island from the ship hosting a reception on board
25 February 2012 at Kingstown, St Vincent and the Grenadines the Prince Edward, the Commodore in Chief of the RFA with the Countess of Wessex received the Governor-General His Excelency Sir Frederick Ballantyne GCMG on board
28 February 2012 at Port of Spain Trinidad the Prince and Princess Edward, Earl and Countess of Wessex made a formal visit to the Islands from the ship
20 April 2012 berthed at Road Town, British Virgin Islands
19 May 2012 Captain (X) M Gould RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
13 June 2012 berthed at Havana, Cuba to strengthen counter-narcotics collaboration work between UK and Cuban authorities. The visit coincided with Cuba’s British culture week and the 250th anniversary of the Battle of Havana when British forces laid siege to Havana in June 1762 during the Seven Years’ War with Spain. The ship’s company took time to lay a wreath at the Jose Marti Memorial in Havana, which honours a martyr of the revolution against Spanish control. RFA staff visited a cigar factory and historic buildings and, in exchange, more than 900 Cubans visited the ship.
RFA Fort Rosalie alongside at Havanna, Cuba
8 July 2012 berthed at Kings Wharf, Bermuda with RFA ARGUS
11 July 2012 sailed Kings Wharf, Bermuda
26 August 2012 arrived at Plymouth Sound
27 August 2012 sailed Plymouth Sound to sea
7 September 2012 deployed on Operation Kipion in the Persian Gulf until 3 January 2013
15 September 2012 Captain (X) D J M Worthington OBE RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
12 December 2012 deployed in the Gulf of Oman
16 December 2012 off Djibouti
The above 3 images of RFA Fort Rosalie courtesy and © of Captain Shaun Jones OBE RFA
29 December 2012 arrived Gibraltar Bay, sailing into the North Atlantic later the same day
3 January 2013 berthed at Glen Mallan, Scotland with the assistance of the tug SD Impetus
5 January 2013 sailed from Glen Mallan, Scotland
6 January 2013 arrived at Liverpool
30 May 2014 berthed at Birkenhead
3 October 2015 Captain (X) M R Sayer RFA appointed as Commanding Offocer
10 September 2015 Captain (E) Stuart M Peters RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer
17 October 2015 Captain (X) S K Booth RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
24 October 2015 Captain (X) M R Sayer RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
15 December 2015 Captain (X) Nigel A Budd RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
Captain (X) Nigel A Budd RFA
2January 2016 Captain (X) David A Eagles RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
11 January 2016 Captain (E) Richard M Maddock RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer
Captain (E) Richard M Maddock RFA
3 February 2016 Captain (X) Jonathan P Huxley RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
5 February 2016 Captain (E) Paul W Greenough RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer
28 February 2016 at Portland and Captain (X) Gerald A Patterson RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
Captain (X) Gerald A Patterson RFA
21 March 2016 at Portland Captain (X) Peter N Selby RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
2 April 2016 Captain (E) Richard S Graham RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer
18 April 2016 Temporary Acting Captain (X) M A Lawrence RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
31 May 2016 berthed at Devonport
4 June 2016 Captain (X) Jeremy A Macanley RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
RFA Fort Rosalie (2) berthing at Brest, France
9 July 2016 sailed Brest, France
12 July 2016 arrived at Cobh, Republic of Ireland for Volvo Cork Week
15 September 2016 Captain (E) Richard S Graham RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer
22 September 2016 Captain (X) Jonathan P Huxley RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
10 October 2016 sailed from Portland Harbour
14 October 2016 arrived at Birkenhead
4 November 2016 at Birkenhead and Captain (X) Gerard A Patterson RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
24 January 2017 Captain (E) Nicholas W Fox RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer
6 March 2017 sailed Plymouth for Portland arriving the next day
13 March 2017 sailed Portland to Plymouth arriving the same day
15 March 2017 berthed at Portland
22 March 2017 at Portland
7 April 2017 Captain (X) Gerard A Patterson RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
11 April 2017 sailed Portland
24 April 2017 sailed Loch Striven
28 April 2017 berthed at Portland
29 May 2017 Captain (X) Jonathan P Huxley RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
2 June 2017 Captain (E) James K Hardy RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer
21 July 2017 secured to D Buoy, Plymouth Sound
24 July 2017 sailed Plymouth Sound
28 July 2017 berthed at Portland
25 August 2017 arrived Plymouth Sound making fast to “D” Buoy
1 September 2017 sailed Plymouth Sound returning the same day
25 September 2017 sailed Plymouth Sound
7 October 2017 deployed on Operation Kipion in the Persian Gulf
8 October 2017 transitted the Suez Canal into the Red Sea. 2nd Officer (SE) Garry Hogg RFA discharged dead from natural causes
11 October 2017 escorted through the Bab el Mandeb Strait from the Red Sea by USS Howard (DDG83) together with USS America (LHA6)
18 October 2017 arrived at Dubai sailing the same day
19 October 2017 2nd Officer (SE) Garry Hogg RFA repatriated to his family at RAF Brize Norton
20 October 2017 berthed at Dubai
29 October 1917 at Dubai Marine James Holloway of 42 Commando, Royal Marines discharged dead
Marine James Holloway
8 November 1917 Marine James Holloway of 42 Commando, Royal Marines repatriated to his family at RAF Brize Norton
18 November 2017 sailed Dubai
30 November 2017 arrived at Fujairah and berthed
1 December 2017 sailed Fujairah
27 December 2017 sailed Muscat
29 December 2017 arrived at Salalah
3 January 2018 in the Arabian Sea provided helicopter assistance at night to HMAS WARRAMUNGA so that a boarding party from the Australian warship might board a vessel in international waters. The ship was found to be carrying 3.5 tonnes of illegal narcotics which was seized
Petty Officer Leslie Floyd, RAN examines the narcotics find
10 January 2018 berthed at Dubai
14 January 2018 sailed Dubai
15 January 2018 arrived at Sitrah Anchorage, Bahrein
16 January 2018 sailed Khalifa Bin Salman, Bahrein
3 February 2018 sailed Dubai
4 February 2018 anchored at Sitrah, Bahrein
9 February 2018 RASed with USNS Guadalupe
11 February 2018 berthed at Bahrein
13 February 2018 sailed Bahrein
16 February 2018 arrived at Dubai
An MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter flown by Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 6 collects supplies from RFA Fort Rosalie (2) in the Gulf and delivers them to USS Theodore Roosevelt
During her time with the US 5th Fleet, RFA Fort Rosalie (2) transferred 254 pallets of stores, weighing 87,500kg
28 February 2018 Captain (E) Craig A Holden RFA appointed as Chief Engineer Officer
6 March 2018 sailed Dubai
24 March 2018 sailed Duqm
7 April 2018 anchored at Suez
18 April 2018 berthed at Tangiers, Morroco
20 April 2018 sailed from Tangiers, Morroco
24 April 2018 berthed at Crombie, River Forth
7 May 2018 Captain (X) Gerard A Patterson RFA appointed as Commanding Officer
8 June 2018 berthed at Bidston Docks, Birkenhead
31 March 2021 ceased operational RFA service
21 May 2021 the Ministry of Defence through the Defence Equipment Sales Authority (DESA) seek expressions of interest for the sale of the former RFA Fort Rosalie (2) for recycling only.
29 October 2021 the Defence Equipment Sales Authority (DESA) reported that the Fort Rosalie had been sold to Egypt and renamed ENS ABU SIMBEL
July 2022 at Birkenhead the ships new name and hull number painted thereon