Warship Wednesday July 18th

Here at LSOZI, we are going to take out every Wednesday for a look at the old steampunk navies of the 1866-1938 time period and will profile a different ship each week.

- Christopher Eger

Here we have the HTMS Sukhothai (Su-kho-thai) Light Gun Boat Built by Armstrong Withworth of England in Year 1929. Commissioned 6 June 1930 – After ceremony by King Prajadhipok on 5 June 1930.

In 1926, Vice Admiral Phraia Rachawangsan, Chief of Staff, Royal Siamese Navy, presented a project regarding the naval force called “Memorandum on the Organization of the Siamese Navy” to the Minister of the Navy. He divided the naval force into two fleets as follows:

1). Coastal Defense Division consisting “of four 1000-ton gun boats, three destroyers, four torpedo boats, ten inshore patrol craft, two minesweepers, and
a number of minelayers and mines.
2). Offensive Division or Mobile Division consisting of two patrol boats, three destroyers, six speed torpedo boats, four submarines, ten inshore patrol craft, one speed minelayer, and a number of cargo ships and mines.

This project was a guideline for later warship procurement. In 1929, the gun boat HTMS Sukhothai was built with the same design as HTMS Rattanakosin.

Specs
Length: 53.34 m /175feet OA   Beam  11.21 m/33 feet
Displacement: 886 ton (regular) 1000 Ton (Full)
Armament: Two 152/50 mm cannon, Four 76/45 mm gun, three 20 mm anti-aircraft machine guns, two 40/60 mm gun (additional)
Plant : Two Steam with 3 cylinders 850 HP with twin shafts
Speed: 12.89 knot (max) 10 knot (economical)
Operating range: 1,463 Nautical Miles (max) 1,952 Nautical Miles (economical)
Depth beam: 3.41 m/ 10 feet
complement: 148 men

She served the Thai Navy for more than forty years including service in the 1940-41 Franco-Thai War, World War Two,  and in protecting the country during the 1948-75 Indochina Conflicts as a SEATO allied naval platform.

She was decommissioned: 15 Dec 1970