BAP Unión (BEV-161)

BAP Unión (BEV-161)
History
Peru
Name: Unión
Owner:  Peruvian Navy
Ordered: 23 December 2010
Builder: SIMA, Callao, Peru
Laid down: 8 December 2012
Launched: 22 December 2014[1]
Commissioned: 27 January 2016[2][3]
Status: In active service
General characteristics
Type: Barque
Displacement: 3,200 t[4][5]
Length: 115.75 metres (379.8 ft)[4][6]
Beam: 13.5 metres (44 ft)
Draft: 6.5 metres (21 ft)
Speed: 12 knots[7]

The BAP Unión is a training ship of the Peruvian Navy.[8] It is a four-masted steel hulled full rigged barque built in 2014 by Shipyard Marine Industrial Services of Peru, known as SIMA.[9] The ship's name honors a Peruvian corvette that took part in the first stage of the 1879-1883 War of the Pacific as part of a naval squadron under the command of Miguel Grau, the most important hero of the Peruvian Navy.[9][10]

Like other similar ships, the Unión has been conceived not only for training purposes, but also to be a sailing ambassador for her home country.[11] Due to its features and dimensions, it has been considered (as of the date it was commissioned) as the largest sail vessel in Latin America.[6][12][13]

History

BAP Unión in SIMA's dry dock

For a long time, the Peruvian Navy had desired a training ship to be used in the instruction of its cadets. Accordingly, the Peruvian government enacted in 1985 Law N° 24094[14] which declared as a public necessity the navy having this kind of ship. However, due to the economic crisis Peru suffered at the end of the 1980s, and later for public spending restraints, the project was constantly postponed.

It was not until 2010 that the project was finally approved and the building authorized.[15] On 2012 the Peruvian government announced its decision to order the ship's construction to the Shipyard Marine Industrial Services of Peru, known as SIMA; in cooperation with the Government of Spain,[16] through the contractors CYPSA and Navantia, which were responsible for the ship´s structural design.[17] On December 8, 2012 Unión's construction began with a keel laying ceremony in the presence of Peruvian president Ollanta Humala.[18] The hull was finished two years later and launched on December 22, 2014.[19]

In June 2015, the ship received its masts and propeller; and the interior fitout began in charge of contractors Acopafi and MO Contract. Also, according to an agreement between SIMA and Navantia, the ship was provided with an "Integrated Control System Platform, Navigation and Communications".[20][21]

While the ship was under construction, the Peruvian government arranged training for the future Unión's crew with the help of an instructor of the Spanish Navy[22] and by sending personnel to serve on training ships of other countries, such as the Mexican sailing ship ARM Cuauhtémoc.[23] Also, a Peruvian delegation was sent to take part in maintenance and repair works on Colombian sailing ship ARC Gloria.[24]

On January 27, 2016 the BAP Unión was commissioned in an official flag raising ceremony held on its deck and attended by Peruvian president Ollanta Humala, the Minister of Defense and the General Commander of the Navy. This act meant the ship was placed in active service.[2][25] As the first commander of the ship was designated Captain Gianfranco Polar Figari, who performed in June 2016 the sea trial of the vessel.[26]

The BAP Unión's first training cruise abroad took place on July 27, 2016.[27][28] The set sailing ceremony was attended by the President of the Council of Ministers, Pedro Cateriano, Minister of Defense, Jakke Valakivi, Minister or Foreing Affairs, Ana María Sanchez and the Commander of the Navy, Admiral Edmundo Deville, among other authorities. The journey, which was officially named as "VIEX 2016", acronym in Spanish of "Viaje de Instrucción al Extranjero 2016" (Training Trip Abroad 2016), had an estimated length of three months, in which the Union crew was scheduled to visit the ports of Guayaquil (Ecuador), Cartagena (Colombia), San Juan (Puerto Rico), La Habana (Cuba), Miami (United States), Veracruz (Mexico) and Balboa (Panama), before to returning to its base in Callao.[29][30] During the travel and in the places visited, the navy cadets and the crew received instruction in naval exercises and maneuvers, as well as showing people abroad several elements of Peruvian culture.[31]

Characteristics

BAP Unión in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Unión's figurehead. Close-up view of the Inca Yupanqui sculpture.

