After Hongkong was turned over to Communist China, the three biggest combat ships of the British Royal Navy "Hongkong Squadron" set sail for the Philippines arriving in Manila last July 3,1997. These were the HMS Peacock, HMS Plover and HMS Starling.
After long negotiations, these 712 ton sister ships were purchased by the Philippine Navy for the "friendship price" of 6.5 million British Pounds. Each ship carries an Italian OTO Melara rapid fire 76mm automatic cannon. Additional guns have been ordered fitted to these ships by the Filipinos.
Peacock Class Corvette Specifications: Displacement: 712 tons, Length: 62 meters, Beam: 10 meters, Complement: 34 men, Armament: One(1) Italian OTO-Melara 76mm automatic cannon with a British Aerospace(BAe) Sea Archer Electro-Optical fire control system. Two(2) Semi-rigid Zodiac-type 40 knot speedboats, each carrying six(6) Philippine Marines or SEAL troopers for shipboarding attack. Additional unspecified guns have been ordered fitted by the Philippine Navy.
Photo and drawing copyright of Her Majesty's British Royal Navy. OTO Melara gun picture from Seawolf.com page. Three ships and second gun pictures copyright of Manila Bulletin. Peacock ship with its two speedboats from the R.N. picture gallery web page. Close-up view photo from Nikolas Moran Web page. Peacock corvette off the Zamboanga coast copyright of Zamboanga.org web page.