| HMCS Restigouche (DDE 257) | |
|---|---|
 HMCS Restigouche underway in 1983 | |
| Career (Canada) |   |
| Namesake: | Restigouche River |
| Builder: | Canadian Vickers, Montreal |
| Laid down: | 15 July 1953 |
| Launched: | 22 November 1954 |
| Commissioned: | 7 June 1958 |
| Decommissioned: | 31 August 1994 |
| Motto: | Rester Droit |
| Nickname: | Rusty Guts |
| Honours and awards: | Atlantic 1939-45, North Sea 1940, Mediterranean 1943, Normandy 1944, Biscay 1944 |
| Fate: | Sunk off Mexico in 2001 as an artificial reef. |
| Badge: | Blazon Or, the head of a five pronged fish-spear erect, azure. |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type: | Restigouche-class destroyer |
| Displacement: |
As built: 2800 tonnes (deep load) After IRE: 2900 tonnes (deep load) |
| Length: |
As built: 366 ft (111.6 m) After IRE: 371 ft (113.1 m) |
| Beam: | 42 ft (12.8 m) |
| Draught: | 14 ft (4.3 m) |
| Propulsion: | 2-shaft English-Electric geared steam turbines, 2 Babcock and Wilcox boilers 30,000 shp |
| Speed: | 28 knots (51.9 km/h) |
| Range: | 4,750 nautical miles (8,797.0 km) at 14 knots (25.9 km/h) |
| Complement: |
As built: 249 |
| Sensors and processing systems: |
As built:
After IRE:
After DELEX:
After Gulf War:
|
| Electronic warfare & decoys: |
As built:
After IRE:
After DELEX:
After Gulf War:
|
| Armament: |
As built:
After IRE/DELEX:
After Gulf War:
|
| Aircraft carried: | none |
HMCS Restigouche (DDE 257) was a Restigouche-class destroyer that served in the Royal Canadian Navy and later the Canadian Forces from 1958-1994.
She was the lead ship of her class and the second Canadian warship to carry the name HMCS Restigouche.
Restigouche was laid down on 17 July 1953 at Canadian Vickers Ltd., Montreal and launched on 22 November 1954. She was commissioned into the RCN on 7 June 1958 carrying the pennant number 257.
_in_1992.JPEG){kind=link}
Restigouche in 1992, with Phalanx CIWS and Harpoon missile launchers aft.
Restigouche was selected by the Canadian Forces for the Improved Restigouche (IRE) program and completed this refit in 1972. She was also selected as one of 10 destroyers in the Destroyer Life Extension (DELEX) program and completed this refit on 29 November 1985.
Restigouche was to be deployed on Operation FRICTION, the CF contribution to Operation DESERT STORM (the Gulf War) to relieve HMCS Terra Nova (DDE 259) in early 1991. She was refitted at CFB Esquimalt however the war ended before her refit was completed. She had her Mk.112 ASROC octuple launcher and her Mk NC 10 Limbo ASW mortars removed and was fitted with 8 X Harpoon anti-ship missiles and a (CIWS) Close In Weapons System.
Restigouche arrived in the Persian Gulf region after the war and instead saw service with the Multinational Interception Force (MIF) in the northern Red Sea in 1992. During the MIF deployment Restigouche completed an Eastbound circumnavigation of the globe sailing from Esquimalt to Esquimalt via the Pacific Ocean, Panama Canal, Atlantic Ocean, Suez Canal, Indian Ocean and Pacific Ocean
She was decommissioned from active service in the CF on 31 August 1994.
She was sunk as an artificial reef off Acapulco, Mexico in 2001.
Ship's Bell[]
The Christening Bells Project at Canadian Forces Base Esquimalt Naval and Military Museum includes information from the ship's bell of HMCS Restigouche (2nd) 1958 - 1994, which was used for baptism of babies onboard ship. The bell is currently held by the Royal Canadian Legion, Lantzville, British Columbia. The bell contains Christenings & Marriages 1941 - 1979.[1]
References[]
- ↑ http://www.navalandmilitarymuseum.org/resource_pages/bells/bells.asp Christening bells
External links[]
- "Canada's Fabulous Submarine Killer...HMCS Restigouche" , by Wayne Wittaker March 1959 article in Popular Mechanics with cutaway illustration of ship
The original article can be found at HMCS Restigouche (DDE 257) and the edit history here.