Specifications

The BAP Unión is a four-masted full rigged barque with a hull composed of 38 steel modules.[32] It has a total length (including bowsprit) of 115.75[4][6] m; a beam of 13.5 m; a draft of 6.50 m; an air draft of 53.5 m; a displacement of 3,200 metric tonnes;[4][5] a speed of 12 knots and a crew of 250 officers and trainees.

The ship´s propulsion is supported by a diesel Caterpillar 3516H engine,[33] a BERG propeller and a Rolls Royce maneuvering propeller. Its sail rig is composed of 24 sails from sailmaking company Wienecke, arranged in bowsprit mast (5), foresail mast (9), mainmast (9), mizzenmast (8) and jiggermast (3), with a total sail area of approximately 4,324 m2.[33]

Figurehead

The ship's figurehead was made of bronze by the Peruvian sculptor Pilar Martínez Woodman, and it features several symbols of the Inca culture that previously existed in what is now Peru. As the main element it shows the image of the Sapa Inca (emperor) Tupac Yupanqui, known as "The Shining", who appears with his right arm raised to the image of the Inca sun god Inti; and who is placed over a representation of the archeological artefact known the twelve angle stone. The Sapa Inca wears a checkered cloth and a cape that depicts ocean waves. He also wears two puma heads (the puma was a sacred animal in Inca culture)[34][35] as knee guards. His head is adorned with the mascapaicha (the Inca crown); and the shield he holds has the image of two rhombuses that represent the Inca Empire, known as Tawantinsuyu.[36][37]

Escutcheon

The Unión’s escutcheon depicts the ship sailing over the ocean with the motto Cudendum Character Nautarum ("forging sailors' character") written in Latin below. It also contains an image of the sky with representations of the constellations Ursa minor and Crux. Over the escutcheon is the image of a bright sun and the legend "Marina de Guerra del Perú" (Navy of Peru) and below the name and number of the ship.[38]

Interior equipment for training

Due to its use as a training ship, the Unión's interior includes an auditorium, a library, a computing platform and classrooms to instruct cadets in astronomic navigation; meteorology; oceanography; hydrography; and naval operations and maneuvers.[6][39]

