Spanish frigate Numancia

The Santa María class are a series of six guided missile frigates based on the American Oliver Hazard Perry class.[1] The Oliver Hazard Perry class had been conceived as a way to reduce unit costs while maintaining an anti-air warfare (AAW) platform with anti-submarine (ASW) and anti-surface warfare capabilities.[2] The Oliver Hazard Perry class came in two forms, the short-hulled and long-hulled, with the Santa María class being of the later with additional beam to allow for more top weight for future modifications.[3] The class came in two batches, with the first four being of batch one and the final two of the second. The first batch of ships have a displacement of 2,851 tonnes (2,806 long tons) light, 3,160 t (3,110 long tons) standard and 4,017 t (3,954 long tons) at full load. The second batch have the same light and standard displacements, with a full load displacement of 4,107 t (4,042 long tons). The frigates measure 138.8 metres (455 ft 5 in) long overall and 125.9 m (413 ft 1 in) at the waterline with a beam of 14.3 m (46 ft 11 in) and a standard draught of 4.52 m (14 ft 10 in) and a maximum draught at the sonar dome of 6.6 m (21 ft 8 in).[4] The ships have a complement of 223 sailors including 13 officers.[1]

The Santa María class is propelled by a controllable pitch propller powered by two General Electric LM2500 gas turbines creating 41,000 shaft horsepower (31,000 kW), giving the vessels a maximum speed of 29 knots (54 km/h; 33 mph). The frigates stow 587 t (578 long tons; 647 short tons) of fuel and have a range of 5,000 nautical miles (9,300 km; 5,800 mi) at 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph)[4] or 4,500 nmi (8,300 km; 5,200 mi) at 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph).[1] The ships have four 1,000 kW Kato-Allison 114-DOOL diesel generator sets creating a total of 4,000 kW. These can power two 260 kW (350 shp) retractable, rotatable auxiliary propulsion motors.[4] The vessels have fin stabilisers fitted.[1]

The frigate was ordered on 29 June 1977. The ship was laid down on 8 January 1986 at Izar's shipyard in Ferrol, Spain.[1] Delays in construction followed as the Spanish Navy deferred the frigate's construction in order to focus on the construction of a new aircraft carrier.[5] Numancia was launched on 29 January 1987 and commissioned into service on 17 November 1989.[1] The vessel is homeported at Rota, Spain as part of the 41st Escort Squadron.[4]

On 27 April 2009 Numancia seized the nine Somali pirates that tried to board the cruise ship MSC Melody after a short chase.[6] From March to August 2013, Numancia deployed to the Indian Ocean as part of Operation Atalanta.[7] In 2016, the frigate was deployed as part of Operation Sophia, intercepting illegal trafficking of migrants in the Mediterranean Sea.[8] In 2022, Numancia returned to the Indian Ocean, escorting food relief ships through the area as part of Operation Atalanta.[9]

• Gardiner, Robert; Chumbley, Stephen & Budzbon, Przemysław, eds. (1995). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1947–1995. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-132-7.
• Saunders, Stephen, ed. (2009). Jane's Fighting Ships 2009–2010 (112 ed.). Alexandria, Virginia: Jane's Information Group Inc. ISBN 978-0-7106-2888-6.
• Wertheim, Eric, ed. (2013). The Naval Institute Guide to Combat Fleets of the World (16th ed.). Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 9-7-815911-4954-5.