Like the João Coutinho ships, the Baptista de Andrade corvettes were intended to operate in the Portuguese overseas territories. Allegedly, the ships would originally be intended to the South African Navy, the delivery being canceled after the Portuguese Carnation Revolution in 1974. After Portugal withdrew from its colonies, the four ships were due to be sold to the Colombian Navy in 1977 but the deal was not completed.
One ship, NRP Oliveira e Carmo, was decommissioned in 1999 and was officially scrapped on 1 November 2007 and later sunk as an artificial reef on 30 October 2012.[1] NRP Afonso Cerqueira was decommissioned on 13 February 2015 and later sunk as an artificial reef off Madeira.[2] Another ship was decommissioned in 2017 and the last one remains in limited service but will be retired and replaced by s.
| Pennant number | Name | Launched | Commissioned | Status | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F486 | Baptista de Andrade | March 1973 | November 1974 | Decommissioned 2017. Sank at moorings between 19 and 23 April 2023. Awaiting scrapping.[3] | |
| F487 | João Roby | June 1973 | March 1975 | In active service[4] | |
| F488 | Afonso Cerqueira | October 1973 | June 1975 | Decommissioned 2015, sunk as artificial reef in September 2018 in sea of Madeira | |
| F489 | Oliveira e Carmo | February 1974 | February 1976 | Decommissioned 1999, scrapped 2007, sunk as artificial reef 2012 in Lagos, Portugal |