RFA Gold Rover (A271)

RFA Gold Rover (A271) is a small fleet tanker of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary and is one of five Rover Class ships that were designed by the Admiralty, all of which were built at the Swan Hunter shipyard.

Today Gold Rover and her sister Black Rover are the last two in service with the R.F.A. on duty around the world, the others have all been phased out as part of a worldwide effort to replace single-hulled vessels with double-hulled.

Major Duties
In July 1974 Gold Rover participated in evacuation duties during the partition of Cyprus during the Turkish invasion of the island.

Gold Rover participated in the 1986 Jamaican flood relief operations. In January 2000 Gold Rover was towed back to Devonport by two RMAS tugs after breaking down off Lizard Point.

2006 was a busy year for Gold Rover: She was in Nigeria in June 2006 for the 50th anniversary celebrations of the formation of the Nigerian Navy. As part of the celebrations there was a Fleet Review by President Olusegun Obasanjo.

On 6 October she, along with Royal Navy frigate HMS Argyll (F231) and Royal Marines from 40 Commando, seized more than two tonnes of cocaine during a major drugs haul off the coast of West Africa. The illegal drugs, which were found in an unregistered vessel, had a UK street value of some £60 million.

Gold Rover was part of a Royal Navy amphibious task group, the VELA Deployment 06, en route to Sierra Leone where she and other ships were taking part in a major amphibious exercise. Whilst on the way to West Africa Gold Rover was contributing to the global fight against terrorism and the Royal Navy's maritime security operations activity.