HMS Hecla was the lead vessel of the Hecla class, a series of oceangoing survey ships built for the Royal Navy. Laid down on 6 May 1964 at Yarrow Shipbuilders’ Blythswood yard in Glasgow, she was launched on 21 December 1964 and commissioned on 9 September 1965, bearing the pennant number A133. As a survey vessel, she was designed for hydrographic and oceanographic research, built to merchant ship standards and sharing a similar design to RRS Discovery. Measuring 260 feet 2 inches (79.3 meters) in length with a beam of 49 feet 3 inches (15.0 meters), HMS Hecla had a draught of 15 feet 5 inches (4.7 meters). Her displacement was 1,915 long tons (light) and 2,733 long tons (full load), with a gross tonnage of 2,898. The ship was powered by diesel-electric propulsion, featuring three Paxman Ventura 12-cylinder diesel engines rated at 1,280 brake horsepower (950 kW). These engines drove two electric motors with a combined power of 2,000 horsepower (1,500 kW), turning a single propeller shaft and enabling a maximum speed of 14 knots. HMS Hecla had an impressive operational range, capable of traveling 12,000 nautical miles at 11 knots and up to 20,000 nautical miles at 9 knots. Her crew comprised 127 officers and ratings. The vessel was equipped with a hangar and helideck aft, supporting the operation of a Westland Wasp helicopter, and carried two surveying launches for her research missions. Over her service life, HMS Hecla undertook various survey roles, notably serving thirty years before being replaced by HMS Scott in 1997. During the Falklands War in 1982, she notably served as an ambulance ship, ferrying wounded from both sides to the hospital ship SS Uganda. After her naval service, she was sold into private hands, renamed "Bligh," and used in hydrographic surveys of Irish waters, based in Waterford, Ireland.

This description has been generated using GPT-4.1-NANO based on the Vessel's wikidata information and then modified by ShipIndex.org staff.