HMS Bulwark (R08)

The sixth HMS Bulwark of the Royal Navy was a 22,000 tonne Centaur-class light fleet aircraft carrier.

Construction
Bulwark was laid down by the Harland & Wolff shipyard in Belfast on 10 May 1945. She was launched on 22 June 1948, but was not commissioned into the Royal Navy until 4 November 1954.

1950s
In 1956, Bulwark took part in her first operation, during the Suez Crisis, she launched up to 600 sorties in what was then known as Operation Musketeer. In 1958 she assisted two tankers that had collided in the Persian Gulf. She towed one of the tankers, SS Melika, to Muscat, winning the Boyd Trophy for her actions.

Final fixed wing complement as embarked in 1957, the Gannet squadron was dropped in 1958.
 * 801 & 898 sqn. 16 Sea Hawk FGA6 Fighter-Attack
 * 891 sqn. 8 Sea Venom FAW21 Night/All Weather Fighter
 * 820 sqn. 6 Gannet AS4 Anti-Submarine Warfare
 * 849 sqn. D flt. 4 Skyraider AEW1 Airborne Early Warning
 * 845 sqn. 5 Whirlwind HAS7 Helicopter Anti-Submarine Warfare
 * Ships Flight 1 Dragonfly HR5 Helicopter Search and Rescue

In 1958 she paid off at Portsmouth for conversion into a commando carrier. Her sister ship, Albion, did so in 1961.

1960s
In 1960, Bulwark was recommissioned with 42 Commando Royal Marines and 848 Squadron attached to the carrier. In 1961, due to an increasing threat of invasion of Kuwait by Iraq, Bulwark landed 42 Commando in Kuwait. In the same year, she became the first Royal Navy warship since World War II to commission outside the UK, commissioning instead in Singapore. She also took part in the campaign against Indonesia, during the Indonesian Confrontation. In June 1966 she carried out sea trials with the Kestrel: the forerunner of the Harrier.

In 1967, she again commissioned in Singapore Naval Dockyard (HMS Sembawang), and following her work up, proceeded to Aden to cover the withdrawal and relieve Eagle. Bulwark spent three months at sea off the coast of Aden with 3 Commando Brigade Royal Marines embarked. These were disembarked in Plymouth following a visit to Durban. By this time, Bulwark's nickname "The Rusty B" had become firmly established.

In 1968, after service in the Arctic with 45 Commando embarked for Exercise Polar Express, the ship spent some time in dry dock in Portsmouth Dockyard for a refit. For the duration of the refit, the ship's company was accommodated in Centaur.

In Spring 1969, with commanding officer Captain J.A. Templeton-Cotill (who would later become a rear admiral and Flag Officer Malta), Bulwark left for the Mediterranean and Exercise Olympic Express in the Aegean, with visits to Gibraltar, Malta, Cyprus, Salonica, Venice, Villefranche, and Toulon. For the later part of this voyage, a TV crew embarked to shoot a documentary 'Captain R.N.'. She returned to Devonport Dockyard for decommissioning in late 1969.

1970s and 1980s
In January 1970, Bulwark recommissioned and sailed to Singapore via Gibraltar, Cape Town, Gan, and Brunei. After a minor refit in Singapore Naval Dockyard (to repair damage sustained in Tropical Storm Diane after leaving Cape Town), the ship sailed for Kobe, Japan and Perth Australia before returning to Plymouth.

In September 1971 Bulwark took part in exercises in the eastern Mediterranean with 845 Squadron embarked. While close to the coast of (then) Yugoslavia she suffered an engine room fire and limped home on one engine.

In 1972, Bulwark, like her sister ship Albion, was involved in withdrawals across the declining empire. In 1972 she was HQ ship for Operation Exit, the withdrawal from Malta, an emotional withdrawal for the Royal Navy. Bulwark lay in Grand Harbour for 11 weeks and flew more than 1,000 missions.

Later in 1972 she took part in exercises in the Caribbean and visited Florida with 845 Squadron embarked.

Under the command of Captain Derek Bazalgette, she saw service in the Mediterranean in 1973 visiting Malta, Piraeus, Istanbul, Gibraltar and, in December 1973, Travemünde, the port of Lübeck. Owing to a delayed start date for refit, she embarked a company of Royal Netherlands Marines and spent early 1974 in the Dutch Caribbean, also visiting Cartagena, Colombia; she suffered damage during the storms of January 1974 in the eastern Atlantic. The 1974 refit was undertaken in Devonport Dockyard, during which time command transferred to Captain Johnnie R C Johnston. In 1975 she returned to the Mediterranean, visiting Gibraltar, Villefranche and Malta before returning to her home port of Plymouth in July.

In March 1976, Bulwark was withdrawn from service and placed in Reserve. Also during this year the Ministry of Defence offered the Bulwark to the Peruvian Navy. After two years of negotiations finally the Royal Navy decided to keep the ship. Furthermore, she underwent a refit at Portsmouth in 1978, and was recommissioned as an anti-submarine warfare carrier on 23 February 1979, due to delays with Invincible.

On 28 June 1979, Bulwark was involved in exercise Whiskey Venture, with 820 Squadron (flying Sea Kings) and 45 Royal Marine Commando embarked. Also during 1979, Bulwark was involved in trials of the Sea Harrier. At the start of 1980, Bulwark visited the United States of America; participating in Exercise Safe Passage off the east coast of the United States in late February. On 15 March, while alongside in Philadelphia, a fire destroyed one boiler. The carrier returned to Portsmouth on 2 April, and on 15 April embarked 45 Commando for Exercise Dawn Patrol off Sardinia. In August, Bulwark was involved in Exercise Teamwork 80 off Norway. On 9 November, a major fire damaged the forward hangar and some messdecks.

Nonetheless, the carrier remained intact for over a year, and during the early stages of the Falklands War it was announced that Bulwark would be reactivated. However, a rapid ship survey had determined she had deteriorated too much for this to be practical.

Decommissioning and fate
On 27 March 1981, Bulwark returned to Portsmouth for the final time in her career. She was decommissioned and declared for disposal in April. The carrier was towed from Portsmouth to Cairnryan to be scrapped in April 1984.