[ENSIGN 6} yWARIBUIIT ~ TOESIRONERS £2.70PREFACE In covering with this volume the 0:2 war-built vessels we hope to’bring attention to amuchneglected destroyer group. It has been popular comment that these classes compare badly with their foreign con- temporaries but it is not simply size together with torpedo and gun power that constitutes a successful design. Seaworthiness, and above all, reliability, play a vital part, and these were characteristics justly laid claim to by the British destroyers. ‘The Os and Ps in particular are often thought of as the low-water mark of British destroyer design and construction but of all the war-built classes they gave more service during the period of hostilities than any other in spite of their low-angle main armament, which was of doubtful value against aircraft; the paucity of close-range AA guns; and their limited anti-submarine capabilities. The Os and Ps were quickly followed into service by the great mass of the remaining classes, and these ships (along with a number of large pre-war built fleet vessels) made up the bulk of the Home Fleet's destroyer force. Operating in the Arctic month after month without respite the qualities of the British destroyer were tested and revealed by the hard grind of operations in northern waters. Their German counter- parts, although larger and more heavily armed, were simply not equally suitable to the conditions of Arctic operations. ALAN RAVEN ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Photos not from the author's collection are from the U.S. Archives, I.W.M., Wright & Logan, A. J Pavia. Thanks for assistance go to David Lyon, David Brown and Anthony Preston © 1976 BIVOUAC BOOKS LTD. SBN 85680.010.4 All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recordings or otherwise, without prior permission of the copyright owner. Published in the USA by ‘SKY BOOKS PRESS LTD. 48 East 50th Street, New York, NY 10022. Printed In England By Plaistow Press Magazines Ltd London €.15 ‘COVER. On bourd view of Verulam in 1944 white operating in Eastern watersWARRBUIT VESUHUUERS 010 2 GUISES ‘Ondo th ea of the class to be completed. This photo was taken whist on Acte Convoy duty on December 10,1942 ‘At the end of the First World War the Royal Navy had over four hundred destroyers in service. Post war ‘economies saw the scrapping of the older vessels of this force, together with the majority of those that were still under construction at the time of the Armistice, and by 1924 destroyer numbers had been reduced to a little under two hundred vessels. ‘These ships were for the most part modern and, as the Admiralty were fully occupied in reducing the Fleet to a peace time standard, a new destroyer building programme was not begun until 1927. Two experimental destroyers were, however, constructed under the 1924-25 Programme. These two vessels, the Amazon and Ambuscade, were armed with four 4.7-inch guns on single mountings and two triple 21-inch torpedo tube mountings. They displaced around 1,200 tons, possessed a maximum speed of about 36 knots, embodied the lessons of the First World War, employed the latest type of machinery and their design was used as the basis for the construction of a large group of destroyers known as the A to / classes. These ships averaged 1,400 tons standard displacement, carried four 4.7-inch guns on single mountings and eight 21-inch torpedo tubes. The last flotila, the / class of the 1935 Programme, carried ten 21-inch tubes in quintuple mountings but in other respects the sixty-eight destroyers and nine leaders of these nine flotillas were basically of the same design. They were excellent ships but by 1935 they did not compare well with some of the destroyers under construction for other navies. The USA, Japan, Ger- many and Italy were building large destroyers whose principal feature was a heavy gun armament. To counter this threat the 1935 and 1936 programmes provided for sixteen destroyers of 1,850 tons displacement carrying an armament of eight 4.7-inch {guns in twin mountings and four 21-inch torpedo tubes. The tradition of naming flotillas in alphabetical order was broken with this group which became the Tribal class. ‘The Tribals were criticised for their small torpedo ‘armament and so the 1936 Programme provided for ships armed with six 4.7-inch guns in three twin mountings and ten 21-inch torpedo tubes. These were the J class of 1,760 tons displacement; their design was repeated with the K class (1937 Programme) and the N class (1939 Programme). The 1937 Programme also included the eight destroyers of the L class which had a designed armament of six 4.7-inch guns mounted on twin fully enclosed mountings and eight torpedo tubes. This class showed a considerable increase in displacement, to 1,920 tons standard and the design was repeated in the M class of the 1939 Programme. The Tribal J and L types fulfilled the need for large Fleet destroyers but were somewhat sophisticated for ‘the more mundane destroyer duties such as escort and general patrol work. They were, moreover, expensive to both build and run, required a large complement and could not be constructed quickly due principally to their complex gun armament. This led the Admiralty to consider the production of smaller destroyers. Initially this resulted in the formulation of the design of the ‘Hunt’ type destroyer escorts which were intended primarily for mercantile convoy protection. They were small, being around 1000 tons displacement, had a comparatively light armament, a moderate speed of 27 knots and could be constructed in large numbers cheaply and quickly. Over eight destroyers of this type were eventually built. These ships did not however complete the destroyer needs of the Admiralty and in 1938 the Naval Staff considered the requirements for a vessel that was cheaper than the Fleet destroyers butfaster than the destroyer escorts. This ‘Intermediate type"” was intended for general fleet, patrol and escort duties, as opposed to the specific roles expected of the previous two types. It was also intended that they should serve as replacements for the older destroyers of the Fleet that were nearing the end of their useful lives. The Staff recommended a design similar to that of the A to / group with the following outline requirements: 1. Displacement 1,400 to 1,500 tons standard. 2. Armament four or five 4.7-inch guns, eight 21- inch torpedo tubes, six 2-pdr pom-poms (1 x 4, 2x1). 3. Range 3,500 nautical miles at 20 knots. 4. Speed 36 knots at standard diplacement Rough sketch designs showing various arrangements of the 4.7-inch gun armament were prepared in December 1938. The combinations included two twin mountings, two twins and one single, and four singles. It was eventually decided to adopt the latter arrangement (the same as that in the A to / group) which, being simple, lent itself to rapid production. The final sketch design ‘was approved in May 1939. The legend details of the design, which received the Board stamp on 21 December 1939, were as follows:- Length (oa) 345 feet Length (pp) 328 feet 9 inches Beam (max) 35 feet Standard displacement 1,610 tons Armament Four 4.7-inch guns (4x1) Four 2-pdr pom-poms (1 x4) Eight 0.5-inch M.G. (2x4) Eight 21-inch torpedo tubes (2x 4) Two Depth charge throwers. SHP 40,000 Speed 36 knots at standard displace- ment 32 knots at deep displacement Weights — Equipment = 85 tons Hull — 839 tons Machinery — 536 tons Armament 150 tons Standard displacement 1610 tons Two destroyer flotllas of the above design were constructed under the Emergency War Programme — the O class, which were ordered at the outbreak of war ‘on 3 September 1939 and the P class which were or- dered one month later. For rapid production the O's and P's had the advantages of employing the same machinery as the J class and a simple armament. They did however have a new hull design which required new drawings and production equipment. Towards the end of 1939 it was decided to prepare another design for the Emergency fiotilas which, while retaining the same armament and machinery, utilised the hull design of the J class, for which drawings and building moulds were readily available. The J hull was moreover larger than that of the O's and P's which allowed some margin for the additions that would result from war experience. 