VAMPIRE destroyer leader (1917/1933)
nearly sister-ship Viscount 1918
| Name | No | Yard No | Builder | Laid down | Launched | Comp | Fate |
| Vampire (ex-Wallace) | D68 | White, Cowes, UK | 10/1916 | 21.5.1917 | 9/1917 // 10.1933 | sunk 9.4.1942 |
|
Displacement normal, t |
1188 |
|
Displacement full, t |
1400 |
|
Length, m |
95.1 |
|
Breadth, m |
9.00 |
|
Draught, m |
3.20 |
|
No of shafts |
2 |
|
Machinery |
2 sets Brown-Curtis geared steam turbines, 3 White-Forster boilers |
|
Power, h. p. |
27000 |
|
Max speed, kts |
34 |
|
Fuel, t |
oil 367 |
|
Endurance, nm(kts) |
2600(15) |
|
Armament |
4 x 1 - 102/45 QF Mk V, 2 x 1 - 40/39 2pdr QF Mk II, 2 x 3 - 533 TT, 1 DCR (10) |
|
Complement |
115 |
Project history: The new 'R' class promised to be able lo outstrip existing flotilla leaders and so the DNC was asked to design a new leader capable of a nominal speed of 34kts. The design which resulted was submitted in April 1916, and had the armament of the Parker class, but with superimposed new QF Mk.V guns aft as well as forward. Accommodation was better and the bridge was 4.6m further aft, but the overall length was 4.6m less. Even cost compared favourably, for at £200,000 the new leader would be £50,000 cheaper than the Lightfoot and only £6000 more than some of the Yarrow 'M' and 'R' class. The first two orders were placed with Denny Bros in April 1916, followed by three more from J S White and Cammell Laird in July, with delivery to be from June 1917. The new leaders were a great improvement over previous designs, with good seakeeping and a powerful armament, but ultimately served as divisional or half-leaders, as even more powerful leaders followed them into service quite quickly. They had a distinctive appearance, with a tall, thin fore funnel and a short fatter second funnel. They were distinguishable from the later 'V&W' boats by having a compass platform forward of the searchlight platform amidships.
Modernizations: 1930s: + type 124 or type 127 sonar
Naval service: Vampire 9.4.1942 was sunk by Japanese D3A1 bombers from Akagi and Hiryu W of Ceylon.
© Ivan Gogin, 2015