Royal Navy Aircraft Carriers in the Second World War, Ruler-class and Merchant Ships adapted to carry aircraft

Royal Navy Aircraft Carriers in the Second World War

Ruler class, The Ruler class of escort aircraft carriers served with the Royal Navy during the Second World War. All twenty-three ships were built by the Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Corporation in the United States as Bogue-class escort carriers, supplied under Lend-Lease to the United Kingdom. They were the most numerous single class of aircraft carriers in service with the Royal Navy.As built they were intended for three types of operations, "Assault" or strike, convoy escort, or aircraft ferry.After the Second World War some of the escort carriers were scrapped, while others had their flight decks removed and were converted to merchant ships (and all eventually scrapped by the 1970s).

First group: HMS Patroller, HMS Puncher (crewed by the Royal Canadian Navy), HMS Reaper, HMS Slinger, HMS Smiter, HMS Speaker, HMS Trouncer, HMS Trumpeter, Second group: HMS Arbiter, HMS Ameer, HMS Atheling, HMS Begum, HMS Emperor, HMS Empress, HMS Khedive, HMS Nabob (crewed by the Royal Canadian Navy) (torpedoed 22 August 1944, by U-354 west of the North Cape), HMS Premier, HMS Queen, HMS Rajah, HMS Ranee, HMS Ruler, HMS Shah, HMS Thane (torpedoed 15 January 1945, by U-1172 in the Clyde estuary).

These ships were all larger and had greater aircraft capacity than all preceding American built escort carriers. They were laid down as escort carriers and were not converted merchant ships.[4] All the ships had a complement of 646 men and an overall length of 492 feet 3 inches (150.0 m), a beam of 69 feet 6 inches (21.2 m) and a draught of 25 ft 6 in (7.8 m). Propulsion was provided by one shaft, two boilers and a steam turbine giving 9,350 shaft horsepower (6,970 kW), which could propel the ship at 16.5 knots (30.6 km/h; 19.0 mph).Aircraft facilities were a small combined bridge–flight control on the starboard side, two aircraft 43-by-34-foot (13.1 by 10.4 m) lifts, one aircraft catapult and nine arrestor wires. Aircraft could be housed in the 260-by-62-foot (79.2 by 18.9 m) hangar below the flight deck. Armament comprised: two 4-inch (102 mm)/50-calibre dual purpose guns in single mounts, sixteen 40 mm (1.6 in) Bofors anti-aircraft guns in twin mounts and twenty 20 mm (0.79 in) Oerlikon anti-aircraft cannon in single mounts. They had a maximum capacity for twenty-four carrier-based aircraft which could be a mixture of Grumman Martlet, an American carrier-based fighter aircraft, or Vought F4U Corsair, another type of American carrier-based fighter aircraft, or Hawker Sea Hurricane fighter aircraft (a navalised Hawker Hurricane fighter aircraft), and Fairey Swordfish torpedo bomber, or Grumman Avenger torpedo bomber / anti-submarine aircraft. (Wikipedia)

First group:

HMS Patroller (D07)

(RN Photo)

HMS Patroller (D07) was an escort carrier in the Royal Navy during the Second World War. Laid down in 1942 at the Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding company, she was originally named USS Keweenaw (CVE-44). USS Keweenaw (previously AVG-44 then later ACV-44) was an escort carrier laid down under Maritime Commission contract by Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding of Tacoma, Washington, 27 November 1942; launched 6 May 1943; sponsored by Mrs. R. G. Risley; assigned to the United Kingdom 10 June 1943; reclassified CVE-44 on 15 July 1943; and transferred to the United Kingdom under lend-lease 22 October 1943.During the remainder of war, she served the Royal Navy as HMS Patroller and operated in the Atlantic on convoy escort and patrol duty, with brief stints as a transport carrier for both the Army and Navy. Arriving Norfolk, Virginia, 9 December 1946, she was returned to the United States Navy the same day. Her name was struck from the Naval Vessel Registry 7 February 1947 and she was sold to Waterman Steamship Corp., 26 August 1947 as Almkerk (later renamed Pacific Reliance). She was scrapped in Taiwan in 1974. (Wikipedia)

(RN Photo)

HMS Patroller (D07).