2 ‘Some modification was however made to the hull form following the results of experiments carried out at the ‘Admiralty Experimental Works at Haslar. This involved providing @ deeper square cut transom which, par- ticularly at deep loads and high speeds, gave a slight advantage in speed and endurance. This advantage was lost at low speeds and light draughts. The J class carried two twin 4.7-inch gun mountings forward and, as the new design was to carry ‘only two singles in this position, half the magazine space forward was not required. The area occupied by B magazine was therefore converted to provide ad ditional fuel stowage which increased the oil capacity from the 484 tons of the J class to 615 tons and the endurance from 3,700 to 4,680 nautical miles at 20 knots. The legend and sketch design were approved in February 1940 and the orders for the 3rd Emergency Flotilla (Q class) and the 4th Emergency Flotilla (R class) were placed in April. In May the legend and drawings received the Board stamp, but in the same month all work on the design was suspended and did not resume Until September. (This was mainly due to the heavy work load of construction and repair which faced the ship building industry and design facilities during 1940.) The details of the design were the same as those for the O's and P's with the exception of the following details. Length (oa) 358 feet 3 inches Length (pp) 339 feet 6 inches Beam (max) 35 feet 8 inches Standard displacement 1650 tons Weights:- Equipment 80 Hull 890 Machinery 530 Armament 150 Standard displacement — 1650 tons When work on the Q and A classes re-started the Naval. Staff re-examined the design with the intention of improving the armament for the next pair of flotillas to be ordered — the 5th (SS class) and the 6th (7 class). It was eventually decided that these two groups should be repeats of the A class but with a new design of 4.7-inch gun mounting, giving 55° instead of 40° of elevatior new close range AA armament, improved 4.7-ir ammunition supply and a Triba/ type bow. This la was a result of the discovery that the bow of the /class. produced large amounts of spray when compared with the Tribals which were comparatively dry forward. The new bow form necessitated an increase in the overall length to 362 feet 9 inches. The S and T classes were ordered in early 1941 The 7th to 10th Flotillas (U to Z classes) were, with a few variations, repeats of the S class design ordered between mid 1941 and early 1942. The details of the variations between these and the earlier classes together with subsequent alterations and additions will be found in the following sections.Particulars of OtoZ Class Destroyers KEY TO BUILDERS (Numbers. brackets are number of destroyers built by each frm) CL. Cammel Laird (10) BD Denny (6) Fairfield (9) Hawthorn Lestie (9) 1B. John Brown (12), Scotts (8) H. Swan Hunter (8) Thomeycroft (6) VA(B) Vickers Armstrongs (Barrow) (4) VAIT) Viekers Armstrongs (Tyne) (5) Wo White (7) Name Builder Completion Building Time Date Months/Days ‘st EMERGENCY FLOTILLA — Ordered 3/9/1999 Obdurate D 3/9/42, 28/8 Obedient D 30/10/42 24/8 Offa FE 20/9/41 20/5 Onslaught F 19/6/42 Ws (Ex Pathfinder) Onsiow (L) J.B. ano 18/8 T 14/8/42 B/N F 8/7/41 W721 7 0/2 28/28 2nd EMERGENCY FLOTILLA — Ordered 2010/1939 Pakenham (L) HL 47/2 229 (Ex Onslow) Paladin J.B. ra 16/21 Panther F wisi 16/28 Partridge F 2/2/82 2/19 Pathfinder HL 13/4/42, 25/8 (x Onslaught) Penn vam) 10/2/42 25/15, Petard vat) 15/6/42 28/20 (Ex Persistent) Porcupine VAT) 10/6/41 ms 31d and 4th EMERGENCY FLOTILLAS —Ordered 2/4/40 ‘Quadrant H 25/11/42 26/2 Quail HL 1/43. 2B Quality SH. 7/9/42 228 ‘Queenborough SiH. 10/12/42 28/4 ‘Quentin w 1574/42 18/20 Quiberon w Brag 218 ‘Quickmatch w 30/9/42 19/22 uiliarn (LY HL Drea 26/3 Racehorse 48. so/10/a2 16/4 Raider cu weryaz19/- Rapid ex 20/2/83 20/4 Redoubt JB. wvi0/a2 15/12 Rolentiess zB. soraa 17/10 Rocket 5 4/8/43 28/21 Roebuck s 30/6/43 23/20 Rotherham (L) 3.8. 21/8/82 16/17 5th EMERGENCY FLOTILLA~ Ordered 9/1/41 Saumare2 (L) HL vias aa Savage He 8/6/43 48/1 ion cx. WS DIR (Ex Sentinel) Scourge Cu was 24/18 Serapis § Bye 2/9 Shark s 1Wys/4e (28/8 Success w 6/9/43 18/9. Swift w 6/12/43 17/24 Name Builder Completion Dave 6th EMERGENCY FLOTILLA — Ordered 14/3/41 Teazer CL. 13/9/43 Tenacious cL 30/10/43 Termagant 8 18/10/43 Terpsichore D 20/1/48 Troubridge 4.8. 8/3/43 Tumult 18 2/4/43 Tuscan SH. 1173/43 Tyan SH. 8/4/43 ‘7th EMERGENCY FLOTILLA — Ordered 12/6/41 Grenville (L) SH. 21/5/43 Uister SH. 30/6/43 Ulysses CL. 23/12/49 Undaunted eu 3/3/44 Undine Tt 23/12/43 Urania vaiB) 1/1744 Urchin vais) 24/9/43 Ursa T 3/44 ‘8th EMERGENCY FLOTILLA—Ordered 1/9/41 Hardy (L) J.B. 78/43 Valentine a8. 28/2/44 (Ex Kempentett) Venus F 28/8/43 Verulam E 10/12/43 Vigilant SH 10/9/43. Virago SiH. 5/11/43 Vixen w 5/3/44 Volage w 28/5/44 ‘9th EMERGENCY FLOTILLA Ordered 3/12/41 Kempentet (L) JB 25/10/43 {Ex Valentine) Waketul F 2/4 {ExZebra) Wager 8. 14a/a Wessex F 1175/84 {Ex Zenith) Whelp HL 25/a/aa Whirlwind HL 20/7/48 Wizard vais) 30/3/44 ‘Wrangler vas) 14/7/46 10th EMERGENCY FLOTILLA Ordered 12/2/42 Myngs (L) VAT) 23/6/44 Zambesi CL. 15/7/44 Zeslous cu 9/10/44 Zebra D 13/10/44 (Ex Wakefull Zenith . 2ai2/a4 \Ex Wessex) Zephyr vain) e/s/a4 Zest T 20/7/48 Zodiac T 23/10/48 i" feaper Building Time Months/Days 16/1 20/13 16/25 18/2 23/28 23/20 18/15 aan 2427 18/25 m4 28/30 373 25/24 23/30 26erica seria view of Onslow takenin December 12ARMAMENT The designed main armament of the O, P, Qand R classes was four 4.7-inch Mk IX** guns mounted on single CP XVIII mountings which gave 40° elevation. These weapons were chosen because they were comparatively easy to manufacture and were of proven design having been mounted in the H and / class destroyers constructed prior to the war. The gun fired a 50 Ibs shell, had a muzzle velocity of 2,650 feet per second and was capable of a rate of fire of ten rounds er minute. The fact that weapons of this nature were not effective against aircraft was the cause of much debate amongst the Naval Staff prior to and during the Second World War. Although the provision of a dual purpose main armament for destroyers was considered desirable the arguments against such a policy were very strong, Combined HA/LA fire control, gun mountings and ammunition supply tended to produce inefficiency when compared with a purely low angle or high angle weapon. Since prior to the war surface action was seen as the primary function of the destroyer the loss in low angle efficiency resulting from adopting an HA/LA gun mounting was considered unacceptable. Destroyers moreover made bad gun platforms for AA fire and their long range AA was considered to be of little use except in support of a fleet's barrage fire, for which the 40° elevation