HMS Wakeful - Submarine Support Vessel

Built in 1965 by Cochrane at Selby in Yorkshire as an Ocean Going Tug, Wakeful was first operated by Sweedish interests and named Herakles, and then resold and renamed Dan. In 1974 she was purchased by the Royal Navy for £6,000 and commissioned as Wakeful.

Wakeful had a standard displacement of 493 tons and a full displacement of 900 tons. She measured 38.9 metres in length, 10.7 metres in breadth and 4.7 metres in draught. Powered by two Rushton diesels she had a speed of 14 knots. Her complement consisted of 5 officers and 22 ratings.

Wakeful employed on fishery protection duties in the North Sea until enough Island Class Offshore Patrol Vessels had commissioned to fulfil this role adequately. In 1976 she underwent a £1.6 million refit at Chatham. Upon completion she was assigned to HMS Neptune, the Clyde submarine base, to serve as a submarine tender, target ship and tugboat. Occassionally she was used as an icebreaker, assigned to shadow Soviet warships in British waters or employed in counter-terrorist and smuggling operations in Northern Irish waters.

Having been relieved of her duties by HMS Sentinel, Wakeful paid off on October 30th 1987. She was sold to Hellenic Salvage Tugboats in June 1988 and renamed Aegean Pelago, leaving Portsmouth on May 6th 1988 bound for Greece.

Ship Details

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© Written and researched by Jeremy Olver. First uploaded February 17th 2001. Updated February 17th 2001. Disclaimer.