View source for Salisbury-class frigate

{{Short description|Class of frigate of the Royal Navy}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin
}}
{{Infobox ship image
| Ship image = HMS Lincoln. 1972.jpg
| Ship caption = HMS ''Lincoln'', 1972
}}
{{Infobox ship class overview
|Name=''Salisbury'' class
|Builders=
|Operators=*{{navy|United Kingdom}}
*{{navy|Bangladesh}}
|Class before=
|Class after={{sclass|Leander|frigate|4}}
|Subclasses=
|Cost=
|Built range=1952–1959
|In service range=
|In commission range=*1957–1985 (British service)
*1978–2016 (Bangladesh service)
|Total ships building=
|Total ships planned=7
|Total ships completed=4
|Total ships cancelled=3
|Total ships active=
|Total ships laid up=
|Total ships lost=
|Total ships retired=4
|Total ships preserved=
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
| Hide header = 
| Header caption = 
| Ship type = [[Frigate]]
| Ship displacement = *2,170 tons standard
*2,400 tons full load
| Ship length = {{convert|340|ft|m|abbr=on}} [[o/a]]
| Ship beam = {{convert|40|ft|m|abbr=on}}
| Ship height = 
| Ship draught = {{convert|15|ft|6|in|m|abbr=on}}
| Ship depth = 
| Ship propulsion = *8 × Admiralty Standard Range ASR1 [[diesel engine|diesel]]s, {{convert|14400|shp|0|abbr=on}}, 2 shafts
*220 tons fuel oil<ref>Gardiner, p. 157</ref>
| Ship speed = {{convert|24|kn|km/h|abbr=on}}
| Ship range = {{convert|7500|nmi|km|abbr=on}} at {{convert|16|kn|km/h|abbr=on}}
| Ship endurance = 
| Ship boats = 
| Ship troops = 
| Ship complement = 235
| Ship sensors = *Type 960 air search radar, ''later'' Type 965 ''AKE-2''
*[[Type 293 radar|Type 293Q]] target indication radar, ''later'' Type 993n
*Type 982 aircraft direction radar, ''later'' Type 986
*[[Type 277 radar|Type 277Q]] height finding radar, ''later'' Type 278
*Type 974 navigation radar, ''later'' Type 978
* Type 275 fire control radar on director Mark 6M
*Type 262 fire control on ''STAAG'' mount
*Type 1010 [[A.C. Cossor|Cossor]] Mark 10 [[Identification friend or foe|IFF]]
*Type 174 search sonar
*Type 170 attack sonar
| Ship EW = 
| Ship armament = *1 × twin [[QF 4.5-inch Mk I – V naval gun|4.5-inch (113 mm) gun Mark 6]]
*1 × twin [[Bofors 40 mm Automatic Gun L/60|40 mm Bofors]] gun STAAG Mark&nbsp;2, ''later'';
*1 × twin 40 mm Bofors gun Mk.5; ''Llandaff'' & ''Chichester''
*1 × [[Seacat (missile)|Sea Cat GWS-20 SAM]]; ''Lincoln'' & ''Salisbury''
*1 × [[Squid (weapon)|Squid A/S mortar]]
| Ship armour = 
| Ship notes = 
}}
|}

The '''Type 61 ''Salisbury''''' class was a [[ship class|class]] of the [[Royal Navy]] aircraft direction (AD) frigate, built in the 1950s.<ref name=1974RINApaper>Purvis, M.K., 'Post War RN Frigate and Guided Missile Destroyer Design 1944–1969',  Transactions,  Royal Institution of Naval Architects (RINA), 1974</ref><ref name="Marriott">Marriott 1990</ref>{{page needed|date=July 2022}} The purpose of the aircraft direction ships was to provide [[radar picket]] duties at some distance from a carrier [[task force]] and offer interception guidance to aircraft operating in their area.

The class was part of a multi-purpose [[frigate]] concept that also included the Type 41 [[Leopard-class frigate|''Leopard''-class]] [[anti-aircraft]] ships and the cancelled Type 11 anti-submarine variant. Together, they were the first ships in the Royal Navy to use [[diesel propulsion]]. Improvements in conventional [[steam turbine]] power erased the range advantage of the diesel and led to future purchases of Type 61 and 41 being cancelled or converted to the new [[Leander-class frigate|Type 12 frigate]].