normally provided was considered sufficient. In defence the destroyers had little to fear from high level bombers (for which long range AA defence was required) because they were small and highly manoeuvrable. The close range armament was con- sidered sufficient defence against dive bombers while torpedo bombers, which attacked at low level, could be dealt with by both the main and close range armaments. These arguments contained 2 good deal of truth but exaggerated the ability of destroyers to defend themselves against aircraft. The war was to demon- strate that pre-war close range AA weapons were almost ineffective and that destroyers were particularly vulnerable to dive bombers. However, providing an efficient HA/LA main armament (which to be effective required complete stabilisation) would not have been possible prior to 1939 because the necessary finance to develop such a weapon and its complex fire control equipment was not available. The war soon demonstrated the need for improved AA weapons at sea. With the fall of France, German craft were able to penetrate well out over the Atlantic to attack convoys which had little AA defence. To help meet this threat it was decided, early in 1940, to equip two of the O class and six of the Pclass as AA vessels, the 4.7-inch mountings being replaced by four 4-inch Mk. V guns on single Mk. Ill HA mountings. These weapons were of First World War origin and had been mounted in capital ships and cruisers during the 1920's and 1930's. A large number were available as they had gradually been replaced by the twin 4-inch Mk. XIX HA/LA mounting during the 1930's. The mountings were fitted with new shields (originally they were open) presumably to provide protection against the weather although for some unknown reason no shield was fitted to Y mounting in Pathfinder and Partridge, and X ‘mounting in the remainder. In August 1940 the names for the two 4-inch gun class — Onslow and Onslaught — were exchanged for those of the two 4.7-inch gun P class— Pakenham and Pathfinder—this making the P class a complete flot of AA destroyers. In July 1940 it was decided that the after set of torpedo tubes in the O. P. Q and R classes should be replaced by a single 4-inch Mk. Ill mounting without a shield. This alteration was not entirely welcomed for in reducing the torpedo armament by 50% it seriously interfered with the destroyers. surface attack capabilities. The alteration was not therefore included in subsequent classes — S classes onwards — it was eventually decided to replace the after tubes in all the earlier groups. Nevertheless, the Oribi, Offa, Onslaught, and all but Petard and Pathfinder of the P class, were completed with the 4-inch gun and retained it throughout their wartime careers. In March 1941 the design of four of the O class — Opportune, Orwell, Obdurate and Obedient — was modified so that they could be rapidly converted to minelayers. In order to accommodate the maximum. mine load the topweight was reduced by substituting 4- inch guns for the 4.7-inch, as in the P class. Mine rails, were fitted along each side of the upper deck to carry about 50 to 60 mines — the number varied depending (on the weight of the type of mine. All four entered service as AA destroyers with four 4-inch guns (no shield being fitted on Y mounting) and eight torpedo tubes. When converted to minelayers they landed the torpedo tubes and Y mounting to reduce topweight. It would appear that they were only ‘employed in this role once during the war — on 22 April 1945 Opportune, Orwell and Obedient together with the minelayer Apollo laid a minefield off the Kola Inlet. ‘When the S class design was under consideration in September 1940 it was proposed to provide a new design of single 4.7-inch mounting to give 55° of elevation, thus improving the destroyers AA capabilities, generally and giving the main armament a limited ability to engage dive bombers. This proposal was not received with unanimous approval as it was considered that at least 80° elevation was required to provide an efficient AA gun and that a 55° mounting would be an inefficient low-angle weapon. The new mounting would therefore be doing two jobs badly rather than one job well. The Controller, however, overruled the objections and instructed the DNO to continue with the design of a 56° mounting. Eventually mounted in the S, T, U. V ‘and W classes the single 55° Mk. XXII mounting carried the same Mk. IX** gun as the 40° CP XVIII mounting to Which it was generally similar. The increase to 55° was achieved by moving the breech of the gun as close as Possible to the trunnions thereby increasing the Clearance between the rear of the gun and the deck When at full elevation. This avoided the alternative of raising the trunnions which would have made loading at 7447 ch Mk XVI mounting (40%) c L a fe 47 inch Me XX mounting (55°) ft)low angles of elevation difficult owing to the increased height of the breech. Keeping the trunnion low also avoided an increase in weight, an important factor in a destroyer weapon, although some of this saving was lost by the necessity to increase the weight of counter balance as the gun was further forward. Other im: provements included the provision of a spring operated rammer to make loading at high angles easier and a new design of gun shield giving better protection from the weather for both gun and gun crew. A further im- provement was the fitting of electric chain hoists for ‘supplying ammunition from the magazines to the guns. The previous whip and bollard method could not supply ammunition as quickly as the guns could fire it and although ready use ammunition could fill the gap to a large extent the system was far from ideal. The chain hoist could supply up to 19 rounds per minute, well above the guns maximum rate of fire of 10 to 12 rounds per minute. In 1941 work began on the design of a twin 4.5-inch B.D. (between decks) HA/LA gun mounting providing 80° of elevation. Intended for Fleet destroyers of the 1942 Programme the mounting was based on the 4.5- inch Mk. II BD mounting carried in the Queen Elizabeth, Valiant, Renown and the illustrious class aircraft carriers. The mounting took the form of a small, fully enclosed, turret which extended down through a hole in the weather deck to the deck below. The well below the guns therefore provided more than enough clearance for high angles of elevation. The prototype of this mounting, the Mk. IV carrying two twin 4.5-inch Mk. Ill guns, was fitted in the Savage of the S class for sea trials. The turret was placed in A position, B gun being omitted to compensate for the additional weight of the twin mounting. The two 4.7-inch guns aft were replaced by two single 4.5-inch mountings in order to keep a uniform calibre armament and avoid com- plications in ammunition supply. ‘Some idea of the difficulties involved in providing a satisfactory HA/LA armament for destroyers. can_be gained from the fact that the twin Mk. IV mounting weighed almost as much as all four single 4.7-inch mountings of the intermediate destroyer design. The 1942 fleet destroyers, the Battle class, carried two of these mountings together with a complex stabilised fire control system with R.P.C. and a sophisticated close range AA armament, ‘Although the Battle class only carried the same number of main armament guns and torpedo tubes as the Emergency destroyers their designed displacement was over 600 tons greater. Destroyers of this size and Cost would have been unthinkable prior to the war. They were certainly