HMNZS Santon (M1178)
HMNZS "Santon" (M1178) was a Ton" class minesweeper that operated in the Royal Navy, the Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN), and the Argentine Navy. Built for the Royal Navy by Fleetlands Shipyard of Portsmouth, the minesweeper was launched on 18 August 1955 and commissioned as HMS "Santon". She was named after a small village in North Lincolnshire. The minesweeper was commissioned in the RNZN from 1965 to 1966, when she was returned to the United Kingdom. She was later transferred to the Argentine Navy, and operated as ARA "Chubut" (M3). Construction. "Santon" was built for the Royal  Navy by Fleetlands Shipyards of Portsmouth. The minesweeper was launched on 18 August 1955. Operational history. New Zealand. Early in 1965, Indonesia was employing a policy of confrontation against Malaysia. New Zealand agreed to assist Malaysia by deploying two Royal Navy minesweepers then in reserve at Singapore. These were commissioned into the RNZN on 10 April 1965 and joined the Royal Navy's 11th Minesweeping squadron (also Ton class), taking part in anti-infiltration patrols in Malaysian waters. Lieutenant Lincoln Tempero, later Chief of Naval Staff, was appointed Commanding Officer. Tempero was promoted to Lieutenant-Commander on 16 February 1966 , and suffered a hard head that evening! In her first year "Santon", together with her sister ship "Hickleton", carried out 200 patrols, with 20 incidents involving intruding Indonesians, often taking as prisoners those aboard the intercepted craft. In April 1966, "Santon" assisted in the rescue of the crew of the wrecked Panamanian freighter "Carina". By the time the Indonesian confrontation policy ended in August 1966, "Santon" had steamed 67,400 miles. Following the withdrawal of Commonwealth ships from the anti-infiltration patrols, the RNZN crew took her back to England, where she paid off in reserve at Portsmouth in November 1966 . Argentina. The ship was subsequently sold to Argentina and renamed "Chubut" (M3). She was decommissioned in 1997.