A 961 BNS ZINNIA was a command and logistic support ship for mine countermeasures vessels, development of BNS GODETIA A 960. She was built in 1967 by Cockerill Yards, Hoboken, Antwerp, Belgium as yard no 837.
Her modifications throughout the years were setting of the bridge further aft, allowing a second supply hold and crane to be accommodated in the bow section. She was also given a telescopic hangar and a landing platform on the stern for Alouette II (later Alouette III) helicopter. Two cable reels wee fitted on the after deckhouse from completion. Carried 500 t cargo fuel for minesweepers.
She was decommissioned in 1993, laid up at Zeebrugge and finally scrapped at Van Heyghen Recycling in Ghent, Belgium in 2007. Below images are during the recycling on Friday 30th June 2007.
Photos by Capt. Lawrence Dalli. Do not use these images without my permission. © All rights reserved. Malta Ship Photos & Action Photos – www.maltashipphotos.com
Published – Sunday 22nd March, 2020