the type of destroyer that met the requirements of the time but neither the ships nor the armament could have been produced at the rate demanded by the Emergency Flotilla Programme. The decision to adopt the twin 4.5-inch mounting led to the general adoption of the 4.5-inch gun for destroyers. A new single mounting was introduced, the Mk. V:, carrying the 4.5-inch Mk. IV gun. It was vir- tually identical to the 4.7-inch Mk. XXII mounting except for some changes in the cradle and loading tray to accommodate the different calibre of gun. The gun fired a 55 Ibs shell at a muzzle velocity of 2,450 feet per second compared with 50 Ibs and 2.650 fps in the 4.7- inch. The 45-inch was considered to have superior ballistic qualities, the loss in muzzle velocity being made-up for by the increased weight of the shell. In May 1942 it was approved to substitute this new 4.5- inch mounting for the four 4.7-inch in the Zclass. Fire Control The O and P classes were fitted with a range-finder director Mk. V with combined HA/LA capability. The @ R, S, T, Uand V classes were fitted with a DCT and a separate range-finder director Mk. 1! or II(W) while the W class mounted a range-finder director Mk. III(W) again with combined HA/LA capability. In low angle fire information was passed to the guns via an AFCC (Admiralty Fire Control Clock) and in high angle fire vi a FKC (Fuse Keeping Clock), the latter providing a fuse setting as well as the required bearing and elevation. In the ships with a separate DCT and R/F director the former was used for LA fire while the R/F director was used as a range finder only. In HA fire only the R/F director was employed. The Z class were fitted with the K tower, a new HALA director which was fully stabilised and equipped with RPC. It was an interim system and unsuccessful, being rather complex, heavy and unreliable. Production problems with this equipment resulted in some of the Z Class going to sea without the director. Close Range Armament As designed the 0, P, Qand A classes were to have ‘mounted one Mk. VII quadruple pom-pom mounting on. the platform abaft the funnel and two Mk. Ill quadruple .5-inch Machine gun mountings. All were completed with the pom-pom but only Oribi, Offa and Porcupine were completed with the 0.5-inch mountings which were being phased out of service, having demonstrated that they were practically useless against aircraft. Offa also carried two single 20 mm Oerlikon mountings, a weapon that became the standard light AA weapon of ‘the mid war period. Most of the remaining O and P class were completed with four single 20 mm Oerlikons while the earlier vessels were eventually brought up to the same standard. Petard and several of the O class were also completed with two twin Mk. V 0.5-inch MG power Mountings on the searchlight platform. These weapons, normally employed on coastal craft, were fitted because production of the 0.5-inch mounting had ceased and there was a shortage of Oerlikons. ‘Towards the end of 1940 the designed armament of and F classes was reviewed, and it was decided to fit six single Oerlikons in addition to the quadruple pom- pom. All were completed with this armament except Roebuck and Rocket, the last of the Qs and As to"BOFFIN'— dom Botors gun mounted complete, which carried two twin Mk. V 20 mm. Oeriikon mountings in place of two of the singles, a modification that was usually extended to earlier vessels when they were refitted during 1943-44. In January 1941 the close range armament of the emergency fiotillas was again reviewed, and it was decided to fit four 20 mm singles and to substitute a twin 40 mm Hazemeyer Mk. IV Bofors mounting for the ‘quadruple pom-pom. This mounting, which was just going into production, was a good destroyer weapon, being fully stabilised and having a built-in power unit and fire control system. It was not perfect, in fact somewhat delicate for shipboard use, but was nevertheless far better than anything else available at the time. In order to give it a wider arc of fire it was positioned on the searchlight platform, the searchlight being moved to what was the pom-pom platform. It ‘was also decided at a later date to fit four twin Oerlikons in place of the four singles and these together with the Hazemeyer Bofors became the standard armament of the S to Z classes. Shortage of the Hazemeyer, however, led to the substitution of the quadruple pom: pom or additional Oerlikons in some ships. The appearance of the Kamikaze aircraft in the Pacific in 1945 led to considerable changes in the close range weapons of the destroyers serving in the Eastern 10 and British Pacific Fleets. Heavier weapons than the 20 mm Oerlikon were required to deal with these aircraft and despite considerations of top weight all or part of the Oerlikon armament in the destroyers was replaced by single 40mm Mk. Ill Bofors, Mk. XVI pom poms or 40 mm Boffins. These additions were usually ac: companied by the removal of the 44-inch searchlight both to save weight and provide space for an additional mounting. More details of individual ship armaments can be found in the Appendix. RADAR, HF/DF AND RIG The first units to complete were fitted with Type 286 air and surface warning radar but this was soon supplanted by Type 290 air warning. This set was in turn replaced by Type 291 and this became the standard air warning radar for the Emergency destroyers. In October 1942 the Quillium became the first of the Emergency destroyers to be completed with an FH4 High Frequency direction finder (HF/DF), the aerial being positioned at the top of a short pole main mast. One month later the Raider completed with the same arrangement except that the FH4 aerial was fitted on a short lattice mainmast. This mast was designed by the builders, Cammell Laird, and was subsequently em: ployed in several ships. It was not entirely successful as the mast tended to vibrate, in some cases excessively, and at the end of 1943 a new arrangement was adopted in which the FH4 aerial was fitted to the fore top mast head while the Type 291 aerial was positioned at the top of a short pole mainmast. This modification was eventually extended to the majority of those ships already fitted with lattice mainmasts. During 1945 several ships had their mainmasts removed as they interfered with the arcs of fire of the close range ar- mament. In these cases the Type 291 was usually ‘moved to the foremast and the FH4 removed, although some ships retained the HF/DF so that the direction finding facility was not entirely lost to the destroyer Squadrons and Flotillas as a whole. In February 1943 the Oribi became the first of the Emergency destroyers to be fitted with a Type 271 surface warning radar. The office for this set was fitted on the search-light platform, the 44-inch searchlight being removed, while the aerial was sited in a lantern on the office roof.’ This position was far from ideal for the aerial was blanketed on forward bearings by the bridge structure. The best position was high up on the fore- ‘mast but the tripod had already demonstrated atendency to vibrate excessively under the weight of the Type 291 aerial and other equipment. The solution was found in the fitting of a lattice fore-mast. In April 1943 the first of these was erected on the Onslow while she was under refit and repair at Hull. With Type 271 the aerial had to be fitted on the radar office roof and was obviously impractical for a masthead position. An improved version was therefore employed, in which the aerial Could be separate from the office. This was Type 272, the aerial of which was fitted in a lantern at the top ofthe lattice while the office was positioned in the bridge structure. In addition the Onslow retained her Type 291 set, the aerial being fitted at the head of the pole top- mast, and was fitted with HF/DF with the aerial on a short pole main-mast. The trials with the lattice and Type 272 were successful and from August 1943 all the ‘emergency destroyers were completed with this rig while a large number of earlier units were fitted with the lattice as they came in for refit. Some ships were fitted with a lattice somewhat taller than the original, the first ship so fitted being Kempenfelt in October 1943. By the end of 1943 the standard rig had become Type 272 and FH4 aerial on the foremast, and Type 291 aerial on a short pole main mast aft. There were, however, a Fig of nv 1041/42, considerable number of minor variations on this arrangement. During 1944 the Type 272 was supplanted by Type 276 which was in turn supplanted by Type 293, an ait/surface target indicating set. The vessels that were not fitted with a lattice mast were usually equipped with a Type 271 amidships, as in Oribi, or a Type 272 mounted on a short lattice tower in the same radar set, the aerials being fitted on the R/F director, and a MF/DF (Medium Frequency/Directive Finder) set with the aerials in the bridge front. All vessels with a Hazemeyer twin Bofors carried a Type 282 close range gunnery set fitted to the mounting. MACHINERY The two Admiralty 3-drum boilers were positioned in separate boiler rooms, back to back, enabling the uptakes to be trunked into a single funnel. The turbines were arranged in two sets in a single engine room and drove two shafts through single reduction gears positioned in a separated gearing room abaft the engine room. The arrangement was identical to that fitted in the J, K and N class destroyers. Trials, being run during the war, tended to be incomplete and were usually run at deep displacement. Some ships did not run trials at all but those that did usually achieved their designed speed, except when the designed deep displacement was considerably ex- ceeded. The following gives a rough cross-section of trial figures. SHIP MEAN SPEED RPM. DISPLACEMENT (knots) (mean) (tons) Onslow 33.25 334.8 2213 Panther 3468 343.3 1814 Savage as 319.2 21530 Termagant 30.89 3198 2323 Whirlwind 32 318.6 2410 Myngs: 321 316 2.670 GENERAL The emergency destroyers gave exceptional service during the war and more than justified their existence. Although by no means perfect, particularly in the matter of armament, it is difficult to see how they could have been improved upon to any appreciable extent. Given the circumstances of the time, and the need to produce large numbers of destroyers quickly, ‘the design can hardly be faulted. Four more Flotillas of Emergency destroyers, the C classes, were laid down before the Admiralty turned its attention to the larger and more sophisticated Bartle class Fleet destroyers. War service placed a heavy strain on the Emergencies, particularly the O class, and by the end of hostilities many were in very poor condition, requiring substantial refits. The principal problems were related to over-weight and over-crowded conditions, both of which were mainly due to the wartime additions of AA "weapons and radar equipment. Both added topweight and in the majority of cases this required the fitting of a substantial amount of ballast to maintain a reasonable level of stability. The designed deep displacement of the Q class was a little over 2,400 tons. Most of the ships displaced around 2,500 tons deep when completed and some were approaching the 2,600 ton figure by the end of the war, rts in October 1942 WARTIME TRANSFERS The following were transferred on completion: Quiberon and Quickmatch to the Royal Australian Navy; ‘Shark and Success to the Royal Norwegian Navy, being renamed Svenner and Stord respectively; Valentine and Vixen to the Royal Canadian Navy, being renamed Algonquin and Sioux respectively. (fain December 1983 showing her apes nce ate refit, Note the chatered ook onthe upper deckWAR SERVICE THE HOME FLEET All of the O class joined the Home Fleet on com- pletion and served almost entirely in that force through- ut the war; in January 1942 they were designated the 17th DF (Destroyer Flotilla). The S class became the 23rd DF Home Fleet in December 1943 and with the exception of Saumarez served exclusively in Home waters. The Z class became the 2nd DF Home Fleet during 1944/45 with the exception of Myngs which became the leader of the 23rd Flotilla when Saumarez left to join the Eastern Fleet. Both the S and Z class were specially fitted for Arctic service, 27 December 1941 — Offa, Onslow and Oribi took part in Operation Archery, the raid on Vaagso Island off the Norwegian coast. Onslow and Oribi shelled several ships that had been run ashore, and sank a trawler. September 1942— Offa, Onslaught, Opportune and Onslow formed part of escort for PQ18. Onsiow depth-charged and sank the submarine U88. December 1942—The Battle of the Barents Sea—Onsiow, Obedient, Orwell, Obdurate and Oribi joined the escort of Russian convoy JWS1B. On the moming of 31 December, the cruiser Hipper, the armoured ship Lutzow and_ six destroyers attempted to attack the convoy. They were successfully held off by the escort under the command of Captain Sherbrooke in the Onslow. The British were aided by the darkness of the mid winter Arctic and their own smoke screens which 13hid the convoy while the destroyers engaged the enemy. At 10.20 a.m., after about an hour's ac- tion, the Onslow was hit by gunfire from the Hipper. A and B guns were hit and put out of action, the bridge structure was set on fire and the engine room was holed. The Ons/ow had 17 killed and 20 wounded, including Captain Sherbrooke who later received the V.C. Shortly afterwards the Hipper turned away but she returned and sank the minesweeper Bramble, crippled the destroyer Achates and slightly damaged Obedient. The ‘Achates sank at 1.15 p.m. after the enemy had been driven off by the cruisers Sheffield and Jamaica. The British losses were balanced by damage received by the Hipper and the sinking of the destroyer Friedrich Eckholdt by the Sheffield. The convoy survived—one ship being damaged by long-range gunfire from the Lutzow. December 1943— The Sinking of the Scharnhorst—On 26 December the Scharnhorst and five destroyers attempted to attack the Russian convoy JWS5A. She was successfully turned back by the cruisers Norfolk, Sheffield and Belfast, and was eventually intercepted and sunk by the battleship Duke of York, with the assistance of the cruisers and destroyers covering the convoy. Among the destroyers were the Scorpion, Stord, Saumarez ‘and Savage (escorting the Duke of York), and the Opportune and Virago. The four S class ships were responsible for bringing the Scharnhorst to a halt when she was on the verge of escaping. Ina skilful attack Scorpion and Stord scored one torpedo hit while Saumarez and Savage achieved three hits from a salvo of twelve torpedoes. Saumarez was hit by an 11-inch shell which caused eleven killed and eleven wounded. After suffering heavily from the gunfire of the Duke of York the Scharnhorst was subjected to several torpedo attacks by the cruisers and destroyers, including Opportune and Virago. After receiving about ten more torpedo hits she sank in the evening of 26 December. January 1944—At the end of January the Hardy, Venus, Stord and Obdurate formed part of the escort for the Russian convoy JWS6B. During the night of 25/26th the Obdurate was hit and damaged by an acoustic torpedo from the sub- marine U36. A large hole was blown in the star- board side which severely damaged the ship's machinery. She was temporarily repaired at Murmansk before returning home for a complete repair and refit at Wallsend-on-Tyne in March. On the morning of the 30th the U-boats scored another success when the U278 hit the Hardy with another acoustic torpedo. The Hardy was so badly damaged that she had to be sunk by the Venus. 