Commissioned 13 February 1963 Launched 11 July 1960 | Laid down 3 November 1958 Decommissioned 30 March 1984 Construction started 3 November 1958 Operation Cod Wars | |
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Motto Ayo Gurkhali("The Gurkhas are here!") Builder John I. Thornycroft & Company | ||
HMS Gurkha was a Tribal-class frigate of the Royal Navy. She was named after an ethnic group located in Nepal, and who continue to serve in the British Army.
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Royal Navy service
Gurkha was built by John I. Thornycroft & Company, of Woolston, Hampshire, at a cost of £4,865,000 She was launched on 11 July 1960 and commissioned on 13 February 1963. In 1965 she was present at Portsmouth Navy Days.
In 1967 she commenced her third commission and served in the Persian Gulf.
In 1975, Gurkha deployed to the West Indies, where the ship performed various duties. In 1976, Gurkha supported Royal Navy efforts against Iceland during the Third Cod War. She sustained superficial damage in May when the patrol ship Óðinn attempted to force the ship towards the British trawler Ross Ramilles, during which Óðinn collided with Gurkha. In that collision Óðinn's port propeller was damaged by Gurkha's starboard stabiliser, forcing her to return to port for repairs.
Gurkha was present at the 1977 Spithead Fleet Review, held in honour of Queen Elizabeth II's Silver Jubilee. At this time she was part of the 1st Frigate Squadron.
Gurkha was reduced to the reserve in 1980, being placed in the Standby Squadron. Although she had been put on the disposal list, Gurkha was removed from the reserve during the Falklands War and prepared for active service. Gurkha remained in home waters, fulfilling duties in the absence of ships that were operating in the South Atlantic. The following year, Gurkha became Gibraltar Guardship.
Indonesian Navy service
After being decommissioned in 1984, Gurkha was sold to Indonesia. She was renamed Wilhelmus Zakarias Yohannes for the national hero Wilhelmus Zakaria Johannes after a radiologist and specialist in X-ray technology. The frigate was withdrawn from service in 1999 and remains laid up at Surabaya Naval Base to await scrapping.