HMNZS Charles Upham
| History | |
|---|---|
| Civilian service | |
| Name: |
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| Owner: |
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| Builder: | Frederikshavns Vft, Frederikshavn |
| Yard number: | 407 |
| Launched: | 16 December 1983 |
| Completed: | 6 April 1984 |
| Identification: | IMO number: 8131128 |
| Status: | Active as of 2009 |
| History | |
 New Zealand
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| Name: | HMNZS Charles Upham |
| Namesake: | Charles Upham |
| Acquired: | 16 December 1994 |
| Commissioned: | 18 October 1995 |
| Decommissioned: | July 2001 |
| Nickname(s): |
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| Fate: | Sold back into civilian service |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Mercardian 2-in-1 class roll-on/roll-off vessel |
| Displacement: |
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| Length: | 131.7 metres (432 ft) |
| Beam: | 21.1 metres (69 ft) |
| Draught: | 6.2 metres (20 ft) |
| Ramps: | 1 stern ramp, 1 starboard ramp |
| Propulsion: |
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| Speed: | 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph) |
| Range: | 7,000 nautical miles (13,000 km; 8,100 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph) |
| Capacity: | Up to 7,000 tonnes (6,900 long tons; 7,700 short tons) of cargo (civilian service) |
| Complement: |
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| Sensors and processing systems: |
2 × I-band navigational radars |
| Electronic warfare & decoys: |
2 × SRBOC Mark 36 launchers (military service) |
| Armament: | 4 × 12.7-millimetre (0.50 in) machine guns (military service) |
HMNZS Charles Upham (A02) was a Mercardian 2-in-1 class roll-on/roll-off vessel operated by the Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN) between 1994 and 2001. The vessel was built for the Danish shipping company Mercandia during the early 1980s, and operated under the names Mercandian Queen II and Continental Queen II. The New Zealand Defence Force had identified the need for a logistic support ship as early as the 1970s but it was not until the 1991 white paper that planning to acquire a ship commenced in earnest. Mercandian Queen II was for sale around that time, and although not as capable as the RNZN had initially specified, was purchased in 1994.
The ship arrived in New Zealand in 1995 under the name Sealift, and was commissioned later that year as HMNZS Charles Upham, taking the name of dual Victoria Cross winner Charles Upham. After some modification, the ship made two voyages to test her capabilities and determine what further work was required to make her fully operational. Significant problems with stability and seakeeping were encountered during the second voyage, and the ship was removed from service on her return. The cost of fixing the stability problems and fitting Charles Upham out for troop and vehicle transport was prohibitive, and the work was postponed. In the meantime, the ship was chartered to Spanish company Contenemar SA in 1998 and used to transport citrus fruit around the Mediterranean.
By 2001, the New Zealand government had decided that Charles Upham was unusable and should be sold. The ship was sold to Contenemar (who operated her under the name Don Carlos, then Don Carlos II), then converted into a vehicle carrier and onsold in 2009 to Indonesian company PT Pelayaran Putra Sejati (operating as Nusantara Sejati). In the meantime, the RNZN sought to acquire a new logistic vessel, with HMNZS Canterbury entering service in 2007.
The vessel was one of 137 cargo vessels built by Danish shipping company Mercandia between 1964 and 1996 for their worldwide shipping fleet. The ship is of the Mercandian 2-in-1 class design, with a displacement of 7,995 tonnes (7,869 long tons; 8,813 short tons) at light load, and 10,500 tonnes (10,300 long tons; 11,600 short tons) at full load. She is 131.7 metres (432 ft) long, with a beam of 21.1 metres (69 ft), and a draught of 6.2 metres (20 ft). The propulsion system consists of a MaK M 453AK diesel motor, which supplied 4,890 horsepower (3,650 kW) to a single controllable-pitch propeller. This was supplemented by a bow thruster. Maximum speed was 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph), and maximum range was 7,000 nautical miles (13,000 km; 8,100 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph).
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