4 March 1944—While escorting the Russian convoy RAS/ the Onslaught opened fire on the submarine U472 which had previously made an unsuccessful attack on Swift and had been damaged by a ‘Swordfish aircraft. Having no means of escape, the U-boat commander scuttled his craft. 4 THE MEDITERRANEAN FLEET Most of the P class spent their first months of commission in the Mediterranean. The Pathfin Penn, Partridge and Porcupine joined the 3rd DF wi ‘the remainder joined the 19th DF. At the end of 1942 they were formed into the 12th DF, and in 1943 into the 14th DF, but were seldom operating together during 1943. The Q class were sent to the Mediterranean shortly after completion where they eventually formed the 4th DF until 1943/44. The A class also joined the Mediterranean Fleet on completion, becoming the 24th DF in place of the U class which became the 26th DF at, the beginning of 1944 12 August 1942— The Pathfinder attacked and damaged the Italian submarine Cobalto off Bizerta during the Malta convoy “‘Pedestal”. The submarine was later sunk by the destroyer /thurie/ 30 October 1942— Petard and Pakenham helped to sink the US59 NE off Port Said. 28 November 1942—The Quentin and Quiberon sank the U411 off Bone. 2 December 1942— Shortly after midnight Force Q, consisting of the cruisers Aurora, Argonaut and Sirius with the destroyers Quentin and Quiberon intercepted an Italian convoy heading for Bizerta AAll four transports in the convoy, and one of the five escorts, were sunk. When returning to Bone, Force Q was attacked by Italian aircraft, the Quentin being torpedoed and sunk. 15 December 1942—The Petard sank the Italian sub- marine Uarsciek south of Malta. 18 December 1942— The Partridge was torpedoed and sunk west of Oran by USES. 14 January 1943—The Italian submarine Narvalo was sunk by the Pakenham and Hursley after she had been damaged by aircraft. 9 December 1942—The Porcupine was torpedoed by U602 while she was escorting the Depot ship Maidstone to Oran. The ship was towed back to Oran where she was cut in two before being towed to Gibraltar, and then Portsmouth where she arrived in May 1943. She was going to be repaired but was eventually declared a constructive total loss, 17 February 1943—While escorting a convoy Paladin attacked and brought to the surface U205. With the help of the destroyer Jervis and aircraft, the U- boat was captured but later sank. 16 April 1943— Paladin and Pakenham intercepted the Italian torpeda boats Cigno and Cassiopeo off Sicily. The former vessel was sunk by Pakenham but she was herself badly damaged by shell fire which wrecked and set fire to her engine room. She was taken in tow by Paladin but had to be sunk at dawn owing to the close proximity of the enemy airfields. She was torpedoed by Paladin. 4 May 1943— Paladin, Petard and Nubian sank the htalian destroyer Perseo and the supply ship Campobasso east of Kelibia 9 October 1943—While on passage to intercept anenemy convoy the Panther was sunk by aircraft bombs in the Scarpanto Strait. 15 June 1944—The Quail. was mined and badly damaged while entering Bari harbour. Three days later she sank while being towed to Taranto. The mines had been laid by U453. 29 March 1944— Tumult assisted in the sinking of U223. 18 May 1944— Tenacious, Termagant and Liddesdale sank U453 off Cape Spartivento. 19 Sepember 1944—Terpsichore, Troubridge and Garland forced U407 to the surface to the north of Crete where she was rammed and sunk by the Garland. THE ATLANTIC During the height of the Battle of the Atlantic in mid-1943 a large number of destroyers were transferred from the Home and Mediterranean Fleets to form Escort Groups for Atlantic convoys. These ships included the Opportune, Oribi, Obdurate, Orwell, Onslaught, Offa, Panther, Pathfinder and Penn. The emergency destroyers claimed at least three U-boats during April/May 1943—U531, U202 and U456. THE CHANNEL AND NORMANDY 22/23 November 1943 — Late in the evening of the 22nd the Ulster, Grenville, Tanatside, Wensleydale and Limbourne sailed from Plymouth to patrol along the French coast. Just before midnight they made contact with a German destroyer Flotilla consisting of 122, 123, T25, T26 and T27. The action which followed developed into a stem chase of the enemy destroyers with Grenville leading, followed by Ulster and the three Hunt class ships. Two of the German ships tured out of line and were followed by the three Hunts. Shortly afterwards the Greville was hit on the upper deck aft and stopped, leaving Ulster gamely pursuing three enemy destroyers alone, at full speed and at only 3000 yards range. She was soon hit forward which put A'gun out of action while a near miss put B gun Out. A torpedo attack was unsuccessful but un- deterred she closed to 2000 yards and opened fire with close range weapons. By this time A gun had been brought back into action. After fighting for nearly an hour the Ulster turned out to seaward as she was getting dangerously close to shoal water. She was badly damaged forward, the stokers’ mess, the forward magazines and other compart- ments flooded with 400 tons of water, but she returned to Plymouth under her own power. 6 June 1944— The Emergency destroyers employed to cover the Normandy landings were: the 25th DF (U_ class) Venus, Vigilant, Kempenfelt, Algonquin, ‘Sioux, Saumarez, Scorpion, Scourge, Serapis, Swift, Stord, Svenner, Verulam, Virago, Onslow, Onslaught, Offa, Oribi, Obedient, Orwell, Opportune and Pathfinder. Of these ships two were lost— the Svenner torpedoed off Le Havre by an E boat on D-Day itself, and the Swift which struck a mine on the morning of 24 June and sank at 07.30 a.m. in Seine Bay. THE EASTERN AND PACIFIC FLEETS ‘The Q class joined the Eastern Fleet as the 4th DF, and the A class as the 11th DF during 1943. The Vclass joined as the 26th Flotilla with Saumarez as leader, the original leader, Hardy, having been lost in 1944. In January 1945 the Q, U(25th DF) and W(27th DF) joined the British Pacific Fleet while the T class joined in April/May 1945. The Z class were also destined to join ‘the Eastern Fleet but the war ended before they could be transferred. 12 February 1944— Paladin, while in company with Petard, rammed and sank the Japanese submarine 127. The submarine had just torpedoed one of a small convoy of troopships being escorted by the destroyers. 11 February 1945— While supporting operations against Japanese forces on the Ramree Islands the Path- finder was bombed and severely damaged. Her back was nearly broken and her structure badly strained. She steamed home on one shaft and was laid up at Dartmouth, being deciared a constructive total loss. 1 April 1945— During Operations against Okinawa, the Ulster was hit and damaged by a Kamikaze aircraft. Towed to Leyte and temporarily repaired by the USN she was eventually brought home and repaired at Chatham Dockyard between October 1945 and February 1946. 