Because of weak hull construction the ships had been assessed unsuitable for service along the southern Chilean coast, where it was necessary to use older ships of instead. The destroyers remained in service until the mid-1960s.
Due to its longstanding relationship with the United Kingdom and the quality of British destroyer designs at the time, Chile opted for the John I. Thornycroft & Company option in an international competition to build the Chilean Navy new destroyers. The design followed a standard British layout, but was reduced in size and power. The destroyers had a standard displacement of 10900NaN0 and were 1430LT at full load. They were 91.44m (300feet) long overall and 87.86m (288.25feet) between perpendiculars with a beam of 8.84m (29feet) and a mean draught of 3.86m (12.66feet).
The destroyers were propelled by two shafts turned by Parsons-type geared turbines rated at 280000NaN0. These in turn were powered by steam from three Thornycroft boilers. The vessels had a maximum speed of 35kn and carried 320LT of fuel oil. They had a complement of 130 officers and ratings. During sea trials, all six destroyers exceeded their designed speed by 1-.
The Serrano class was armed with three single 4.7inches/45 calibre guns with half-height gun shields. The lack of a fourth gun on the quarterdeck allowed the destroyers to be fitted with minelaying or minesweeping gear. Serrano, Orella and Hyatt were fitted for minelaying, while Riquelme, Aldea and Videla were fitted for minesweeping. For secondary armament for anti-aircraft (AA) defence, the Serrano class was fitted with a single 3inches/40 AA gun and three machine guns. The destroyers also had two triple-mounted torpedo tubes for 21adj=onNaNadj=on torpedoes. They were fitted with two depth charge throwers for anti-submarine warfare (ASW).
The Serrano class underwent very little modification during their service lives. In the first 25 years of service, the only changes was the removal of the mainmast and the addition of single-mounted 20abbr=onNaNabbr=on Oerlikon cannon for AA defence. In the mid-1950s, four of the class were converted to destroyer escorts and were given radar on a tripod mast and the AA defence was increased to four 20 mm cannon.
| Ship | Builder | Laid down | Launched | Commissioned | Decommissioned | Fate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John I. Thornycroft & Company, Southampton | 21 June 1927 | 25 January 1928 | 18 December 1928 | 18 December 1962 | Stricken 29 September 1966 | |
| 21 June 1927 | 8 March 1928 | 18 December 1928 | 18 December 1962 | Stricken 29 September 1966 | ||
| 23 September 1927 | 21 July 1928 | 15 April 1929 | 31 August 1962 | Stricken 30 January 1963 | ||
| 8 March 1928 | 24 November 1928 | 26 July 1929 | 21 June 1957 | Stricken 12 February 1958 | ||
| 25 January 1928 | 16 October 1928 | 26 July 1929 | 21 June 1957 | Stricken 12 February 1958 | ||
| 18 July 1927 | 21 May 1928 | 15 April 1929 | 31 August 1962 | Stricken 30 January 1963 |
Serrano and Orella entered service with the Chilean Navy in 1928, followed by the rest of the class in 1929. The light construction of the vessels made them inadequate for the rough waters off the southern coast of Chile, and battleship deployments to that region required that the Serrano class be left behind and older destroyers provide escort. As Chile remained neutral during World War II, the service lives of the Serrano class remained relatively uneventful. Following the war, four of the class, Serrano, Hyatt, Orella and Riquelme, were converted to destroyer escorts in the mid-1950s. The two unmodified ships, Aldea and Videla were decommissioned in 1957 and the four destroyer escorts remained in service until 1962.