HMS Puma (F34)


HMS Puma , was a Leopard-class Type 41 anti aircraft frigate of the British Royal Navy, named after the puma.

Operational service

In 1958 Puma began her third commission from Portland. During this commission she visited ports in Europe, Africa and South America as well as Diego Suarez. Between 1958 and 1960 she was commanded by Richard Clayton. She was paid off at Plymouth in 1961. During this commission she took part in naval exercises and served in the Iceland Patrol. In October 1962, Puma visited Tristan da Cunha, to help to prepare the island for the return of its residents, who had been evacuated as a result of the eruption of the volcano Queen Mary's Peak in 1961. Puma struck a submerged rock while off Tristan da Cuhna, damaging her port propeller, which resulted in the ship being docked down in Cape Town and then in Gibraltar for permanent repairs.
A major refit of Puma took place in Portsmouth Dockyard between 1963 and 1964 and the ship eventually re-commissioned for service in 1965, where she spent the year touring the UK recruiting. In 1966 she sailed for a foreign leg of her commission travelling to West and South Africa, as well as the South Atlantic, and South America, before returning to Plymouth in 1967.
In 1971 she undertook a Fishery Protection patrol in the Arctic and Barents Seas, using the northern Norwegian town of Hamerfest as a base, before paying off in Portsmouth in early 1972.

Publications