16 May 1945~ Operating on aircraft sighting reports the 26th DF (Saumarez (L), Verulam, Vigilant, Venus ‘and Virago) proceeded into the Straits of Malacca in search of the Japanese cruiser Haguro and destroyer Kamikaze. At midnight the Saumarez located the enemy vessels by radar and the 26th Flotilla closed to make a classic night torpedo attack. During a comparatively short action the Haguro was hit by eight torpedoes and later sank while the Kamikaze was hit by shell fire but escaped. The Saumarez was hit by three 8-inch shells causing serious damage but only two casualties. WAR LOSSES Pakenham 16/4/43 Gunfire Panther 9/10/43 Bombed Partridge 5/8/41 Torpedoed Pathfinder 10/4/41 Bombed Porcupine 10/6/41 Torpedoed Quait 18/6/44 Mined Quentin 2/12/42 Torpedoed Svenner 6/6/44 Torpedoed Swift 24/6/44 Mined Hardy 30/1/44 TorpedoedaROEBUCK asin 1943, QUENTIN asin 4/42 GRENVILLE 1944 abut. ounuam 1902 = ‘QUILLIAM Admiraty special arupives foe" clans a in 1942, PETARD asin 1944/5 with Admiralty standard scheme, LUNOINE aint 1983 ‘SWIFT sin December 1943 wearing 1942 Dak rupives for Jad K class mode wih ghtened 1943 range,HMIS ORIBI sin co1942 CAMOUFLAGE The first vessels came into service during late 1941 and early 1942, and some were painted in the early type of Admiralty disruptive schemes. From the available photographs of this period it is know that Pakenham and Paladin were painted in multicoloured designs. A different’ pattern was carried port to starboard but unfortunately photographs exist showing one side of each ship only. The Onslow completed in overall 5078, — a medium grey — and with @ pendant number in white (Onslow may have been the only destroyer leader to have this feature). The overall 507B was guickly changed however to a dark hull and light upper-works design. The Oribi was also painted in this style during the early part of 1942. As ships of the ‘Q’ class began to commission during mid-1942 several of the class, including Quilliam, Quality, Quickmatch and Queensborough, wore a unique style, illustrated in this section. By mid-1942 certain pigments were in short supply, and to alleviate this problem a special emergency design was prepared to be used with the war emergency classes. Not only was the pattern radically different from any official style that had been used hitherto but it also introduced (at least partially) a new range of colours. This new design and colouring was first worn by the later-completing ‘O’ class vessels in the autumn of 1942, and included Obedient, Obdurate, Opportune and Onslow. Although the design was fairly simple in ‘appearance, the variations that ships of the ‘O" class carried were many and included both pattern and colour change. One of these variations is shown in the cen- trespread illustration of Orib ‘Apart from the vessels of the ‘Q’ class already mentioned the remaining four ships and most of the ‘R’ class carried on completion in 1942 and 1943 an Admiralty Disruptive type pattern. Ships not wearing one of the Admiralty designs were usually painted in dark hull and light upperworks type. Inevitably there were exceptions to this, for the Onslaught and Obdurate wore a two-colour Western Approaches design of Western Approaches blue and white for a few months during the middle of 1942. Units of the ’S’ class completing in 1943 in- troduced a new Admiralty camouflage design into the ‘group of war emergency destroyers. This was a pattern, Using mainly dark colours, originally issued in 1942 for ships of the ‘J, ‘K and ‘N’ class destroyers but as far as is ascertainable it was never wom as intended; ‘although the pattern was used more or less as designed, the colours belonged to the 1943 batch, and were in the lighter end of the scale. An example of this camouflage is given with the Swift as in 1944, and it was worn by a large number of ships of the later classes as well as a few of the earlier ones in late 1943 and 1944 (including Obdurate and Opportune). Although several 1943 ‘Admiralty designs for the 'S' to ‘2’ group were issued, ‘only one of these seems to have been used, and then by ‘only two or three vessels, among them the Undine (see colour profiles), and the Urania. Grenville appears to have been the only ship of the later emergency units to have worn a one-off Admiralty design. ‘Some designs of an unofficial nature were used on ships in the 1941/42 period but as photographic Coverage of this period was limited only two ships are definitely known to have carried designs of this type. One was the Pathfinder of which there exists a verbal description, as follows: ““From the stem to A gun we painted dark grey; thence light grey over the high bridge and funnel to the multiple pom-pom; then dark grey to the after-tubes, and finally light grey over the after superstructure to the stem’. The above description dates from the winter of 1942 while Pathfinder was serving with Force ‘H’. The other vessel to carry an unofficial scheme around this time was the Petard. During 1944 the Admiralty Standard schemes came into widespread usage and by the end of 1944 the great ‘majority of ships were carrying this type of camouflage.‘No, gun pattrm.Putin asin March 1943 ou of Devonport yar alain a November 1945 nving Mata, tnd place ofthe our singla dn mounts.Petardia May 1946 enterng Portsmouth unin completion nate 1942, Shes carrying an Adncaty Dative scheme the colours for which are 8078, 85 and 807°, uetinin June 142 ou of Portsmouth yardutr in Novernber 1942.Focketin August 1942 onthe Cyd u‘October 22,1948, ‘api entering Mala on Octobe 2. 1946, Note the adcton of angle 0mm boters amidships andthe 35Swit off Spithead in December 1943 Her los range AA consists entirely of 8 twin 20mm mounts. ‘Sauraraz on December 4, 1942 leaving Mai. Note te four single [M3 40mm Botors mounts ust scan Ape 1946, Note the single ‘mm MK 3 Bator just tnd the ‘nna n pace ofthe searhight‘Two views of Tersichor on the Cyd in January 1844. The two tne camouflage scheme const of G20 hu wth BSS forthe uppar works. 37Grenvle"W" cas endo n May 1943. The photo gives a good view of the FHA HF/DF a iteron completion in June 1943.Two views of Undaunted on Februtry 28,1944 at LiverpoolVolage entering Mat ston fst ‘on November 1, 1946 her bows blown off by hie operating off Coty,{lose up on Zambesin 1948. Note the rocket Mare projector raison the ‘side of 8 gun sil Zambesin February 1946, Note that he fre top mast has ben almost completly removed along withthe equipmentin Octobar 1945, The many erence between ships ofthe Bat clas and those ofthe O:Z group are immacaty apparentAppendix CLOSE RANGE ARMAMENT VARIATIONS 1941-45 47-inch gun ‘O' Class Oribi was completed with 2 x 4 0.5:inch M.G. in the bridge wings; these were removed and replaced by 2.x 1.20-mm while an additional 2 x 1 20-mm were fitted on the searchlight platform. Offa completed with 2 x 4 0.5-inch M.G. in the bridge wings and 2 x 1 20-mm on the searchlight platform. 2x1 20-mm replaced the 0.5-inch early in 1942. Onslow completed with 2 x 2 0.5-inch in the bridge wings; these were later removed and replaced by 2 x1 20-mm, while an additional 2 x 1 20-mm were fitted on the searchlight platform. Onslaught completed with 4 x 1 20-mm positioned as above. 2x 2 20-mm replaced the 2 x 1 20-mm amidships in Offa, Onslaught and on Onslow after 4/83, 0 Class Minelayers All completed with 4 x 1 20-mm in bridge wings and on upper deck abreast after superstructure, and 2 x 2.0.6:inch in searchlight platform, except Obdurate which had no 20-mm on the upper deck. All had 2 x 1.20-mm in wings replaced by 2 x 2 20:mm during 1943/44. P Class. All completed with 4 x 1 20-mm, except Petard, 2 x 1 20-mm and 2 0.6-inch, and possibly Porcupine, positioned in bridge wings and on searchlight platform. Pathfinder and Penn had 2x 1 20-mm in wings replaced by 2 x 2 20-mm. Paladin had 2 x 1 20-mm on searchlight platform replaced by 2 x220-mm. Petard was modified during a refit at Portsmouth as follows: 2.x 24-inch Mk XIX mountings (in place of 4 x 1 4- inch) in Band X positions. 