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ROYAL NAVY (UNITED KINGDOM)

ESCORTS

"CAPTAIN" 2nd group frigates (ex-US "TE" class) (1943 - 1944)

Cubitt 1943

Riou 1944

Project history: USN destroyer escorts of Buckley class, transferred to Britain by lend-lease in 1943-1944. They were classified as frigates of "Captain" class in Royal Navy and received names of naval officers of Napoleonic wars. Originally destroyer escorts were designed for deliveries to Britain, but soon the USA began to build the same ships for themselves. On early design stages it was supposed to use modified design of "Hunt" class escort destroyer, however this idea have quickly refused. Flush-decked, with the big sheer, all-welded, with two rudders. There were some variants of the ship differing only by machinery, artillery and hull dimensions (so-called "long hull" and "short hull"). Under the specification they would had triple 533mm TT, but it was removed right after acceptance by RN, and frigates delivered in 1944 at all were not completed with it. During service of the first ships their excessive stability conducting to a choppy rocking from which the crew strongly suffered has come to light.This lack was fixed simply enough: additional stock of DCs (160 instead of 100) was placed on upper deck, that has made a rocking of much smoother.

Modernizations: 1944, Ekins, Hargood, Holmes, Spragge, Stayner: + 1 x 1 - 40/39 2pdr QF Mk VIII

1944 - 1945, most survived without Boforses: - 2 x 1 - 20/70; + 1 x 2 - 40/56 Bofors Mk 1.2, (0 - 5) - 20/70 Oerlikon Mk II/IV. Ships can carry 2 Mk10* DC (stowage of usual DCs was decreased to 16).

1945, Calder, Duckworth, Essington: - 8 x 1 - 20/70; + 7 x 1 - 40/56 Bofors Mk III

1/1946, Cosby, Cubitt, Deane, Fitzroy, Hotham, Narborough, Riou, Rupert, Seymour, Stockham, Thornbrough, Torrington, Tyler: 3 x 1 - 76/50 Mk 21, 1 x 2 - 40/60 Mk 1, 8 x 1 - 20/70 Mk 10, 1 x 24 - 178 Hedgehog Mk 10 ASWRL, 4 DCT, 2 DCR (160), SC-2, SF or SU radars, QGA sonar

1/1946, Hargood, Spragge, Stayner: 3 x 1 - 76/50 Mk 21, 1 x 2 - 40/60 Mk 1, 1 x 1 - 40/39 Mk VIII, 8 x 1 - 20/70 Mk 10, 1 x 24 - 178 Hedgehog Mk 10 ASWRL, 4 DCT, 2 DCR (160), SC-2, SF or SU radars, QGA sonar

1/1946, Cubitt: 3 x 1 - 76/50 Mk 21, 1 x 2 - 40/60 Mk 1, 2 x 1 - 40/60 Mk 3, 6 x 1  - 20/70 Mk 10, 1 x 24 - 178 Hedgehog Mk 10 ASWRL, 4 DCT, 2 DCR (160), SC-2, SF or SU radars, QGA sonar

1/1946, Bentinck, Curzon: 3 x 1 - 76/50 Mk 21, 1 x 2 - 40/60 Mk 1, 8 x 1  - 20/70 Mk 10, 1 x 24 - 178 Hedgehog Mk 10 ASWRL, 4 DCT, 2 DCR (160), SC-2, SF or SU radars, QGA sonar

Naval service: Bickerton was sunk in Barents sea 22.8.1944 by German submarine U354; Bullen NW of Scotland 6.12.1944 by U775.

Halsted was damaged 10.6.1944 by torpedo from German torpedo boat Jaguar or Möwe and never repaired; Trollope was torpedoed by German MTB 6.7.1944 (CTL); Whittaker by German submarine U783 1.11.1944 (CTL); Duff was mined 30.11.1944 and never repaired; Dakins was mined 25.12.1944 and never repaired; Affleck was damaged by German submarine U486 27.12.1944 (CTL); Ekins was mined 16.4.1945 (CTL).

Bentinck 1944

Many thanks to Wolfgang Stöhr for additional information on this page.

© Ivan Gogin, 2008-15