HMS Brave Borderer (pennant number P1011) was the first of two Brave-class motor torpedo boats built by Vospers between 1958-1960 for the Royal Navy. Succeeding the Dark-class patrol boats, the Brave class were of similar construction with aluminium frames and wood skin, but were larger and powered by three Bristol Proteus gas turbine engines, making them one of the fastest naval vessels of their time. The Brave class were the last vessels to be built for the Royal Navy Coastal Forces before the division was disbanded in 1968. As a private venture, Vospers also built a smaller and cheaper variant of the Brave class, known as the Ferocity class, for export. Brave and Ferocity class boats were sold to customers around the world, including to Germany (as Pfeil and Strahl), Denmark, and Malaysia.
Brave Borderer was launched on 7 January 1958 and commissioned on 26 January 1960. She operated alongside her sister Brave Swordsman (P1012) and a Dark-class boat in coastal patrol, fishery protection, Special Service, and training operations. In 1965, during a peace-making visit to Ireland, Brave Borderer was fired upon by members of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) using an anti-tank rifle, blowing two holes in the stern of the boat. She retreated to open sea at full speed, being hit by another shot to one of her engines on the way, but was able to return to port in Torquay with no casualties for 4 months of repairs. Both Brave-class boats were retired in 1970. Brave Borderer was used as target practice into the 1980s and was finally sold to the Haydon-Baillie Aircraft Museum in 1982 as spare parts to maintain sister Brave Swordsman and other possessions. However, following the owner's bankruptcy in 1998, the final fate of either vessel is unknown.
Introduced in Update 1.83 "Masters of the Sea" as part of the British fleet closed beta test, HMS Brave Borderer not only doubles the already decent firepower of the single-armed Dark-class, but also presents a major increase in speed, thanks to her powerful gas turbines. However, she is a very fragile ship with a design that emphasises agility over durability; minimal armour, small crew complement, and the large size of the vessel all mean that she will attract a lot of fire that will sink her in no time. Brave Borderer can be very effective in taking out other patrol boats and even some larger targets, but also very frustrating due to her poor combat endurance.
Belt | Belt filling | Armor penetration (mm) at a distance: | |||||
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10 m | 100 m | 500 m | 1000 m | 1500 m | 2000 m | ||
AP-T/HEFI-T | 81 | 78 | 69 | 61 | 55 | 50 | |
AP-T/AP-T/AP-T/HEFI-T | 81 | 78 | 69 | 61 | 55 | 50 | |
HEFI-T/HEFI-T/HEFI-T/AP-T | 81 | 78 | 69 | 61 | 55 | 50 |
2 × Mk.VII depth charge
Seakeeping |
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Unsinkability | |
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Firepower | ||
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