HMS Repulse (S23)

For other ships with the same name, see HMS Repulse.

HMS Repulse (S23) was a Resolution-class ballistic missile submarine of the Royal Navy.

HMS Repulse in the Firth of Clyde circa 1979
History
United Kingdom
Name	HMS Repulse
Ordered	May 1963
Builder	Vickers Shipbuilding Ltd, Barrow-in-Furness
Laid down	12 March 1965
Launched	4 November 1967
Commissioned	28 September 1968
Decommissioned	28 August 1996
Status	Stored at Rosyth, awaiting disposal
Badge
General characteristics
Class and type	Resolution-class ballistic missile submarine
Displacement	surfaced 7,500 tons; submerged 8,400 tons.
Length	425 ft (130 m)
Beam	33 ft (10 m)
Draught	30 ft 1 in (9.17 m)
Propulsion	1 × Vickers/Rolls-Royce PWR.1 pressurised-water nuclear reactor, 27,500 shp (20,500 kW); Propeller.
Speed	surface - 20 kn (37 km/h); submerged - 25 kn (46 km/h)
Range	Unlimited except by food supplies
Complement	143 per crew (two crews port and starboard)

History

HMS Repulse was one of two Resolution-class ballistic missile submarines ordered from Vickers-Armstrongs on 8 May 1963, with a further two ordered from Cammell Laird the same day. Repulse was laid down at Vickers Armstrongs' Barrow-in-Furness shipyard on 12 March 1965 and was launched on 4 November 1967,^[1] She was launched by Lady Joan Zuckerman who was the wife of the Chief Scientific Advisor.^[2] Repulse ran aground in the Walney Channel during the launch, although she was undamaged and successfully floated off on the next high tide.^[3] She commissioned on 28 September 1968.^[4] While she was planned to be the third of her class, delays with the build of HMS Renown at Cammell Laird's Birkenhead shipyard meant that Repulse overtook Renown and was commissioned second of class.^[5] She was the last of her class remaining in service with the navy, decommissioning in 1996.

Appearances in media

HMS Repulse was joined by a BBC film crew for a deployment in 1984. The crew documented the effect of the 8 week long deployment on both the crew, and family members on land. The program was broadcast in February 1985, as part of a 6 film series documenting the Royal Navy Submarine Service.^[6]