==Design==
The ''Salisbury'' class frigates were conceived as part of the 1944 project for common-hull diesel-powered 1700-ton anti-submarine (A/S), air-warfare (AW) and aircraft direction (AD) vessels. The first two prototypes were ordered in the late 1945 construction programme <ref>CAB 1294 1945 & ADM 138/830 ref in D.K Brown % G. Moore. Redesigning the TN (2012) p 71-75</ref> and were built as HMS ''Salisbury'' <ref>Brown & Moore (2012)p73-4</ref> and a second diesel, HMS ''Leopard'' (T41) as a suitable A/S frigate or sloop prototype could not proceed at the time.  By 1947 the legend (i.e: the complete plan of the RN warship, delivered to the shipyard to start building) of the Type&nbsp;61 AD frigates and its sister [[Type 41 frigate|Type 41]] AW light destroyer were complete.<ref>D.K. Brown and G. Moore. ''Redesigning the RN. Post WW2''. Seaforth. Barnsley. 2012, pp71-4.</ref>

The design of the new air defence frigates could proceed faster as the requirements were clearer and less complex and fuel-efficient diesel power was adequate for [[Escort Group|convoy escort]] picket ships. Destroyers could be converted for faster picket duties with carrier task forces. The design of new anti-submarine frigates was delayed due to the expectation that the [[Soviet Union]] would build submarines that were much faster underwater, based on the German [[Type XXI submarine|Type XXI]] and [[Type XXIII submarine|Type XXIII]] submarines, which operated at 12–16 knots underwater and [[hydrogen peroxide]] (HP) powered submarines running at 22–25 knots submerged. This led the navy to revert to steam turbines and the slower evolution of the Type 12 variant. Steam turbines provided the quietness and speed desirable for anti-submarine applications. However the design of efficient powerful steam turbines for affordable common hulled anti-sub frigates with the range to escort Atlantic convoys and speed to screen carrier task forces took years and was never entirely achieved.

Neither the [[Dido-class cruiser|''Dido''-class cruisers]] nor the [[Daring-class destroyer (1949)|''Daring''-class destroyers]] had the space required to combine the processing of radar and communications with dual-purpose [[AA gun]]s. This integration was complicated, making the new diesel air warning and aircraft direction frigates an even higher priority. The legend of the lead [[Type 12 frigate|Type 12]] anti-submarine frigate was not drawn until 1950 as a steam version of the diesel Type&nbsp;61.<ref>R. Gardiner. ''Conways All the Worlds Fighting Ships. Pt 1 Western Powers''. London (1983) pp 152–3, 157–9 & 161–62.</ref> The original steam Type&nbsp;11 frigate concept was abandoned in 1945 and was never designed.<ref>A. Preston in R. Gardiner (ed) ''Conways All the Worlds Fighting Ships. Pt 1. Western Powers''. Conway Maritime. London. 1983, p157, 159.</ref>