Gallery

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Peru President attends Training Ship "Unión" launching event". andina.com.pe. December 22, 2014.
  2. 1 2 "Peruvian Navy set to receive BAP Union [sic]". janes.com. January 24, 2016.
  3. ↑ "Peruvian Navy, in collaboration with the Spanish Navy, has commissioned their new training ship Unión". navaltoday.com. January 31, 2016.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Peruvian Navy commissions new training ship". naval-technology.com. February 1, 2016.
  5. 1 2 "Peru commissions training sail ship as local naval shipbuilding progresses". janes.com. January 28, 2016.
  6. 1 2 3 4 "New Peruvian Training Ship Unión Largest of its Kind in Latin America". latinpost.com. January 28, 2016.
  7. ↑ "Defense minister oversaw the latest advances in the construction of Sailing Ship "Unión"" (in Spanish). marina.mil.pe. November 20, 2015.
  8. ↑ "Peru continues to rejuvenate its naval capability". janes.com. December 8, 2014.
  9. 1 2 "The Peruvian Navy takes charge". peruthisweek.com. October 5, 2015.
  10. ↑ "Latin America's largest sail training ship docks in Puerto Rico". efe.com. September 4, 2016.
  11. ↑ "BAP Tacna y Buque Escuela Unión: dos naves para el Perú" (in Spanish). elperuano.com.pe. December 16, 2014.
  12. ↑ "The Pride of the Peruvian Navy: The BAP Unión". peruthisweek.com. July 20, 2015.
  13. ↑ "Latin America's Training Vessels". cimsec.org. June 6, 2016.
  14. ↑ "Law N° 24094" (PDF) (in Spanish). Peruvian Congress. February 8, 1985. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-04.
  15. ↑ "La Marina de Guerra del Perú realizó la botadura del buque escuela a vela BAP "Unión"" (in Spanish). July 1, 2015.
  16. ↑ "Government of Spain will cooperate in Peruvian training ship construction" (in Spanish). larepublica.pe. November 12, 2012.
  17. ↑ "Empresa de vigo diseña mayor buque escuela" (in Spanish). lavozdegalicia.es. November 7, 2013.
  18. ↑ "Humala justifica retraso a ceremonia por medidas que va a tomar" (in Spanish). diariocorreo.pe. December 8, 2012.
  19. ↑ "Ollanta Humala participó en lanzamiento a mar de buque escuela a vela Unión" (in Spanish). peru21.pe. December 23, 2014.
  20. ↑ "Acuerdo de colaboración de NAVANTIA y el Astillero de la Marina de Guerra del Perú" (in Spanish). navantia.es. January 22, 2015.
  21. ↑ "Navantia Signs Partnership Agreement with Navy of Peru Shipyard". defense-aerospace.com. January 22, 2015.
  22. ↑ "España completa entrenamiento de la primera tripulación de buque escuela del Peru" (in Spanish). infodefensa.com. July 23, 2015.
  23. ↑ "Buque escuela mexicano adiestra a oficiales de armada peruana" (in Spanish). andina.com.pe. June 30, 2015.
  24. ↑ "Militares del Perú se instruyen en Colombia en el mantenimiento de buques a vela" (in Spanish). andina.com.pe. January 27, 2015.
  25. ↑ "The Navy of Peru officially incorporates Sailing Ship BAP Union [sic]". defensa.com. January 21, 2016.
  26. ↑ "Peruvian Navy training ship undergoes its sea tests" (in Spanish). infodefensa.com. June 22, 2016.
  27. ↑ "Navy Training Ship "Union" Sets Sail from Callao". peruviantimes.com. July 28, 2016.
  28. ↑ "The rise of the Latin American Shipyard". cimsec.org.com. August 22, 2016.
  29. ↑ "Latin America's largest sail training ship docks in Puerto Rico". latino.foxnews.com. September 7, 2016.
  30. ↑ "The Peruvian navy is here and glad to see us". miamiherald.com. September 17, 2016.
  31. ↑ "El BAP Unión de la Marina de Guerra del Perú zarpa en su primera travesía" (in Spanish). defensa.com. July 27, 2016.
  32. ↑ "Nota de Prensa Nro 086 - Bautizo y Lanzamiento BAP Unión" (in Spanish). marina.mil.pe. December 22, 2014.
  33. 1 2 "Launch of the Sailing Ship "Union" [sic] of the Navy of Peru". defensa.com. December 23, 2014.
  34. ↑ "Religious significance in Machu Picchu". www.machupicchu.org. PeruForLess. Retrieved February 16, 2016.
  35. ↑ "La trilogía inca: El cóndor, el puma y la serpiente". www.lateinamerika-studien.at.pe (in Spanish). Lateinamerika-Studien Online. Retrieved February 16, 2016.
  36. ↑ "Túpac Yupanqui, el mascarón de proa del buque escuela vela Unión" (in Spanish). larepublica.pe. January 19, 2016.
  37. ↑ "Visita del Premier y el Ministro de Defensa al Buque Escuela a Vela" (in Spanish). sima.com.pe. January 2016.
  38. ↑ "Marina de Guerra: La Unión y sus marinos vuelven a navegar en el Mar de Grau" (in Spanish). diariocorreo.pe. January 2016.
  39. ↑ "President: Union BAP [sic] confirms Peruvian progress on navy engineering". andina.com.pe. January 27, 2016.

External links

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