Dale Group Mobile Reserve Tankers (AOM)

Three commercial tankers (named Naess Scotsman, Halcyon Breeze and Edenfield) built between 1964 and 1965 and chartered to the Royal Fleet Auxiliary in July 1967 for service East of Suez. The three vessels were given traditional Royal Fleet Auxiliary 'Dale' names - Ennerdale, Dewdale and Derwentdale - and underwent limited modifications for service in the Indian Ocean. Officially classed as Mobile Reserve Tankers, they had no RAS (Replenishment at Sea) capability.

Ship	Pennant Number	Builder	Laid Down	Launched	Commissioned
Ennerdale		Kieler Howaldstwerke		August 31st 1963
Derwentdale	A22?	Hitachi, Japan
Dewdale	A129	Harland & Wolff (Belfast)			1965

Ennerdale displaced 62,000 tons and measured 710ft in length, 98ft in breadth and 40ft in draught. She was powered by Babcock and Wilcox diesels and had a complement of 51 men. Formerly the MV Naess Scotsman, Ennerdale had the shortest career of the three. On 1st June 1970 she struck a coral reef off Port Victoria and sunk. The oil contained in her wreck threatened the Seychelles. As salvage was not possible, Ennerdale's wreck was destroyed by explosives. These explosives- including anti submarine mortar bombs and torpedo warheads - were placed by Wessex helicopters, as strong currents made it impossible for divers.

Derwentdale was built in Japan by Hitachi as the Halcyon Breeze and was taken over in 1967, on charter from Court Line. When fully loaded Derwentdale displaced 88,555 tons. She measured 799ft in length, 117.8ft in breadth and 42.3ft in draught. Powered by Babcock and Wilcox 4 Cylinder Diesels, she had a speed of 15.5 knots and a complement of 56. She was returned to her owners in 1974.

Dewdale had been built as the MV Edenfield. She displaced 67,000 tons and was also powered by Babcock and Wilcox diesels. She had a speed of 15 knots, a complement of 51 and measured 774ft in length, 107ft in breadth and 41ft in draught. At the time of the Silver Jubilee Review, Dewdale was the largest ship in both the Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary

RFA Derwentdale

Above: RFA Derwentdale. Photograph courtesy of George Mortimore.

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