The Type 61 was the first of the new generation frigates laid down in 1951.<ref>H.T. Lenton ''British Commonwealth Warships''. Ian Allan. London (1966 & 1971)</ref>{{page needed|date=June 2020}}<ref>J. E. Moore. ''British Warships''. Janes. London (1979 & 1981)</ref>{{page needed|date=June 2020}} Without the second Mk 6 4.5-inch gun turret of the Type 41,  the Type 61 had 100 tons extra capacity for fuel and the longest range of the frigate variants, 5000&nbsp;nm at 15 knots <ref>Brown & Moore. ''Rebuilding the RN'' (2012) p74-5</ref> compared with 4,500&nbsp;nm for the Type 41 or the official 12k. The range of the steam powered Type 12 was only 2500-3000&nbsp;nm at 14 knots<ref>G. Wright. HMNZS Blackpool. Auckland</ref>{{page needed|date=July 2022}} <ref>R Gardiner & A.Preston. "Whitby/Rothesay T12" ''All the World's Fighting Ships. Western Powers''.</ref>{{page needed|date=July 2022}}   It was seen as much more important than the related [[Type 41 frigate|Type&nbsp;41 (''Leopard''-class)]] frigates, but with reduced armament (one twin 4.5-inch mount instead of two) to make way for more aircraft direction equipment. The Type 61  carried the {{convert|200|km|abbr=on}} range  Type 982 rake Air Warning radar and Type 277M search and height finder in addition to the radars on the Type 41 but the two additional systems added only 23 tons compared with the saving of 115 tons by excluding the second 4.5 inch turret. The Type 61 was later refitted with the high mounted (four-ton) antenna of the [[Type 965 radar|Type&nbsp;965 (AKE-2) radar]]. The aircraft direction and air-warning frigates provided extra stations to the aircraft carriers to track incoming air attacks, and direct and communicate with defensive Royal Navy and land-based fighters. The AD cruisers were used in [[Operation Musketeer (1956)|Operation Musketeer]] during the 1956 [[Suez Crisis]]; [[Hawker Sea Hawk]] ground attack and [[English Electric Canberra]] and [[Vickers Valiant]] bomber aircraft struck land air bases and other targets. Directing carrier-based air interception and strike operations was far more important than the "little cat" Type&nbsp;41s or "big cat", [[Tiger-class cruiser]]'s guns.<ref>{{cite book|first=A. |last=Preston |editor-first=R |editor-last=Gardiner  |title=Conways All the World Fighting Ships 1947–82 Pt 1 |location=London |date=1983 |page= 162}}</ref>

In the mid-1950s, the Royal Navy was largely operating small light [[fleet carrier]]s and first-generation jets which could takeoff from slow-moving carriers. In 1960, a second flotilla of four extra Type&nbsp;61 AD frigates was planned. However by 1961–62 the big carrier [[HMS Ark Royal (R09)|HMS ''Ark Royal'']]{{'}}s problems were debugged, the reconstructed small carriers [[HMS Victorious (R38)|HMS ''Victorious]] and [[HMS Hermes (R12)|HMS ''Hermes'']] came into effective service with second-generation [[de Havilland Sea Vixen]]s and [[Supermarine Scimitar]] aircraft and the navy's best carrier - [[HMS Eagle (R05)|HMS ''Eagle'']] - was being reconstructed. Only the four [[Battle-class destroyer#Aircraft Direction Conversion|Battle-class AD conversions]] were suitable as fast carrier pickets, as the Type&nbsp;61's diesel power plant lacked the speed for operations with fast carrier groups.

In 1962, orders for extra Type&nbsp;61s were cancelled, long after the second flotilla of Type&nbsp;41s was abandoned in 1955–1957, and a 2,000-ton 'East Coast convoy' Type 42 frigate (a 25 knot derivative of the T41/61 diesel hull with 3/N5 4-inch automatic Vickers guns<ref>Gardiner & Preston. ''Conways Fighting Ships 1947–1982. Pt 1. Western Powers''. Conway Maritime. London. 1983, p 159.</ref> with 2/4 MR3 DCT and 40mm the T42 (1955) was a pocket RN diesel version of Chile's Vickers-built [[Almirante-class destroyer]]s) was cancelled with the [[1957 Defence White Paper]]. The role of the Type&nbsp;61 was as a seaworthy air-ocean surveillance ship and air-control ship to escort slow task forces, such as [[amphibious warfare]] task forces. In the 1960s the T61 were still seen as important units and their modernisation was much more substantial than that of the Type&nbsp;41.<ref>A. Preston in R. Gardiner(ed). ''Conways All the Worlds Fighting Ships''. London. 1983, p 161.</ref> The election of another Labour Government in 1974 threatened to bring the Type 61 service life to a premature end and the two frigates still deployed East of Suez in January 1976, ''Chichester'' was struck and ''Llandaff'' was sold to [[Bangladesh]] by the end of 1976. The [[Seacat missile]]-fitted Type 61s had a life extension in 1976, due to the [[Cod War]] confrontations with Iceland. HMS ''Jaguar'' (a Type 41) and ''Lincoln'' were refitted as specialised rammers with a reinforced bow to present a higher-level threat to Icelandic gunboats. The stronger UK/RN stand led to settlement of the Third Cod war before ''Lincoln'' finished its trials. With the expanded 200 mile offshore zones, partly stemming from the Cod Wars, ''Lincoln'' remained in commission to late 1977 on deep water patrol. The possibility of a new generation of diesel-electric anti-submarine [[Type 23 frigate]]s resulted in ''Lincoln'' being refitted in 1978 to [[NATO]] operational frigate standard, to test certain hull characteristics and silencing of diesel electric engines relative to passive sonar operation.

