HMS Sheffield (D80)

Guided-Missile Frigate Warship

United Kingdom | 1975

"HMS Sheffield D80 was completed as an anti-aircraft frigate for the British Royal Navy - but met her end at the hands of an Argentine missile in the Falklands War of 1982."

Image from Wikipedia user Nathalmad; No endorsement of this site should be implied.

Power & Performance
Those special qualities that separate one sea-going vessel design from another. Performance specifications presented assume optimal operating conditions for HMS Sheffield (D80).

4 x Rolls-Royce Olympus TM3B gas turbines of 50,000 horsepower for high-speed sailing and 4 x Rolls-Royce Tyne RM1C gas turbines of 5,340 horsepower for general cruising; 2 x Shafts.
Propulsion

30.0 kts
34.5 mph
Surface Speed

4,171 nm
4,800 miles | 7,725 km
Range

Structure
The bow-to-stern, port-to-starboard physical qualities of HMS Sheffield (D80).

287
Personnel
Complement

410.0 ft
124.97 meters
O/A Length

47.0 ft
14.33 meters
Beam

19.0 ft
5.79 meters
Draught

3,600
tons
Displacement

Armament
Available supported armament and special-mission equipment featured in the design of HMS Sheffield (D80).

1 x 4.5" Mark 8 turreted main gun.
1 x GWS-30 "Sea Dart" twin-missile launcher (surface-to-air missile - SAM - system).
2 x Triple torpedo tubes.

Air Arm
Available supported fixed-wing / rotary-wing aircraft featured in the design of HMS Sheffield (D80).

1 x Westland Lynx navalized helicopter launched and retrieved from the stern flight deck. This aircraft outfitted for anti-submarine / anti-ship sorties.

Ships-in-Class (16)
Notable series variants as part of the HMS Sheffield (D80) family line as relating to the Type 42 / Sheffield-class group.

HMS Sheffield (D80);

Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 04/06/2018 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site; No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

The Type 42 guided-missile destroyer of the British Royal Navy (RN) was a prime late-Cold War era surface combatant that appeared in a sixteen-strong class. These succeeded the Type 82 that was adopted in 1973 and numbered just one of the eight planned vessels. The Type 42s were built in three batches and were taken into service beginning in 1975. The group soldiered on in a frontline role into 2013 by which point they were, themselves, succeeded by the Type 45 stealth frigates (numbering six and detailed elsewhere on this site).

HMS Sheffield Basics
HMS Sheffield(D80) was counted as one of the Type 42s built. She saw her keel laid down by Vickers Shipbuilding on January 15th, 1970 and was launched to sea on June 10th, 1971. She was formally commissioned under pennant number "D80" on February 16th, 1975 and set to fight under the motto of "Deo Adjuvante Labor Proficit" ("With God's Help, Our Labour is Successful"). Sadly, during her building program, an explosion killed two dock workers and caused significant damage to the hull - delaying her entry into service some.

The Sheffield-class
HMS Sheffield was the lead ship of the Type 42 class and also led Batch 1 of three (therefore the Type 42 class is sometimes referred to as the "Sheffield-class"). At least two ships of Batch 3 were built for the Argentine Navy (ARA Hercules D1 ARA Santisima D2) - a soon-to-be British enemy in the Falklands War (1982).

Sheffield Walk-Around
The warship carried the lines established by the Type 42 design standard: a turreted main gun was set over the forecastle with a twin-missile launcher positioned just aft of this and ahead of the bridge section. The bridge was integrated into the forward superstructure with various mastworks dotting its roofline. At midships was the combination enclosed smoke funnel and a secondary mast just aft. The peculiar design of the smoke funnel (with added deflectors) led to the name "Mickey Mouse Ears" being associated with their appearance. The aft superstructure was then positioned ahead of a stern-based helicopter flight deck complete with hangar facilities to support a single Westland "Lynx" medium-lift navy helicopter (or similar). This helicopter could further be armed with anti-ship / anti-submarine equipment and weaponry. A pair of boats were carried for special purposes. A crew of 287 were carried including a dedicated air wing.

Installed Power
Power was from a COmbined Gas-Or-Gas (COGOG) arrangement which saw 2 x Rolls-Royce "Olympus" TM3B high-speed gas turbines coupled with 2 x Rolls-Royce "Tyne" RM1C gas turbines offering 50,000 horsepower and 5,340 horsepower, respectively. The former was to be used for high-speed dashes and the latter reserved for general cruising. These drove power to 2 x Shafts. Top achievable speeds in ideal conditions could reach 30 knots and range was out to 4,200 nautical miles.

