Rattlesnake 1943
| Name | No | Yard No | Builder | Laid down | Launched | Comp | Fate |
| RN, Canadian-built | |||||||
| Bowmanville | Redfern, Toronto | 8/1943 | 24.11.1943 | 7.1944 // --- | completed for UK (Coquette) | ||
| Arnprior | Redfern, Toronto | 9/1943 | 22.12.1943 | 9.1944 // --- | completed for UK (Courier) | ||
| Coppercliff | Redfern, Toronto | 9/1943 | 19.1.1944 | 8.1944 // --- | completed for UK (Felicity) | ||
| Tillsonburg | Redfern, Toronto | 10.1943 | 16.2.1944 | 10/1944 // --- | completed for UK (Flying Fish) | ||
| Humberstone | Redfern, Toronto | 8/1943 | 29.2.1944 | 9.1944 // --- | completed for UK (Golden Fleece) | ||
| Petrolia | Redfern, Toronto | 11/1943 | 15.3.1944 | 12.1944 // --- | completed for UK (Lioness) | ||
| Hespeler | Port Arthur SY | 6/1943 | 11.11.1943 | 11.1944 // --- | completed for UK (Lysander) | ||
| Kincardine | Port Arthur SY | 8/1943 | 9.5.1945 | 5.1945 // --- | completed for UK (Mariner) | ||
| Orangeville | Port Arthur SY | 8/1943 | 15.6.1944 | 6.1945 // --- | completed for UK (Marmion) | ||
| Toronto | Redfern, Toronto | 2/1943 | 5.8.1943 | 4.1945 // --- | completed for UK (Mary Rose) | ||
| Mimico | Redfern, Toronto | 3/1943 | 2.9.1943 | 7.1944 // --- | completed for UK (Moon) | ||
| Huntsville | Redfern, Toronto | 11/1943 | 30.3.1944 | 9.1944 // --- | completed for UK (Prompt) | ||
| Forrest Hill | Redfern, Toronto | 7/1943 | 27.10.1943 | 5.1944 // --- | completed for UK (Providence) | ||
| Longbranch | Toronto SB | 4/1943 | 18.9.1943 | 5.1944 // --- | completed for UK (Regulus) | ||
| St. Thomas | Redfern, Toronto | 7/1943 | 6.11.1943 | 6.1944 // --- | completed for UK (Seabear) | ||
| Leaside | Redfern, Toronto | 7/1943 | 18.10.1943 | 9.1944 // --- | completed for UK (Serene) | ||
| Solebay | Redfern, Toronto | 11.1942 | 4.7.1943 | 4.1944 // --- | completed for UK (Skipjack) | ||
| RCN | |||||||
| Border Cities | J344 | Port Arthur SY | 8.1942 | 3.5.1943 | 5.1944 | sold 1949 | |
| Fort Francis | J396, 1950- FSE168 | Port Arthur SY | 5.1943 | 30.10.1943 | 10.1944 | survey vessel 1948 | |
| Kapuskasing | J326, 1950- FSE169 | Port Arthur SY | 12.1942 | 22.7.1943 | 8.1944 | survey vessel 1959 | |
| Middlesex | J328 | Port Arthur SY | 9.1942 | 27.5.1943 | 6.1944 | rescue ship 1946 | |
| New Liskeard | J397, 1950- FSE170 | Port Arthur SY | 8.1943 | 31.1.1944 | 11.1944 | TS 1948, survey vessel 1959 | |
| Oshawa | J330, 1950- FSE171 | Port Arthur SY | 10.1942 | 6.10.1943 | 7.1944 | survey vessel 1958 | |
| Portage | J331, 1950- FSE172 | Port Arthur SY | 5.1942 | 21.11.1942 | 10.1943 | TS 1947, sold 1958 | |
| Rockcliff | J355, 1950- FSE173 | Port Arthur SY | 12.1942 | 19.8.1943 | 9.1944 | TS 1947, sold 1950 | |
| St. Boniface | J332 | Port Arthur SY | 5.1942 | 5.11.1942 | 10.1943 | sold 1946 | |
| Sault Ste. Marie (ex-The Soo) | J334, 1950- FSE174 | Port Arthur SY | 1.1942 | 5.8.1942 | 6.1943 | TS 1949, sold 1959 | |
| Wallaceburg | J336, 1950- FSE175 | Port Arthur SY | 7.1942 | 17.12.1942 | 11.1943 | TS 1950, to Belgium 1959 (Georges Lecointe) | |
| Winnipeg | J337, 1950- FSE176 | Port Arthur SY | 1.1942 | 19.9.1942 | 7.1943 | to Belgium 1959 (A. F. Dufour) | |
|
Displacement standard, t |
950 - 1030 |
|
Displacement full, t |
1235 - 1325 |
|
Length, m |
68.6 |
|
Breadth, m |
10.8 |
|
Draught, m |
3.10 - 3.28 deep load (3.84 - 3.99 by screws) |
|
No of shafts |
2 |
|
Machinery |
2 VTE, 2 Admiralty 3-drum boilers |
|
Power, h. p. |
2400 |
|
Max speed, kts |
16.5 |
|
Fuel, t |
oil 230 - 239 |
|
Endurance, nm(kts) |
6000(12) |
|
Armament |
1 x 1 - 102/45 QF Mk V, 4 x 1 - 20/70 Oerlikon Mk II/IV or 4 x 2 - 20/70 Oerlikon Mk II/IV (more often), 4 DCT, 2 DCR (90 - 92) |
| Electronic equipment |
type 271 or type 272, type 291 (some) radars, type 128 sonar |
|
Complement |
85 - 138 |
Project history: After ordering of small minesweepers of Bangor class, Admiralty returned to the ship of the big sizes close to Halcyon class, but with smaller slenderness of the hull (L/B ratio was 6.4 against 7.3). On request of the Admiralty, new minesweepers should, besides the developed minesweeping equipment (sweeps for acoustic, magnetic and contact mines) to carry strong enough anti-submarine armaments. Actually, Algerine class could solve the same tasks, as Flower class corvette, and in days of war minesweepers of this class very often attracted for escort service performance. However such universality has been bought in literal sense by expensive price: the building of one Algerine class minesweeper managed more expensively, than two corvettes of Flower class. Nevertheless, in Canadian Navy they fulfilled a role of escort ships and did not carry the minesweeping equipment. On usual practice, the ships had machinery as with geared turbines (are known as Algerine type 1940), and with vertical triple expansion steam engine (Algerine type 1941).
In total 48 ships were built on British yards (29 with turbines and 19 with VTE). The order for 4 ships with turbines and on 5 with VTE have been cancelled. From 62 ships built on Canadian yards, 19 were ordered by RN, 15 intended for the USN on "reverse" lend-lease (in the end of 1943 of the USA, already satisfied the "minesweeping" hunger, cancelled an order on 6 of them, eventually "cancelled" and "ordered" have got to RN). From 28 ships intended for Canadian fleet under the agreement between the governments of England and Canada 16 are transferred to Royal Navy in exchange for 4 corvettes of Flower class and 12 of Castle class. The order for 6 ships for Canadians was cancelled.
Modernizations: None.
Naval service: RCN ships are used as escorts only and reclassified to coastal escorts in 1953.
© Ivan Gogin, 2015