HMS Kent (F78)

Off Djibouti in 2015, with new "Kryten" gun after refit
History
United Kingdom
NameHMS Kent
NamesakeDuke of Kent
OperatorRoyal Navy
OrderedFebruary 1996
BuilderYarrow Shipbuilders
Laid down16 April 1997
Launched27 May 1998
Sponsored byPrincess Alexandra, The Hon. Lady Ogilvy
Commissioned8 June 2000
RefitLIFEX 2016–2018
HomeportDevonport[1]
Identificationlist error: mixed text and list (help)
Pennant number: F78
MottoInvicta (Unconquered)
StatusIn refit
Badge
General characteristics
Class and typeType 23 frigate
Displacement4,900 t (4,800 long tons; 5,400 short tons)[2]
Length133 m (436 ft 4 in)
Beam16.1 m (52 ft 10 in)
Draught7.3 m (23 ft 11 in)
PropulsionCODLAG:
SpeedIn excess of 28 kn (52 km/h; 32 mph)
Range7,500 nautical miles (14,000 km) at 15 kn (28 km/h)
Complement185 (accommodation for up to 205)
Electronic warfare
& decoys
Armament
Aircraft carried
  • 1 × Wildcat HMA2, armed with:
  • 2 × anti-submarine torpedoes (Martlet multirole missiles to be fitted in 2021/22 and full operating capability for Sea Venom ASM projected from 2026)[6]
  • or
  • 1 × Westland Merlin HM2, armed with;
  • 4 × anti-submarine torpedoes
Aviation facilities

HMS Kent is a Type 23 Duke-class frigate of the Royal Navy, and the twelfth ship to bear the name, although formally she is named after the dukedom rather than the county. Sponsored by Princess Alexandra, The Hon. Lady Ogilvy (daughter of the late Prince George, Duke of Kent), Kent was launched on 28 May 1998 and commissioned on 8 June 2000 under the command of then Commander John Clink. She was the first ship to enter Royal Navy service in the 21st century and the first Royal Navy warship with a female Executive Officer, Lt Cdr Vanessa Jane Spiller, appointed in April 2001.[7][8][9]

Kent's lineage boasts sixteen Battle Honours from the three given to the first Kent of 46 guns built in 1653, to the five awarded to the ninth and tenth Kents of World War I and World War II.[7]

  1. ^ "FOI(A) regarding the Royal Navy" (PDF). What do they know?. 27 April 2021. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
  2. ^ "Type 23 Frigate". Royal Navy. Archived from the original on 19 January 2014. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  3. ^ Peruzzi, Luca (2017). "Royal Navy unveiled Sea Ceptor and launched first user group at DSEI 2017". European Defence Review.
  4. ^ @NavyLookout (23 October 2023). "@NavyLookout .@HMS_Kent leaves Portsmouth this morning following 3-week delay to her programme" (Tweet). Retrieved 23 October 2023 – via Twitter.
  5. ^ Scott, Richard (19 December 2023). "First NSM fit on RN Type 23 frigate". Janes. Retrieved 23 April 2024.
  6. ^ "Royal Navy's Sea Venom light anti-ship missile full operating capability delayed until 2026". Navy Lookout. 21 June 2023.
  7. ^ a b "HMS Kent – The Millenium Frigate". Royal Navy. 2007. Archived from the original on 10 May 2008. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  8. ^ 21st century
  9. ^ Dykes, Godfrey. "When Women first went to sea". RN Communications Branch Museum. Retrieved 6 May 2023.