HMS Herald (H138)

HMS Herald was a Hecla-class ocean survey ship that served with the Royal Navy during both the Falklands War and Gulf War.

Design and construction
The Hecla-class were designed as combined hydrographic and oceanographic survey ships, built to merchant ship standards and of similar design to RRS Discovery. Herald was the fourth ship of the class and was built to an improved design to the three earlier Heclas. She was laid down at the Robb Caledon's Leith shipyard on 9 November 1971, was launched on 4 October 1973 and completed on 31 October 1974. She had the Pennant number A138.

Herald was 79.3 m long, with a beam of 15.0 m and a draught of 4.7 m. Displacement was 2000 LT standard and 2945 LT full load. She had diesel-electric propulsion, with three Paxman Ventura 12-cylinder diesel engines rated at 1280 bhp powering two electric motors, rated at a total of 2000 hp and driving one propeller shaft, giving a speed of 14 kn. She had a range of 12000 nmi at a speed of 11 kn. The ship had a complement of 128 officers and other ranks.

Operational history
In January 1979, Herald, along with sister ship HMS Hydra (A144) and the smaller survey ships HMS Fawn (A325) and HMS Fox (A320), was carrying out survey operations off the coast of Iran when she was diverted to pick up about 60 British and American dependents from the port of Bandar Abbas in the wake of the Iranian Revolution.

During the Falklands War, Herald served as a Red Cross ship, ferrying casualties from San Carlos to Montevideo. During 1983 she served as a South Atlantic Guardship.

Following the Iraqi Invasion of Kuwait in August 1990, Herald was deployed to the Eastern Mediterranean as a support ship for the minehunters of the 3rd Mine Countermeasures Squadron. She continued to support the squadron after it moved to the Gulf, and was still on station when the Gulf War air campaign began in January 1991, but was relieved by sister ship HMS Hecla (A133).

In 1998 she located the wreck of HMS Russell, off Malta. The ship's pennant number changed to H 138 in 1998.

In December 2000, Herald answered a Mayday call and took part in a joint operation with the Royal Air Force to rescue the crew of the Cypriot ferry Royal Prince. The 35-metre ship sank in rough seas, but the crew were rescued by a RAF helicopter from RAF Akrotiri and landed on HMS Herald.

Decommissioning
Herald was paid off on 12 April 2001 and decommissioned on 31 May 2001, having been replaced by the two new survey vessels of the Echo class, HMS Echo (H87) and HMS Enterprise (H88).

After decommissioning, Herald joined her sister HMS Hecla (A133) in Waterford after a brief re-fit in Cork dockyard. She was renamed Somerville after Admiral James Somerville and was used for a hydrographic survey in Irish waters. The ship was sold in 2004 to Indian breakers and beached on 18 June of that year.

Postage stamps
Herald appears on two stamps with Prince Andrew, Duke of York, issued by Saint Helena.