French minesweeper Vulcain (original) (raw)
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 Vulcain at Caen in 2013 |
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| History | |
 France |
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| Name | Vulcain |
| Builder | Chantiers et ateliers de la Perrière, Lorient |
| Laid down | 15 May 1985 |
| Launched | 17 January 1986 |
| Commissioned | 11 October 1986 |
| Identification | MMSI number: 227800300 Callsign: FYCL Pennant number: M611 |
| Status | Active in service |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | _Vulcain_-class minesweeper |
| Tonnage | 490 DWT |
| Displacement | 409 tonnes |
| Length | 41.6 m (136 ft 6 in) |
| Beam | 7.5 m (24 ft 7 in) |
| Draught | 3.20 m (10 ft 6 in) |
| Installed power | 2,200 hp |
| Propulsion | 2 × SACM-Wärtsilä diesel engines 1 × bow thruster (70 hp) |
| Speed | 13.5 knots (25.0 km/h; 15.5 mph) |
| Range | 7,400 nmi (13,700 km; 8,500 mi) at 9 kn (17 km/h; 10 mph) 2,850 nmi (5,280 km; 3,280 mi) at 13.5 kn (25.0 km/h; 15.5 mph) |
| Complement | 1 officer 10 petty officers Quartermasters and sailors |
| Armament | 2 × AA-52 machine guns |
Vulcain (M611) is a _Vulcain_-class minesweeper of the French Navy. She is classed by the French Navy as a BBPD type vessel (French: bâtiment-base de plongeurs démineurs) and is used as a base ship for clearance divers.
Construction and career
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Vulcain was launched on 17 January 1986[1] and commissioned on 11 October.[2] She is based in Cherbourg Naval Base, in Cherbourg, France, and is run by the 1st GPD Groupement de Plongeurs démineurs, a group of French Army clearance divers. Since 16 May 1987, she has been symbolically linked with the town of Honfleur. The personnel on board usually comprises 12 divers, 1 medical officer and 1 nurse.
Other BBPDs of the Vulcain type are:
- BBPD Styx - M614
- BBPD Pluton - M622
- BBPD Achéron - A613
- List of active French Navy ships
- Jordan, John (1995). "France". In Chumbley, Stephen (ed.). Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships 1947–1995. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. pp. 95–131. ISBN 1-55750-132-7.
- Saunders, Stephen, ed. (2004). Jane's Fighting Ships 2004–2005. Coulsdon, UK: Jane's Information Group. ISBN 0-7106-2623-1.