The primary aircraft direction equipment fitted to the Type&nbsp;61s was initially the [[Type 960 radar]] for aircraft warning and Type 982M radar for a degree of 3D cover and better air control over land. The Type 960 radar was replaced by [[Type 965 radar|Type 965P]] at refit for ''Salisbury'' (1961–1962), ''Chichester'' (1963–1964), ''Llandaff'' (1964–1966) and ''Lincoln'' (1966–1968) and <ref name="FriedmanDestroyers203">{{cite book|page=203|first1=Norman|last1=Friedman|title=British Destroyers & Frigates, the Second World War and After|edition=2nd|publisher=Seaforth Publishing|date=2008|isbn=978-1848320154}}</ref><ref name=Janes1966p296>{{cite book|page=296|title=Jane's Fighting Ships 1966-67|editor-first=Raymond V B|editor-last=Blackman |date=1966 |publisher=Sampson Low, Marston & Co Ltd}}</ref>

The Type 965 (AKE-2), had a large "double bedstead" antenna, while the Type 982M radar had a smaller "hayrake" antenna. The Seacat missile system was fitted to ''Lincoln'' in a long refit from 1966 to 1968 and in ''Salisbury'' from 1967 to 1970. It was the same GWS&nbsp;20 optically guided system being refitted at the time to the [[Rothesay-class frigate|''Rothesay''-class frigates]]. ''Llandaff'' continued to carry the twin MK&nbsp;5 [[Bofors 40 mm Automatic Gun L/60|40 mm Bofors]] until sold to Bangladesh. In the late 1960s ''Lincoln'', ''Salisbury'', ''Llandaff'' and the aircraft carriers ''Ark Royal'' and [[HMS Bulwark (R08)|''Bulwark'']] were all refitted with the new Type&nbsp;986 radar using the 982 antenna, as a partial substitute for the 984 3D radar capability lost with the phaseout of the strike carriers.

The Type 986 radar was intended to partially replace one of the roles of 984, giving more accurate, short-range definition of closing air targets to {{convert|120|km}}. It was only a partial replacement, as it lacked the 984 system's ability to rank and prioritize large numbers of targets for interrogation and air interception. The 965 twin array radar was limited and obsolete by the 1970s.<ref>N. Freidman. ''British Destroyers & Frigates. The Second World War And After''. Chatham Publishing, UK (2006), p162.</ref>

In 1973, HMS ''Chichester'' was downgraded to [[Hong Kong]] guardship with a reduced gun armament of twin 4.5-inch; one 40&nbsp;mm and two 20&nbsp;mm and the air surveillance radars were removed. HMS ''Lincoln'' was seriously damaged in the [[second Cod War]]. In 1974, the new Labour Government made a policy decision that only anti-submarine frigates would be operational in the frigate fleet from then on. For the rest of the decade, ''Salisbury'' and ''Lincoln'' alternated between the standby squadron and lengthy re-activations under a number of pretexts. HMS ''Salisbury'', under the first frigate command of [[Hugo White]] (later [[Admiral of the Fleet]]), was extensively involved in the [[third Cod War]], holding the line against Icelandic gunboats within {{convert|3|mi|km|order=flip}} of multinational fishing fleets, colliding seven times with the Iceland gunboats ''Tyr'' and ''Aegir'' in March and April 1976.<ref>Hugo White Obituary, ''The Times''. London, 7 June 2014</ref><ref>Independent. London 10 June 2014</ref>

Following serious damage in the Cod War, HMS ''Lincoln'' was repaired and returned to service until the end of the decade. After refits, it returned to the status of an operational RN frigate declared to NATO.