Content ©MilitaryFactory.com; No Reproduction Permitted.

Installed Weaponry
The primary purpose of her design was in airspace denial so this meant the warship carried an extensive set of radar and sensor equipment as well as sonar. The twin-missile launcher fit was the GWS-30 "Sea Dart" and twenty-two reloads were carried. More conventional weaponry included the 4.5" Mark 8 series gun set at the forecastle. 2 x Triple torpedo tubes offered the vessel a counter against enemy submarines at range.

The Falklands War of 1982
HMS Sheffield was critical in trialing the Sea Dart at-sea missile weapon and was used in this fashion until about 1980. On April 2nd, 1982, the military-run Argentine government sent in its forces to take the Falklands Islands from British hands to prompt the beginning of the Falklands War. The war ran over the period of two months, one week and resulted in a decisive British military victory - leading the Argentines to replace their military government with a democratically-elected one in 1983. Additionally, the two countries severed political ties until 1989.

The Falklands War was a tremendous British naval undertaking which saw forces amassed in Britain anf Gibraltar and set sail to Ascension in the mid-Atlantic. From there, the force moved into the South Atlantic and operated in and around the Falklands Islands region off the Argentine coast.

As resounding as the British victory was, it came at a price with 255 killed to the Argentine's 649. The British Royal Navy lost a pair of frigates as well as a pair of destroyers and three lesser ships. Twenty-four helicopters, ten combat warplanes, and a single bomber were part of the tallied losses before the end.

The End for HMS Sheffield
Nevertheless, the need was great and HMS Sheffield was pushed into action along with other RN warships. While she operated in the Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) picket role for the British Task Force on May 4th, 1982, she was struck by one of two Exocet anti-ship missiles launched by Argentine Air Navy Dassault "Super Etendard" fighter-bombers (detailed elsewhere on this site). The strike hit her amidships while the second fell harmlessly into the water near her port section. The damage resulted in loss of critical operating components and began to spread fire - this in addition to twenty of her crew killed. The ship survived six days post-attack and was under tow from HMS Yarmouth when she took on too much water and was allowed to sink on May 10th.

In an after-action review of the situation, there proved many failings on the part of the British for the attack and subsequent sinking of one of their warships. Issues ranged from lack of a complete Electronic CounterMeasures (ECM) suite and operator/crew training to operator/officer-level responses and the failure of available technologies at play.

Content ©MilitaryFactory.com; No Reproduction Permitted.

Operators
Global operator(s) of the HMS Sheffield (D80). Nations are displayed by flag, each linked to their respective national naval warfare listing.

[ United Kingdom (sunk) ]

1 / 1

Image from Wikipedia user Nathalmad; No endorsement of this site should be implied.

Going Further...
HMS Sheffield (D80) Guided-Missile Frigate Warship appears in the following collections:

Disclaimer | Privacy Policy | Cookies

2024 Military Pay Scale Military Ranks of the World U.S. Department of Defense Dictionary Conversion Calculators Military Alphabet Code Military Map Symbols Breakdown U.S. 5-Star Generals List WWII Weapons by Country World War Next

The "Military Factory" name and MilitaryFactory.com logo are registered ® U.S. trademarks protected by all applicable domestic and international intellectual property laws. All written content, illustrations, and photography are unique to this website (unless where indicated) and not for reuse/reproduction in any form. Material presented throughout this website is for historical and entertainment value only and should not to be construed as usable for hardware restoration, maintenance, or general operation. We do not sell any of the items showcased on this site. Please direct all other inquiries to militaryfactory AT gmail.com. No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

Part of a network of sites that includes GlobalFirepower, a data-driven property used in ranking the top military powers of the world, WDMMA.org (World Directory of Modern Military Aircraft), WDMMW.org (World Directory of Modern Military Warships), SR71blackbird.org, detailing the history of the world's most iconic spyplane, and MilitaryRibbons.info, cataloguing military medals and ribbons. Special Interest: RailRoad Junction, the locomotive encyclopedia.

©2024 www.MilitaryFactory.com • All Rights Reserved • Content ©2003-2024 (21yrs)