HS NAVMACHOS is the second warship in the history of Hellenic Navy bearing this name which comes from the combination of the words “ναύς” (ship) and “μαχητής” (fighter) and denotes the warrior/fighter who conducts the sea battle on board warships. The first ship to bear the name NAVMACHOS was built in the Canadian shipyards “Canada – Redferm Construction Co Ltd, Toronto”. She was one of the 5 ex-British ‘ALGERINE’ class open sea Minesweepers ex “HMS LIGHT FOOT” (M-64). The ships “ARMATOLOS”, “MACHITIS”, “POLEMISTIS” and “PYRPOLITIS” were of similar class.

On August 7, 1947, the ship entered service at Salamis Naval Base. Her first commanding officer was Lieutenant Commander N. Athanasiadis GRC-N. She was used, at first, as a patrol boat and then participated in operations during the civil war. Later, it was used as an auxiliary boat. She  decommissioned on December 11, 1973. The contemporary HS NAVMACHOS is the second of the two ‘OSPREY 55’ class Patrol Ships (ARMATOLOS-NAVMACHOS) which were built by Hellenic Shipyards S.A. following a contract with the Hellenic Navy. The ship was built at the facilities of Hellenic Shipyards S.A. in accordance with the plans of the Danish company DANYARD for the ‘OSPREY 55’ class (Offshore Vessel Patrol OVP) Offshore Vessels. The ship was launched in March 1990. The ship’s sponsor was Mrs. V. Sida, now retired from the Hellenic Navy. At the time of launching she carried the rank of Captain (N) GRC-N and served as Commanding Officer in the Military Nursing Academy. On July 27, 1990, the ship entered service at Salamis Naval Base. Her first commanding officer was Lieutenant Commander D. Lainas GRC-N. The ship, from the date of her commissioning until October 31, 2002, belonged to the Hellenic Fast Patrol Boat Command. From November 1, 2002, date of  the establishment of the new Hellenic Patrol Ships Command, her administrative affiliation also changed and since then she has been under the abovementioned Administration, which on November 29, 2013 was renamed to Hellenic Surveillance Ships Command.