LÉ Orla (P41)

LÉ Orla (P41) is a Peacock-class patrol vessel in the Irish Naval Service. Like the rest of her class, she was originally designed for use by the British Royal Navy in Hong Kong waters, and was delivered in 1985 by Hall, Russell & Company[1] as HMS Swift (P243).

LÉ Orla in Dublin (2008)
History
 Ireland
Name: LÉ Orla
Namesake: Orla, a grand niece of Brian Boru
Builder: Hall Russell
Cost: £7.4m (1984 pounds)
Laid down: 1984
Launched: 1985
Commissioned: 19 January 1989
Homeport: Haulbowline Naval Base
Identification:
Status: In service
General characteristics
Class and type: Peacock-class patrol vessel
Displacement: 712 tonnes full load
Length: 62.6 m (205 ft)
Beam: 10 m (33 ft)
Draught: 2.72 m (8 ft 11 in)
Propulsion: 2 diesels, 2 shafts, 10,600 kW (14,200 bhp), 1 Schottel 'Loiter Drive' ( ≈180 bhp)
Speed: 25.0 kn (46.3 km/h)
Boats & landing
craft carried:		 X2 Avon 5.4 m (18 ft) seariders
Complement: 39 (6 officers and 33 ratings)
Armament:
  • 1 × 76 mm OTO Melara Cannon
  • 2 × Rh202 Rheinmetall 20 mm Cannon
  • 4 × 7.62 mm GPMG
Armour: Belted Steel

"Long Éireannach" (LÉ), Irish for "Irish ship", is the designation given to ships in the Irish Naval Service's fleet. The ship is named after Orla, a grand niece (great niece) of Brian Boru. She was murdered by her husband around 1090.[2] The crest shows the arms of Clare on the top segment and a sword and royal collar on the base.[2] She is the sister ship of LÉ Ciara.

Specifications

Orla has a displacement of 712 tons fully loaded. The ship was launched in 1984 and purchased by the Irish government in 1988. She is powered by two Crossley Pielstick 18 PA6V 280 diesels rated at 10,000 kW (14,000 hp), providing a top speed of 25 knots (46 km/h; 29 mph) and a range of 4,000 kilometres (2,500 mi) at 17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph).[2] She carries a crew of 39, including six officers. She is armed with one 76 mm/62 OTO Melara compact gun; two 20 mm Rh202 Rheinmetall weapons and four 12.7mm heavy machine-guns.

History

In November 2008, LÉ Orla assisted in Operation Seabight which resulted in the largest seizure of cocaine in the history of the state.[3]

In mid-2014, LÉ Orla was temporarily kept out of commission to facilitate the removal of asbestos which had been discovered on the ship.[4]

References
  1. Department of the Official Report (Hansard), House of Commons, Westminster. "House of Commons Hansard Debates for 23 Oct 1989". Publications.parliament.uk. Retrieved 1 November 2015.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. "Naval Service Fleet - P41 - LÉ Orla". military.ie. Archived from the original on 16 October 2007.
  3. "Ahern: Weather responsible for drug seizure - RTÉ News". rte.ie. 4 July 2007. Retrieved 1 November 2015.
  4. "Asbestos found on board third naval vessel". Irish Examiner. 28 August 2014. Retrieved 1 November 2015.


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