(RN Photo)

HMS Patroller (D07)

HMS Puncher (D79)

(Shearwater Aviation Museum Photo)

HMS Puncher (D79), originally named USS Willapa (AVG-53/ACV-53/CVE-53) was a Bogue-class escort aircraft carrier (originally an auxiliary aircraft carrier) in the United States Navy, leased to the United Kingdom.  Willapa was laid down on 21 May 1943 at Seattle, Washington, by the Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Corporation and reclassified CVE-53 on 10 June 1943.  Launched on 8 November 1943, the ship was transferred under lend-lease to the Royal Navy on 5 February 1944 to be manned by a Canadian crew.  Renamed HMS Puncher (D79), the carrier served the Royal Canadian Navy except for Fleet Air Arm personnel in the Atlantic and Mediterranean for the duration of hostilities.  Stationed with the Home Fleet at Scapa Flow, Puncher initially served in a training role, but was re-tasked to strike and convoy air protection (CAP) after her sister ship, HMS Nabob was torpedoed off Norway in 1944.  Also part of her squadron was the US escort carrier USS Shamrock Bay.  Puncher also provided convoy air protection on the Murmansk/Arkhangelsk convoy route which she did six times. Strike operations included against German occupied Norway industrial and shipping targets such as the steel works at Narvik on the west coast of Norway.  Fleet Air Arm squadrons assigned to Puncher included Fairey Barracuda torpedo bombers, Fairey Firefly fighter/bombers, American-built Hellcat (Wildcat) fighters and Avenger torpedo bombers.  The Barracuda was one of the largest carrier-borne aircraft in the Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm and required rocket assistance to take flight from the small flight deck.  The Admiralty had determined that, in the post-war world, Canada would have her own aircraft carriers. Both HMS Puncher and HMS Nabob were crewed by RCN crews to establish the knowledge base for the future carriers assigned to that country, HMCS Warrior (ex HMS Warrior), HMCS Magnificent (ex HMS Magnificent) ("The Maggie"), and HMCS Bonaventure (ex HMS Powerful) ("The Bonnie").  Decommissioned on 16 February 1946 at Norfolk, Virginia, and returned to American custody that day, the escort carrier was struck from the Navy Registry on 12 March 1946, having never seen active service with the United States Navy.  Initially sold to William B. St. John, of New York City, on 9 January 1947, the carrier was subsequently resold to a British firm on 4 February 1947 and converted for mercantile service.  She later served successively as Muncaster Castle, Bardic and Ben Nevis until she was scrapped in Taiwan in 1973.

(Alanfor SVallely Photo)

HMS Puncher (D79).

(Official USN Photo, located at the US National Archives)

HMS Puncher (D79).

(Official USN Photo, located at the US National Archives)

HMS Puncher (D79).

HMS Reaper (D82)

(IWM Photo, A 25715)

HMS Reaper (D82), Greenock, Scotland.

USS Winjah (CVE-54) (originally AVG-54, later ACV-54), was a Bogue-class escort carrier of the United States Navy, leased to the Royal Navy during the Second World War. Winjah was laid down on 5 June 1943 at Tacoma, Washington, by Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding. She was assigned to the United Kingdom under lend-lease on 23 June; she was redesignated CVE-54 on 15 July; launched on 22 November; and delivered to the British on 18 February 1944. From March to August 1945 she was part of the British Pacific Fleet attached to the 30th Aircraft Carrier Squadron. Renamed HMS Reaper (D82), the carrier operated in the Royal Navy for the duration of the Second World War. After arriving at Norfolk, Virginia, on 13 May 1946, Reaper was decommissioned on 20 May and returned to the United States Government. Authorized for disposal on 14 June, Winjah was struck from the Navy Registry on 8 July and sold to the Waterman Steamship Company of Mobile, Alabama, on 12 February 1947 as South Africa Star. She was scrapped in Japan in May 1967. Just after the end of the Second World War, Reaper was responsible for bringing from Cherbourg Harbour many examples of former German Luftwaffe aircraft captured by the American military's Operation Lusty over to North America, such as the sole examples of the Arado Ar 234 jet reconnaissance bomber, and the Heinkel He 219 night fighter, that exist in American aviation museums in the 21st century. The aircraft arrived by air from Germany to Querqueville Airfield which is under a kilometer away from Cherbourg. (Wikipedia)

(RN Photo)

HMS Reaper (D82) on her maiden Atlantic crossing. She is carrying a ferry load of Lend-lease aircraft, there are 26 Corsairs and 4 Avengers on her flight deck.