==Construction programme==
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:97%;"
|-valign=top
! |[[Pennant number|Pennant]]
! |Name
! width="20%" | Builder
! |Ordered
! |Laid Down
! |Launched
! |Accepted into service{{efn|The term used in ''Navy Estimates'' and ''Defence Estimates'' is "accepted into service".  ''Hansard'' has used the term ''acceptance date''.  Leo Marriott in his various books uses the term "completed", as does ''Jane's Fighting Ships''.  These terms all mean the same thing: the date the Navy accepts the vessel from the builder.  This date is important because maintenance cycles, etc. are generally calculated from the acceptance date.}}
! |Commissioned
!Estimated building cost{{efn|"Unit cost, i.e. excluding cost of certain items (e.g. aircraft, First Outfits)." (from ''Defences Estimates'')}}
! width="20%" | Fate
|-valign=top
|  | F32
|  | {{HMS|Salisbury|F32|2}}
|  | (a) HM Dockyard, Devonport<br> (b) Vickers Armstrong (Engineers) Ltd, Barrow-in-Furness <ref name=NE1957>''Navy Estimates, 1957–58'', pages 234–5, ''List and particulars of new ships which have been accepted or are expected to be accepted into HM service during the Financial Year ended 31 March 1957''</ref>
|  | 21 August 1951 <ref name="Warship2004p134">Moore, George, ''The dawn of the Salisbury, Leopard and Whitby class frigates'' in ''Warship, 2004'',  pub Conways, 2004, {{ISBN|0-85177-948-4}} page 134.</ref>
|  | 23 January 1952 <ref name="Conwaysp517">Gardiner, Robert ''Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1947–1995'', pub Conway Maritime Press, 1995, {{ISBN|0-85177-605-1}} page 517.<br>Note that this page of Conway's appears to contains errors concerning the fate of ships.  Where either pages 23 of Conway's or Norman Friedman's book contradict page 517 of Conway's, about the fate of vessels of the ''Salisbury'' class, then page 517 has been assumed to be less reliable{{citation needed|date=July 2022}}.</ref>
|  | 25 June 1953 <ref name=Conwaysp517/>
|  | 27 February 1957 <ref name=NE1957/>
|  | 27 February 1957 <ref name=Conwaysp517/>
|  | £2,900,000 <ref name=NE1957/>
|  | Sale to Egypt was cancelled 1978 in whilst on delivery trip. In May 1980 served as harbour training ship at Devonport. Sunk as target on 30 September 1985.<ref name=Conwaysp517/><ref name="Friedmanp338">Friedman, 2006. page 338.</ref>
|-valign=top
|  | F59
|  | {{HMS|Chichester|F59|2}}
|  | (a) The Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Co Ltd, Govan, Glasgow<br>(b) [[British Polar Engines]] Ltd, Glasgow <ref name=NE1959/>
|  | 28 June 1951 <ref name=Warship2004p134/>
|  | 26 June 1953 <ref name=Conwaysp517/>
|  | 21 June 1955 <ref name=Conwaysp517/>
|  | May 1958 <ref name=NE1959/>
|  | 16 May 1958 <ref name=Conwaysp517/>
|  | £3,291,000 <ref name=NE1959/>
|  | Converted to harbour guardship for Hong Kong 1973; sold for dismantling on 17 March 1981.<ref name=Conwaysp517/><ref name=Friedmanp338/>
|-valign=top
|  | F61
|  | {{HMS|Llandaff|F61|2}}
|  | (a) R & W Hawthorn Leslie and Co Ltd, Newcastle upon Tyne<br>(b) British Polar Engines Ltd, Glasgow <ref name=NE1959>''Navy Estimates, 1959–60'', pages 230–1, ''List and particulars of new ships which have been accepted or are expected to be accepted into HM service during the Financial Year ended 31 March 1959''</ref>
|  | 28 June 1951 <ref name=Warship2004p134/>
|  | 27 August 1953 <ref name=Conwaysp517/>
|  | 30 November 1955 <ref name=Conwaysp517/>
|  | April 1958 <ref name=NE1959/>
|  | 11 April 1958 <ref name=Conwaysp517/>
|  | £3,393,000 <ref name=NE1959/>
|  | Sold to Bangladesh 10 December 1978 as [[BNS Umar Farooq (1976)|BNS ''Umar Farooq'']].<ref name=Conwaysp517/><ref name=Conwaysp23/>  Claimed sold for breaking up in April 1983.<ref name=Friedmanp338/> but was in active service until 2015.<ref>[http://www.deccanchronicle.com/visakhapatnam/bangladesh-navy-ship-docks-city-068 Deccan Chronicle, ''Bangladesh Navy ship docks in city'', 19 December 2010]{{dead link|date=June 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> Finally beached for breaking at Chittagong on 19 November 2016.<ref>[http://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/December-2nd-2016.pdf GMS Weekly, 2 December 2016 Volume 172, Issue 751, Week 49]</ref>
|-valign=top
|  | F99
|  | {{HMS|Lincoln|F99|2}}
|  | (a) The Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Co Ltd, Govan, Glasgow<br>(b) [[Cammell Laird|Cammell Laird and Co (Shipbuilders and Engineers) Ltd]], [[Birkenhead]]<ref name=NE1961>''Navy Estimates, 1961–62'', pages 220–51, ''List and particulars of new ships which have been accepted or are expected to be accepted into HM service during the Financial Year ended 31 March 1961''</ref>
|  | 28 June 1951 <ref name=Warship2004p134/>
|  | 1 June 1955 <ref name=Conwaysp517/>
|  | 6 April 1959 <ref name=Conwaysp517/>
|  | July 1960 <ref name=NE1961/>
|  | 7 July 1960 <ref name=Conwaysp517/>
|  | £3,685,000 <ref name=NE1961/>
|  | Sale to Egypt in 1978 was cancelled.  Recommissioned briefly in August 1979 as submarine target.<ref name=Friedmanp338/>  Was intended to be sold to Bangladesh in 1982,<ref name=Conwaysp517/> but transfer did not take place.<ref name="Conwaysp23">Gardiner, Robert ''Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1947–1995'', pub Conway Maritime Press, 1995, {{ISBN|0-85177-605-1}} page 23.</ref> Ship dismantled in 1983.<ref name=Friedmanp338/>
|-
|}

