HMS Mounts Bay (K627)

For the Royal Fleet Auxiliary ship of the same name, see RFA Mounts Bay (L3008).

HMS Mounts Bay (K627) as NRP Vasco da Gama (F478)
History
United Kingdom
Name	HMS Mounts Bay
Namesake	Mount's Bay
Builder	William Pickersgill & Sons Ltd., South Bank, Middlesbrough
Laid down	23 October 1944
Launched	8 June 1945
Commissioned	11 April 1949
Decommissioned	May 1960
Identification	pennant number K627
Honours and awards	Korea 1950–53
Fate	Sold to Portugal, 1961
Portugal
Name	NRP Vasco da Gama
Namesake	Vasco da Gama
Acquired	1961
Identification	F478
Fate	Scrapped 1971
General characteristics
Class and type	Bay-class frigate
Displacement	1,600 long tons (1,626 t) standard 2,530 long tons (2,571 t) full
Length	286 ft (87 m) p/p 307 ft 3 in (93.65 m) o/a
Beam	38 ft 6 in (11.73 m)
Draught	12 ft 9 in (3.89 m)
Propulsion	2 × Admiralty 3-drum boilers, 2 shafts, 4-cylinder vertical triple expansion reciprocating engines, 5,500 ihp (4,100 kW)
Speed	19.5 knots (36.1 km/h; 22.4 mph)
Range	724 tons oil fuel, 9,500 nmi (17,600 km) at 12 knots (22 km/h)
Complement	157
Sensors and processing systems	Type 285 fire control radar Type 291 air warning radar Type 276 target indication radar High Frequency Direction Finder (HF/DF) IFF transponder
Armament	4 × QF 4-inch Mark XVI guns on 2 twin mounting HA/LA Mk.XIX 4 × 40 mm Bofors A/A on 2 twin mounts Mk.V 4 × 20 mm Oerlikon A/A on 2 twin mounts Mk.V 1 × Hedgehog 24 barrel A/S projector 2 rails and 4 throwers for 50 depth charges

HMS Mounts Bay was a Bay-class anti-aircraft frigate of the British Royal Navy, named after Mount's Bay in Cornwall. In commission from 1949 until 1960, she saw active service in the Korean War, and was sold to Portugal in 1961 to serve as NRP Vasco da Gama until 1971.

Decommissioning and disposal

In May 1960 the ship was decommissioned and put into Reserve at Portsmouth. She was modernized by John I Thornycroft in Southampton, before being commissioned by the Portuguese Navy on 3 August 1961.

Publications

• Colledge, J. J.; Warlow, Ben (2006) [1969]. Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy (Rev. ed.). London: Chatham Publishing. ISBN 978-1-86176-281-8.