(USN Photo)

One of the pair of (Dornier Do 335A Pfiels being loaded aboard HMS Reaper at Cherbourg, France, during Operation 'Seahorse'.

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(RN Photo)

HMS Reaper (D82), paying off.

(RN Photo)

HMS Reaper (D82) on the Clyde December 7th 1944 waiting to disembark her ferry load, a Grumman Tigercat can be seen forward on the flight deck.

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‍HMS Slinger,‍

HMS Smiter‍

HMS Speaker‍

HMS Trouncer

‍HMS Trumpeter

‍Second group:

HMS Arbiter

‍HMS Ameer‍

HMS Atheling

‍HMS Begum

‍HMS Emperor

‍HMS Empress

‍HMS Khedive

HMS Nabob (D77)

(Bruce Jones Photo)

HMS Nabob (D77), (RCN-manned) (Capt H N Lay RCN), damaged 22 August 1944, Arctic Ocean, north west of North Cape in Barents Sea (71.42N, 19.11E) - torpedoed by German ‘U.354’ (Sthamer). With Home Fleet covering Fleet Air Arm attack on the 'Tirpitz' in Altenfiord, Norway and also Russian convoy JW.59. Not repaired and laid up; 21 crew lost (Casualty List) (Russian Convoys).

HMS Nabob (D77) was a Ruler-class escort aircraft carrier which served in the Royal Navy during 1943 and 1944.  The ship was built in the United States as USS Edisto (CVE-41) (originally AVG-41 then later ACV-41) but did not serve with the United States Navy.  She was laid down on 20 October 1942, launched 22 March 1943, and transferred under Lend-Lease to the United Kingdom on 7 September 1943 prior to her commissioning as HMS Nabob (D77) into the Royal Navy.  She served as an anti-submarine warfare carrier and the ship's crew was largely drawn from personnel provided by the Royal Canadian Navy.  Flight crew were Royal Navy personnel (No. 852 and No. 856 Naval Air Squadrons of the Fleet Air Arm).

After training the ship went to San Diego and took the 852 FAA-Sqdn on board, equipped with Avenger aircraft. She then proceeded with HMCS New Waterford (K321) via the Panama Canal to Norfolk, where 45 Republic P-47 Thunderbolt fighters were embarked as deck load and US Army Air Force personnel were taken on board as passengers when the ship made passage to the UK in convoy VT-10.  There, it joined the Home Fleet after disembarking the fighters.  In April 1944, four Grumman Martlet (Wildcat) Mk. V fighters were added to the No. 852 Squadron, FAA, while a detachment of the No. 856 Squadron, FAA, equipped with Grumman Avenger Mk. II aircraft joined the escort carrier in June.  The ship then participated in Operation Offspring, a great mine lying operation off Norway.

(Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No. 3198918)

HMS Nabob, starboard quarter, January 1944.

(IWM Photo, A 25368)

HMS Nabob (D77).  On 22 August 1944, while returning from a strike against the German battleship Tirpitz (Operation Goodwood), she was torpedoed by U-354 in the Barents Sea and sustained heavy damage.  The damaged carrier is shown steaming under her own power for Scapa Flow.  At 01.14 hours on 22 Aug 1944 the U-boat fired a spread of FAT torpedoes and hit the HMS Nabob (D 77) with one torpedo in the starboard side aft, resulting in a hole about 32 feet square located aft of the engine room and below the waterline.  At 01.22 hours, the U-boat fired a Gnat to finish off the carrier, but struck the HMS Bickerton (K466) instead, which was about to begin refuelling the escort carrier at the time of the attack.  The frigate was subsequently scuttled by a torpedo from the HMS Vigilant (R93).

