The Type 21 frigate and veteran of the Falklands War, PNS Tariq (ex-HMS Ambuscade) is expected to return to her birthplace on the Clyde sometime next year, to become a ship museum.

HMS Ambuscade was built by Yarrow Shipbuilders on the Clyde 1n 1973 and served with the Royal Navy, including during the Falklands War, until 1993 when she was sold to Pakistan and became PNS Tariq.

The maritime heritage of Glasgow and Clydeside has had a renaissance in recent years with the opening of the Riverside Museum in 2011 and the restoration of the Clydebuilt tall ship Glenlee, now berthed alongside the museum.

In 2016, a local group of enthusiasts formed a non-profit organisation, Falls of Clyde International (FOCI), to rescue and return another Clydebuilt merchantman, the 4-masted Falls of Clyde (1878), which was at that time languishing in Hawaii as a museum ship. Somewhere along the line, FOCI also set their sights on another possible Clyde returnee, HMS Ambuscade.

Sadly, the Falls of Clyde has deteriorated faster than she could be rescued. This year she was removed from the US National Register of Historic Landmarks (odd category for a ship!) and the Harbors Division of the Hawaii Department of Transportation (HDOT) is seeking to have her broken up before she falls apart of her own accord.

Thank goodness then for project No.2!

The Pakistani navy de-commissioned PNS Tariq in Aug 2023 and, instead of sending her to the breakers yard, have generously agreed to donate her to the the newly-formed Clyde Naval Heritage charity, which has replaced FOCI.

The plan is to sail her back to the Clyde on a heavy lift ship, sometime in 2025. It is not yet known exactly where she will be berthed, but possible locations include the Govan Graving Docks or the Custom House Quay area, Inverclyde.

Image: HMS Ambuscade from an undated RN postcard (Tim Webb CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)