Pluto (1839 ship)

	HEICS Pluto on her voyage to China 1842
History
Name	HEICS Pluto (1839-1863); HM Straits Steamer Pluto (1863-1868);
Namesake	Pluto
Owner	East India Company (1839–1852); Bengal Marine (1852–1863); Government of the Straits Settlements (1863–1868);
Builder	Fairbairn & Co., Thames
Launched	September 1839
Commissioned	28 October 1841
Fate	Broken up in 1868 - Hull sold off
General characteristics
Class & type	Paddle frigate
Tons burthen	450 bm
Propulsion	100 hp (75 kW) oscillating engines by Maudslay, Sons & Field
Armament	(1839–1852) - 1 × 32-pounder gun + 2 × 12-pounder carronades; (1852–1863) - 4 x 24-pounder brass carronades + 2 x brass long 6-pounder chaser guns,; (1863–1868) - 4 x 24 pounder brass cannons + 2 × 6 pounder chaser guns, supplemented by Congreve rockets;
Notes	Cost £40,315

HEICS Pluto was the first of the six British iron warships ordered by the East India Company 'Secret Committee' to complete its construction in 1839, but due to defects in its construction, the ship did not sail to the East until 28 October 1841. The vessel's sister ships were Nemesis, Phlegethon, Proserpine, Ariadne, and Medusa. Pluto and Proserpine were built by Messrs Fairbairn & Company on the Thames at Millwall, while Nemesis and Phlegethon were built by John Laird's yard at Birkenhead. All four of these ships sailed under their own power to India, while the other two ships the Ariadne and Medusa were shipped in parts.