4x 1 20-mm on searchlight platform. 2x20-mm in bridge wings. @ Class. All completed with 6 x 1 20-mm, 4 amidships and 2 in wings. Probable that most had 2 x 2 20- mm fitted in bridge wings in place of singles (definite in Quail and Queenborough) and some may have had 40-mm fitted when serving in the Pacific in 1945. R Class. All completed as Q Class except that Roebuck and Rocket were completed with 2 x 2 20-mm in the bridge wings. The remainder were sub- sequently fitted with 2 x 2 20-mm in wings, the singles being removed. Rotherham and Relentless were not further modified during the war. Rapid, Rocket and possibly others were fitted with 4 x 1 Mk II Bofors mountings in place of the 4 x 1 20-mm in mid 1945, NOTE All the 0, P, Q and R classes were com- pleted with a 4-barrel pom-pom abaft the funnel. S Class. Saumarez, Serapis, Stord, Scourge and T Class. Troubridg Svenner were completed with 1 x 2 40-:mm amidships, and 4 x 2 20-mm in the bridge wings and abaft the funnel. Swift and Savage were completed with 6 x 2 20-mm, the additional pair being fitted on the 40-mm platform. Scorpion was completed with a 4-barrel pom-pom in place of the twin 40-mm and 4 x 2 20-mm. Savage sub- sequently had 2 x 1 20-mm fitted on the forward shelter deck in 1944. Swift and Stord were not altered during the war. Saumarez had 4 x 1 Mkill 40-mm fitted abaft the funnel and all her 20-mm removed in 1945. Tumult, Tyrian and Tuscan were completed with 2 x 1.20-mm amidships and 4 x 2 20-mm in wings and abaft funnel. Terpsichore was the same except that she was fitted with 2 x 2 20- mm amidships. Teazer, Tenacious, and Termagant ‘were completed with 1 x 2 40-mm amidships and 4 x 2 20-mm in the wings and abaft the funnel. All were subsequently fitted with the 1 x 2 40-mm amidships, the single 20-mm being removed. in 1945 the following alterations were made: Troubridge, Termagant and Tuscan were fitted with 1 x1. 40-mm Mk Il in the searchlight position and 4 x 1 40:mm Boffins in the wings and abaft the funnel, the 20:mm mounts being removed. Ter: ‘magant also had a single Mk Ill 40-mm in place of the twin 40-mm. Tumult was fitted with 3x 1 40-mm Mk Ill abaft the funnel and 2 x 1 Mk XVI pom-poms in the bridge wings, all the 20-mm mounts being removed. Tyrian was fitted with 2 x 1 40-mm Mk Ill abaft the funnel but retained the twin 20-mm in the bridge wings. The others were probably similarly altered, U Class. All completed with 1 x 2 40-mm admidships ‘and 4 x 2.20-mm in the wings and abaft the funnel, except Undine and Urchin which were fitted with 2 x 2.20-mm in place of the twin 40-mm. These were subsequently removed from Undine and replaced by the twin 40-mm. Modifications in 1945 were as follows: Grenville, Ulysses, Ursa, Undine and Urchin were fitted with 1 x 1 40-mm Mk Ill in the searchlight position and 4 x 1 Boffins in the wings and abaft the funnel. Urania had 4 x 1 40-mm Mk IIl added in place of the twin 20-mm. Ulster was not altered and the details of Undaunted are not known. V Class. All completed with 1 x 2 40-mm and 4 x 2 20- mm positioned as in U Class except Volage which had 1 x 4 2-pdr pom-pom in place of the twin 40- mm. Alterations in 1945 were as follows: Venus and Vigilant had their twin 20-mm replaced by 4x1 40-mm Mk Il aVerulam had the twin 20-mm abaft the funnel replaced by 2 x 1.40-mm Mk Ill and a further 2 x 1 40-mm Mk Ill added on the upper deck abreast the ‘main mast. Volage had 4 x 1 40-mm Mk Ill fitted abaft the funnel and all 20-mm mounts removed. No details are available on the remaining three ships although it is probable that Algonquin and Sioux were not further altered during the war. W Class. All completed with 1 x 2 40-mm and 4 x 2.20- ‘mm arranged as in U Class, except Wessex and Whelp which mounted 1 x'4 2-pdr pom-pom in place of the twin 40-mm, Alterations in 1945 were as follows: Wager had 4 x 1 40-mm Boffins in place of the twin 20-mm and 1 x 1 40-mm Mk Ill in place of the searchlight. otherwise altered, Wakeful had 20-mm temoved and 3 x 1 40-mm Mk Ill added abaft the funnel. Wizard had 2 x 1 40-mm Mk III in place of the 20- mm abaft the funnel but was otherwise unaltered. Details of Whirlwind and Wrangler unavailable. Z Class. All completed with 1x 2 40-mm amidships, 2 x 2 20-mm in wings and 2 x 1 20-mm abaft funnel except Zambesi which had a 2 x 2 20-mm abaft funnel. Alterations in 1945 were as follows: ‘Myngs 2 x 1 2-pdr Mk XVI replaced 20-mm twins in bridge wings. 1 x 1 40-mm Mk Ill replaced sear: cchlight, Zephyr 2 x 1 2-pdr Mk XVI replaced 20-mm abaft funnel and possibly in wings. Zenith 20-mm replaced by 4 x 1 2-pdr Mk XVI. Zodiac and Zealous and possibly others were not Kempenfelt, Whelp and Wessex had the search- altered. light replaced by a Mk Ill 40-mm but were not General Data DISPLACEMENT (TONS) STANDARD DEEP © Class (as designed) 1610 2220 Oribi as completed 1690 2300 Onslow August 1942 1734 = P Class (as designed) 1640. 250 QCiass (as designed) 1692 2411 Quentin as completed 1686 2405; S. Class as designed 110 = Savage May 1943 1800 2530 T Class as completed 1800 - U Class as completed 1780 2510 Z Class as completed 1830 2560 DIMENSIONS LENGTH (PP) LENGTH {OA} BEAM O& P Classes 328" 9" 345° 35" QE R Classes 339° 6” 358" 3" 35° 8" S + Z Classes 339" 6” 362 9" 35° 8" MAIN ARMAMENT Class 4-4.7-inch Mk. IX**, CP XVIII mounting, 1 x4sinch Mk. V, HA'Mk. II** or lV mounting, QClass 4 or 3if fitted for mine laying 4-inch Mk. V HA/LA (minelayers) Mk. Il mounting. P Class 4.x4inch Mk. V, Mk. IiI"* mounting. RE OClass 4x4,7-inch Mk. IX*™ CP XVIll mounting, 11x4-inch Mk. VHA Mk. II** or IV mounting. S Teeept Savage) 4X4 7-inch Mk. IX** Mk, XXII mounting Savage 2-4.5-inch Mk. Ill, Mk. IV twin BD mounting, 2-4.5-inch Mk. IV, Mk. V mounting. ZClass 4x 4.5-inch OF Mk. IV, CP Mk. V mounting, 48AMMUNITION STOWAGE 47-inch Mk. IX** OClass. 250 rpg (150 SAP + 1006) Q&R Class. 250 rpg (190 SAP + 60 HE) + 50 starshell as designed. 225 rpg (125 SAP + 100 HE) May 1941 4,7-inch Mk. IX** StoW Class. 250 rpg (150 SAP + 100HE) + 80 starshell. 4,5-inch (Savage) 245 rpg (100 SAP + 145 HE) 4.5-inch Mk. IV 250 rpg {100 SAP + 180 HE) 100 star (120 practice) AVERAGE FOR CLOSE RANGE WEAPONS Pom poms (multiple) 1800 rpbarrel 40mm Hazemeyer 1400 rpg Single 20mm 2400 rpg TORPEDO ARMAMENT Two sets quadruple Mk. Vill torpedo tubes. Eight Mk. IX 21-inch torpedoes. ‘except — U class mounted two quadruple POR Il tubes which were quintuple tubes with the centre tube removed, an expedient due to the shortage of quadruple mountings. Tumult cartied two fixed tubes for experimental purposes but these were removed shortly after completion. A/S ARMAMENT Normally 4 depth charge throwers, two chutes with an average of 70 depth charges. MACHINERY Parsons IR single reduction geared turbines 40,000 SHP, 350 rpm = 36 knots std. 32 knots deep 2 Admiralty 3-drum boilers with Melesco supetheaters. 300 Ibs per square inch working pressure. 630° superheat. O& P — 484 tons Oil fuel 3850 NM at 20 knots The rest 615 tons oil fuel 4680 NM at 20 knots, Generators 2 x turbo 155 kw 2 x diesel 50 kw 1x diesel 10 kw Total 420 kilowatts.\eago on completion in October 1843. Ltr on competion in June 1943