- HMS Gurkha (F122)
HMS "Gurkha" (F122) was a Tribal-class
frigate of theRoyal Navy . She was named after an ethnic group located inNepal , and whose people continue to serve in theBritish Army . "Gurkha" was built byJohn I. Thornycroft & Company ofWoolston, Hampshire . She was launched on the on11 July 1960 and commissioned on the on13 February 1963 ."Gurkha" deployed to a variety of regions, including the Persian Gulf and Far East. In
1975 , "Gurkha" deployed to theWest Indies , and was involved in a variety of duties there, including performing fly-the-flag visits. In1976 , "Gurkha", like many other Royal Navy warships, took part in the Third Cod War during the long fishery disputes withIceland . "Gurkha" was often confronted by the aggressive Icelandic gunboats: she was rammed by the Icelandic gunboat "Odin" an astonishing four times in just one day, and in the following day, "Gurkha" was again in 'action' when she was rammed by the same gunboat three times.In
1977 , "Gurkha", like many warships from a variety of nations, took part in the last, at least so far,Fleet Review of the Royal Navy to honour HM the Queen's Silver Jubilee atSpithead , home of many Fleet Reviews in the past.In
1980 , "Gurkha" was placed in Reserve, theStandby Squadron , due to defence cuts imposed in the defence review by the then defence ministerJohn Nott . In response to theFalklands War in1982 , "Gurkha" underwent a refit before returning to active service to deployed around Home Waters to fill the gaps by the many warships that had deployed to theSouth Atlantic . The following year, "Gurkha" became theGibraltar Guardship and in March1984 , "Gurkha" was decommissioned and subsequently sold toIndonesia . She was renamed "Wilhelmus Zakarias Yohannes". "Wilhelmus Zakarias Yohannes" decommissioned from Indonesian service in 1999 and remains laid up.
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