Three further ships of the class were planned.  Two of these, intended as {{HMS|Exeter||6}} and {{HMS|Gloucester||6}}, were cancelled under the 1957 Defence Review, while a third, {{HMS|Coventry||6}}, was suspended.  It was hoped to order ''Coventry'' in 1961, but in the end it was decided to order the planned hull as a {{sclass|Leander|frigate|2}} that became {{HMS|Penelope|F127|6}}.<ref name=Conwaysp517/>

==Notes== 
{{notelist}}

==Citations== 
{{Reflist|30em}}

==References==
* Purvis, M.K.,  "Post War RN Frigate and Guided Missile Destroyer Design 1944–1969",  ''Transactions'',  Royal Institution of Naval Architects (RINA),  1974
* {{cite book |last=Marriott |first=Leo |title=Royal Navy Frigates Since 1945 |edition=2nd |isbn=0-7110-1915-0 |publisher= Ian Allan Ltd |location=Surrey, UK |date= 1990}}
* {{cite book|editor-last=Gardiner |editor-first=Robert |title=Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1947–1995 |publisher=Conway Maritime Press |date=1995 |isbn=1-55750-132-7}}
* {{cite book|last=Friedman |first= Norman |title=British Destroyers and Frigates, the Second World War and After |publisher= Chatham |location= London |date= 2006 |isbn= 978-1-84832-015-4 }}

{{Salisbury_class_frigate}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Salisbury class frigate}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2020}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Salisbury Class Frigate}}
[[Category:Frigate classes]]
[[Category:Salisbury-class frigates| ]]
[[Category:Ship classes of the Royal Navy]]