HMS Fife (D20)

HMS Fife was the first unit of the Batch 2 County-class destroyers of the Royal Navy. She was subsequently sold to Chile and scrapped in 2005.

Royal Navy Service
She had 'B' turret removed and replaced with four Exocet launchers in the mid-1970s. In 1977, she attended the Silver Jubilee Fleet Review and formed part of the 2nd Flotilla. In 1979, Fife provided assistance to the Caribbean island of Dominica after the island was severely hit by Hurricane David. She was under refit during the Falklands War and so did not take part in the conflict.

Refit 1986
In 1986, Fife underwent a refit to convert her into a moving training ship. The removal of her Sea Slug missile system was completed in June 1986, which created space for extra messdecks and classrooms for officers under training. One messdeck still used hammocks and these officers are possibly the last men in the Royal Navy to sleep in hammocks; they were told so at the time. In September 1986 she undertook a Dartmouth Training Ship deployment to the Mediterranean returning to Portsmouth early December.

A "hut" was built where the sea slug launcher had once stood, aft of the helicopter pad. This grey box was actually a satellite navigation classroom and attracted much attention from a Russian Kashin-class destroyer, which regularly "buzzed" Fife for some close quarter photographs ... no doubt intrigued by the new structure.

Her second Dartmouth Training Ship deployment in January 1987 took her via Brest into the Mediterranean, in company with HMS Intrepid (L11). Her final voyage in the Royal Navy was to lead a Dartmouth Training Ship deployment to North America, in which she and HMS Juno (F52) sailed into the Great Lakes. On her return to Great Britain in June 1987 she landed the officers under training at Dartmouth and then proceeded to Portsmouth where she was decommissioned.

Chilean Navy Service
The ship was sold to Chile on 12 August 1987 and renamed Blanco Encalada. She was taken into refit at Talcahuano on her arrival and, taking advantage of the removed Sea Slug, her deck was extended aft and a new, larger hangar constructed. The rebuild was completed in May 1988. In 1996 Blanco Encalada's Sea Cat launchers were removed and she was fitted with the Barak SAM. Blanco Encalada was decommissioned from the Chilean Navy on 12 December 2003 and was sold for scrap in November 2005.