The stern of the HMS Nabob (D77) quickly sank 15 feet and the power went off.  The fans in the engine room stopped and the main engines had to be shut down because the temperature had soared to 150 degrees.  As the ship lay dead in the water, 205 men were evacuated from the ship and transferred to the Canadian destroyer HMCS Algonquin by boats and Carley floats, two weeks later they were transferred to the HMS Zest (R02) near the Faeroe Islands and finally brought to Scapa Flow.  The remaining crew worked hard to get the ship under control.  Emergency diesel generators were used to get power for the pumps to limit the flooding, but the engine room bulkheads bulged inward from the pressure of the sea that had rushed in through the hole.  Heavy gear was ditched or brought to the bow to improve the trim, including the two 5-inch guns, which were removed with cutting torches and dropped overboard.  This helped raise the stern so there was not as much pressure on the drive shaft bearings.  In the early evening, the escort carrier was underway again at 10 knots.

Early the next morning, an HF/DF bearing and a surface contact indicated that a U-boat was in the area.  Two Avengers managed to launch from the sloping deck and kept the U-boat under water for three and a half hours.  The first returned and made a good landing, but the second crashed and damaged six other aircraft on deck.  The damaged torpedo bombers were later jettisoned.  

Despite her damaged condition, HMS Nabob turned homeward with a skeleton crew and reached her base after sailing 1,070 miles at a steady ten knots, proceeding homewards under her own steam, her stern low down in the water.  On 27 August, the ship reached Scapa Flow under her own power.  As the carrier's galley had been destroyed the skeleton crew lived on short rations and rum for the five days it took to get the ship home.

(RN Photo)

HMS Nabob (D77), down by the stern after the torpedo strike.

HMS Nabob had lost 21 men.  She was eventually judged not worth repairing, was beached and abandoned, and then cannibalized for other ships.  She was decommissioned on 30 September 1944, but was retained as part of the Reserve Fleet.  She was returned to USN at Rosyth and stricken for disposal 16 March 1946.  She was sold for scrapping in the Netherlands in March 1947, but was resold and converted as the merchant ship Nabob of Norddeutscher Lloyd (she was later renamed Glory and registered in Panama).  She was sold for scrap in Taiwan in 1977.  HMS Nabob was one of three Royal Navy escort carriers built in the United States which were listed as lost in action (2 sunk and 1 heavily damaged and never repaired) during the Second World War.

These ships were all larger and had a greater aircraft capacity than all the preceding American built escort carriers.  They were also all laid down as escort carriers and not converted merchant ships.  All the ships had a complement of 646 men and an overall length of 492 feet 3 inches (150.0 m), a beam of 69 feet 6 inches (21.2 m) and a draught of 25 ft 6 in (7.8 m).  Propulsion was provided a steam turbine, two boilers connected to one shaft giving 9,350 brake horsepower (SHP), which could propel the ship at 16.5 knots (30.6 km/h; 19.0 mph).  Aircraft facilities were a small combined bridge–flight control on the starboard side, two aircraft lifts 43 feet (13.1 m) by 34 feet (10.4 m), one aircraft catapult and nine arrestor wires.  Aircraft could be housed in the 260 feet (79.2 m) by 62 feet (18.9 m) hangar below the flight deck.  Armament comprised: two 4 inch Dual Purpose guns in single mounts, sixteen 40-mm Bofors anti-aircraft guns in twin mounts and twenty 20-mm Oerlikon anti-aircraft cannons in single mounts.  They had a maximum aircraft capacity of twenty-four aircraft which could be a mixture of Grumman Martlet, Vought F4U Corsair or Hawker Sea Hurricane fighter aircraft and Fairey Swordfish or Grumman Avenger anti-submarine aircraft.

HMS Premier

‍HMS Queen

‍HMS Rajah

‍HMS Ranee

‍HMS Ruler

‍HMS Shah

‍HMS Thane (torpedoed 15 January 1945, by U-1172 in the Clyde estuary).

