Phutthayotfa Chulalok-class frigate

Lead ship of the class, HTMS Phutthayotfa Chulalok in 2005

The Phutthayotfa Chulalok-class frigates are two of forty-six s originally laid down for the United States Navy as ocean escorts (formerly called destroyer escorts), but were all redesignated as frigates on 30 June 1975, in the USN 1975 ship reclassification and their hull designation changed from DE to FF. The Thai Navy acquired them between 1994 and 1996.

Description

The Phutthayotfa Chulalok class are Template:Cvt long overall and Template:Cvt at the waterline, with a beam of Template:Cvt and a draft of Template:Cvt, at a standard displacement of Template:Cvt and Template:Cvt at full load. The steam plant for these ships consists of two Combustion Engineering boilers each equipped with a high-pressure (supercharger) forced draught air supply system, with a plant working pressure of Template:Cvt and superheat and rated at driving a Westinghouse geared turbine connected to a single screw. This gives them a speed of Template:Cvt.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn

As built, they were equipped with one /54 caliber Mark 42 gun forward, an eight-round ASROC launcher (with 16 missiles carried) abaft the gun and forward of the bridge, with four fixed Template:Cvt Mark 32 anti-submarine torpedo tubes. A helicopter deck and hangar for operating the DASH drone helicopter was fitted aft.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn The helicopter facilities were expanded in the 1970s to accommodate the larger, crewed Kaman SH-2D Seasprite LAMP helicopter.Template:Sfn

Service history

and were purchased by Thailand in 1996 and 1999. Thailand had initially leased Truett in 1994. Following refits and a service life extensions costing some $14 million each, Ouellet and Truett were commissioned by the Royal Thai Navy as Phutthaloetla Naphalai (FFG-462) and Phutthayotfa Chulalok (FFG-461). Both are still in active service.Template:SfnTemplate:SfnTemplate:Sfn

In 2013, it was reported that the ships of this class would be retired, Phutthayotfa Chulalok in 2015, and Phutthaloetla Naphalai in 2017.Template:Sfn

Ships of the class

Original name	New name	New hull number	Builder	Laid Down	Commissioned US Navy	Decommissioned US Navy	Purchased by Royal Thai Navy	Decommissioned by Royal Thai Navy
	Phutthayotfa Chulalok	FFG 461	Avondale Shipyards, Westwego, Louisiana	27 April 1972	1 June 1974	30 July 1994	9 December 1999	1 April 2015
	Phutthaloetla Naphalai	FFG 462		15 January 1969	12 December 1970	6 August 1993	27 November 1996	26 September 2017

Phutthayotfa Chulalok

Phutthayotfa Chulalok (Template:Langx). The ship is named after the first king of the Chakri Dynasty, King Phutthayotfa Chulaok the Great.

The Royal Thai Navy first leased the ship from the US Navy after she was decommissioned on 30 July 1994. The ship was eventually purchased on 9 December 1999.

Phutthaloetla Naphalai

Phutthaloetla Naphalai (Template:Langx). The ship is named after the second king of the Chakri Dynasty, King Phutthaloetla Naphalai

The Royal Thai Navy purchased the ship from the US Navy after she was decommissioned on 6 August 1993. The ship subsequently underwent a US $14M refit at the Cascade General Shipyard, Portland, Oregon, and arrived in Thailand in 1998.Template:Sfn

Bibliography

• Template:Cbignore