HSwMS Castor (T124)

HSwMS Castor at sea in 1967.
History
Sweden
Name	HSwMS Castor
Namesake	Castor
Builder	Karlskronavarvet
Launched	25 October 1965
Commissioned	7 July 1967
Decommissioned	30 June 1985
Identification	T124
Status	Decommissioned
General characteristics
Class and type	Spica-class fast attack craft (FAC)
Displacement	210 tons
Length	42.5 m (139 ft)
Beam	7.1 m (23 ft)
Draught	2.6 m (8 ft 6 in)
Propulsion	Three Bristol Proteus 4,250 HP gas-turbines driving 3 hydraulically controllable pitch screws
Speed	40 knots+
Complement	30
Armament	1× Bofors 57 mm gun, 6× 533 mm (21.0 in) wire-guided torpedoes, 2× 7.62×51mm NATO machine guns, Flare and chaff rockets, naval mines and/or depth charges

HSwMS Castor (T124) was a Swedish Navy Spica-class, torpedo-armed, fast attack craft (FAC).

Design

The hull was made of steel, unlike some other contemporary designs which used plywood. Although the boat had a relatively small hull and displacement, this provided a stable platform. The Bridge and Operations Room were located at the rolling and stamping centre of the ship which further improved stability for the crew especially in high seas. The boats were fitted with an NBC support system where the hull could be closed down in the event of having to operate in a nuclear fall-out area.

Construction and career

The vessel was one of three constructed in the 1960s by Karlskronavarvet, the other two being HSwMS Vega (T125) and HSwMS Virgo (T126). Three similar vessels were built by Götaverken AB at Hisingen. She was launched on 25 October 1965.

The vessel was taken out of service in 30 June 1985.