Month: May 2020

Indonesian Navy added to Shipsearcher Database

Shipsearcher Identification Section (SIS) staff are proud to add a new page – Indonesian Navy current and retired ships – to the project. It is our 22nd navy documented! An interest in documenting the Ahmad Yani class frigates, originally Dutch ships, modeled on the British Leander class design, snow-balled into looking for all other classes of frigates, and then other surface warships – 21 classes and 34 satellite views. With little prior familiarity with Indonesian ships, what we found was a modernizing, expanding fleet which, over recent years, has added some impressive blue-water assets.

Military Sealift Command’s USNS Rappahannock Delivers Fuel to Indonesian Frigate, Helps Increase Capacity
Indonesian Navy frigate KRI Raden Eddy Martadinata (FFG-331) prepares to receive fuel from Military Sealift Command’s fleet replenishment oiler USNS Rappahannock Credit: US Navy Official 4409432 Grady Fontana

These newer ships join a diverse collection of second-hand vessels from the USA, the Netherlands, and, most notably, the defunct Volksmarine of East Germany. In 1992, Indonesia bought as many as 42 former East German warships, massively enhancing the KRI fleet!

KSS_Wismar_Riss_Drauf-_u._Seitenansicht
East German Parchim class corvette KSS Wismar plans. Transferred, with 15 others to the Indonesian Navy, as KRI Sutanto 377. Credit: Y7mx / CC BY-SA

Other highlights include a bulked-up humanitarian / disaster relief capability, with two large, modern hospital ships, and a mini squadron of tall ships – sail training vessels. Both of these can be found on the Auxiliaries and Other Ships page. Enjoy!KRI Semarang 594 Surabaya 2019

South American Fleets added to the Project!

The Ship Identification Section (SIS) at Shipsearcher are very pleased to announce five new pages of satellite views, giving a veritable tour-de-force of large South American navies! These nations have interesting fleets made up of a diverse collection of ships, often acquired from elsewhere. The pages are for Brazil, Peru, Chile, Argentina, and Ecuador.

Almirante Grau
Peruvian cruiser BAP Almirante Grau at Curaçao, June 1973. CLM-81 Credit: Lswarte / CC BY

These views add 39 more pages, 63 classes of ships, and 94 satellite views to the database. The largest and most capable navy documented is Brazil’s fleet, which ranges from a recently-retired aircraft carrier to the last operational river dreadnought, the Parnaiba, originally commissioned in 1938. We have been trying to locate this active monitor in the interior of Brazil for months! We eventually found it far up the Paraguay River at the Mato Gosso do Sul port of Base fluvial de ladário.

Parnaiba on Paraguay River
Navy of Brazil [Attribution or Attribution]

There is much to discover about the other navies, too! Argentina’s fleet have been going through a lengthy period of neglect, symbolized by the sinking of the retired ARA Santissima Trinidad at its berth in 2013, and the tragic loss of the ARA San Juan submarine in 2017.

Santissima Trinidad Puerto Belgrano ARG 2013
Shipsearcher staff discovery: ships viewed in profile from a satellite are not doing well.
Muratureclass Buenos Aires
One highlight of Argentina’s fleet is the Murature class patrol ships, with one ship, ARA King, in commission since 1946! Credit: Diegoventu / CC BY-SA

Peru’s pages include the recently decommissioned light cruiser, BAP Almirante Grau, which was once the pride of the Dutch Navy. Chile has a great variety of frigates and a lovely sail training ship with a troubled past, the Esmeralda, which was once used by the Pinochet regime as a jail for political prisoners.

IMG_1097
Esmeralda entering Charlottetown Harbour, PEI, Canada, July 2017. Credit: Warsearcher.com

Ecuador’s small fleet includes a US Second World War Landing Ship (Tank), and some updated Leander-class warships, which have been serving for almost a half-century. We hope you enjoy these views, and welcome comments and suggestions.condell and leander class frigates ecuador 2009