Baptista de Andrade class corvette
Encyclopedia
The Baptista de Andrade were a class of four corvette
Corvette
A corvette is a small, maneuverable, lightly armed warship, originally smaller than a frigate and larger than a coastal patrol craft or fast attack craft , although many recent designs resemble frigates in size and role...

s built for the Portuguese Navy
Portuguese Navy
The Portuguese Navy is the naval branch of the Portuguese Armed Forces which, in cooperation and integrated with the other branches of the Portuguese military, is charged with the military defence of Portugal....

 by BAZAN in Spain in the 1970s. They are an updated version of the João Coutinho class corvette
João Coutinho class corvette
The João Coutinho class corvettes were a series of corvettes built for the Portuguese Navy for service in Portugal's African colonies. The corvettes were designed in Portugal by naval engineer Rogério de Oliveira, but the urgent need of their services in the Portuguese Colonial War meant that the...

s - designed by the Portuguese naval engineer Rogério de Oliveira - with more modern armament and sensors. Like the João Coutinho ships, the Baptista de Andrade corvettes were intended to operate in the Portuguese overseas territories
Portuguese Empire
The Portuguese Empire , also known as the Portuguese Overseas Empire or the Portuguese Colonial Empire , was the first global empire in history...

.
The four ships were due to be sold to the Colombian Navy in 1977 after Portugal withdrew from its colonies but the deal was not completed. One ship, the Oliveira e Carmo, was decommissioned in 1999, the other three are in service but are due to retire soon and be replaced by Viana do Castelo class OPV's
Viana do Castelo class patrol vessel
The Viana do Castelo is a class of offshore patrol vessels planned by and for the Portuguese Navy, as a result of the NPO2000 Project , that are being constructed in the Estaleiros Navais de Viana do Castelo...

.

Ships

Pennant Number Name Launched Commissioned Status
F486 Baptista de Andrade March 1973 November 1974 In service 2008
F487 João Roby June 1973 March 1975 In Service 2008
F488 Afonso Cerqueira October 1973 June 1975 In service 2008
F489 Oliveira e Carmo February 1974 February 1976 Decommissioned 1999
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