HMS Thane (Capt E R J Baker), damaged 15 January1945, Western Europe, off Clyde Light Vessel in Firth of Clyde, SW Scotland(55.08N, 05.25W) - torpedoed by German ‘U.1172’ (Kuhlmann). (Originallycredited to ‘U.482’ which had already been lost). Believed ferrying aircraftfrom Northern Ireland to Britain. Not repaired and laid up; 10 crew lost(Casualty List) (Battles of Britain - U-boat Inshore Campaign).

British-built Escort carriers adapted from merchant ship hulls: Activity, Campania, Nairana, Vindex, 4 ships builtin Britain - circa 12,000 tons, 17 knots, 15 aircraft, 700 crew, laid down in 1942-44.

Activity

Campania

Nairana

Vindex

‍Pretoria Castle, ex-armed merchant cruiser - 17,400 tons, 17 knots, 15 aircraft, laid down in 1943.

Merchant Aircraft Carriers (MAC-Ships)

Oil or grain bulk cargo carriers with superstructures removed and flight decks added. Manned by Merchant Navy crews,with Fleet Air Arm (FAA) personnel to maintain and fly the aircraft - mainly A/S Fairey Swordfish and Hawker Sea Hurricanes. The ships flew the Red Ensign, and some aircraft carried ‘Merchant Navy’ instead of ‘Royal Navy’ on their fuselage.

Empire-class Grain Carriers, Empire MacAlpine, Empire MacKendrick, Empire MacAndrew, Empire MacDermott, Empire MacRae, Empire MacCallum, 7 ships - 8,000 tons, 12 knots, 4 aircraft, crewnot known, launched December 1942-January 1944. Equipped with hangar and lift.

Empire MacAlpine

Empire MacKendrick

Empire MacAndrew

Empire MacDermott

Empire MacRae

Empire MacCallum

Empire-Class Oil Tankers, Empire MacKay, Empire MacColl, Empire MacMahon, Empire MacCabe, 4 ships- 9,000 tons, 12 knots, 3 aircraft, crew not known, launched May-July 1943. No hangar and lift; aircraft stored and maintained on deck.

Empire MacKay

Empire MacColl

Empire MacMahon

Empire MacCabe

Rapana-Class Oil Tankers, Acavus, Adula, Alexia, Amastra, Ancylus, Gadila, Macoma, Miralda, Rapana, 9 ships - 12,000 tons, 12 knots, 3 aircraft, crew not known, converted 1942-44.Anglo-Saxon Petroleum Company tankers. ‘Gadila’ and ‘Macoma’ operated under theDutch ensign. No hangar and lift; aircraft stored and maintained on deck.

Acavus

Adula

Alexia

Amastra

Ancylus

Gadila

Macoma

Miralda

Rapana

Catapult Armed Merchantmen (CAM-Ships)

Ordinary merchant ships fitted with a rocket driven catapult on the forecastle. They carried one Mk. 1(a) Hurricane with minimum modifications and flown by volunteer RAF pilots, known as Sea Hurricanes, ‘Catafighters’ or ‘Hurricats’. Quickly put into service in 1941 before the first escort carriers appeared with the aim of driving off or shooting down German bombers and reconnaissance aircraft, particularly Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condors. Once flown off, the pilot usually had to ditch and hope tobe picked up or make for the nearest friendly shore. The first ships were requisitioned for Naval Service as Auxiliary Fighter Catapult Ships and sailed under the White Ensign. Later CAM-ships were merchantmen.

According to Cdr Rippon in ‘Evolution of Engineering in the Royal Navy’, Volume 2, some 35 CAM-ships made about 175 voyages in two years - twelve were lost, eight catapult launchings were made, six enemy aircraft shot down and one RAF pilot lost. Requisitioned Auxiliary Fighter Catapult Ships included ‘Ariguani’, ‘Maplin’ and two more, which were lost in 1941:

Patia, (5,350t, completed 1922, Cdr D M B Baker RNR+), lost on 27 April 1941, Western Europe, near 20G Buoy, Coquet Island, off Northumberland, NEcoast of England - German bombers, 40 crew lost.

Springbank (5,150t, completed 1926, Capt C H Godwin), lost on 27 September 1941, North Atlantic(49.10N, 20.05W) - torpedoed by German ‘U.201’ (Schnee); 32 crew lost.

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