Icarus HMS 1936

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john sefton
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Joined: Sun Mar 22, 2009 1:59 pm

Icarus HMS 1936

Post by john sefton » Tue Sep 11, 2012 10:38 am

Name: HMS ICARUS
Builder: John Brown and Company, Clydebank, Scotland, Laid down: 9 March 1936, Launched: 26 November 1936, Commissioned: 1 May 1937, Decommissioned: 29 August 1946, Identification: Pennant number: D03, Fate: Scrapped 1946
General characteristics: (as built)
Class and type: I-class destroyer, Displacement: 1,370 long tons (1,390 t) (standard), 1,888 long tons (1,918 t) (deep load), Length: 323 ft (98.5 m), Beam: 33 ft (10.1 m), Draught: 12 ft 5 in (3.8 m), Installed power: 34,000 shp (25,000 kW), Propulsion: 2 shafts, Parsons geared steam turbines, 3 Admiralty 3-drum water-tube boilers, Speed: 36 knots (67 km/h; 41 mph), Range: 5,530 nmi (10,240 km; 6,360 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph), Complement: 145, Sensors and processing systems: ASDIC, Armament: 4 × 1 - 4.7-inch (120 mm) guns, 2 × 4 - 0.5-inch (12.7 mm) machine guns, 2 × 5 - 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes, 20 × depth charges, 1 rail and 2 throwers, 60 × Mines.
Service record
Commanders: Colin Maud, Operations: North Sea 1939, Atlantic 1939-44, Narvik 1940, Norway 1940-41, Dunkirk 1940, Bismarck Action 1941, Arctic 1941-43, Malta Convoys 1942, Normandy 1944, English Channel 1945.
Victories: Sank U-45, U-35 (1939), U-744 (1944), U-1199 (1945)
HMS ICARUS was an I-class destroyer that served with the Royal Navy in World War II.
On 29 November 1939, ICARUS sighted the German U-boat U-35 between the Shetland Islands and Bergen (Norway), but was unable to launch an effective attack because her ASDIC (sonar) was out of commission. Fellow destroyers Kingston and Kashmir were called to the scene, and ICARUS departed. Kingston was able to launch a successful depth charge attack, forcing the U-boat to surface and scuttle itself.
ICARUS participated in the Norwegian campaign in 1940, first capturing the 8,514 ton German supply ship ALSTER (brought to the UK and renamed EMPIRE ENDURANCE) on 11 April and then taking part in the Second Battle of Narvik on 13 April 1940.
In early May 1941, the British Admiralty was on the alert that the Bismarck might attempt to break out into the North Atlantic; so ICARUS was ordered to Scapa Flow for possible deployment against the Germans. On 22 May, just after midnight, ICARUS sailed along with the destroyers ACHATES, ANTELOPE, ANTHONY, ECHO, and ELECTRA, escorting the battlecruiser HOOD and the battleship PRINCE OF WALES to cover the northern approaches. The intention was that the force would refuel in Hvalfjord, Iceland, and then sail again to watch the Denmark Strait.
On the evening of 23 May, the weather deteriorated. At 20:55 hrs., Admiral Lancelot Holland aboard the HOOD signalled the destroyers "If you are unable to maintain this speed I will have to go on without you. You should follow at your best speed." At 02:15 on the morning of 24 May, the destroyers were ordered to spread out at 15 miles (24 km) intervals to search to the north. At about 05:35, the German forces were sighted by the HOOD, and shortly after, the Germans sighted the British ships. Firing commenced at 05:52. At 06:01, HOOD took a 38 centimetres (15 in) shell from Bismarck in the after magazine, which caused a massive explosion, sinking the ship within 2 minutes. ELECTRA and the other destroyers were about 60 miles (97 km) away at the time.
Upon hearing that the HOOD had sunk, ELECTRA raced to the area, arriving about 2 hours after the HOOD went down. They were expecting to find many survivors, and rigged scrambling nets and heaving lines, and placed life belts on the deck where they could be quickly thrown in. From the 94 officers and 1,321 ratings aboard the HOOD, just three survivors were found. ELECTRA rescued them, and continued searching. Shortly thereafeter, ICARUS and Anthony joined in the search, and the three ships searched the area for more survivors. No more were found, only driftwood, debris, and a desk drawer filled with documents. After several hours searching, they left the area.
She participated and in Operation Pedestal, escorting a convoy to Malta in August 1942.
ICARUS was involved in many important events of World War II, Dunkirk, Spitzbergen, and numerous Atlantic and Russian convoys.
ICARUS sank four German U-boats: On 14 October 1939 she participated in sinking of U-45 in the Western Approaches with destroyers Inglefield, Ivanhoe and Intrepid.
On 29 November 1939 U-35 was scuttled by its crew in the North Sea, after a depth charge attack from ICARUS, Kingston and Kashmir. All 43 hands on board survived.
On 6 March 1944 she sank U-744 while in company with the corvette Kenilworth Castle, the Canadian frigate St. Catharines, corvettes Fennel and Chilliwack and destroyers Chaudiere and Gatineau in the North Atlantic.
On 21 January 1945 she sank U-1199 while in company with the corvette Mignonette in the English Channel near the Isles of Scilly.
A long-time captain of ICARUS, Colin Maud, was the Juno beach master at the D-day landings; in the film 'The Longest Day' he was played by Kenneth More, complete with bulldog.
Lieutenant-Commander John Simon Kerans, famous for his part in sailing HMS AMETHYST, down the Yangtze River, a feat made famous in the film Yangtse Incident, also served in ICARUS as "number one".
July – August 1945. Transferred to 3rd Submarine Flotilla in place of HM Sloop BRIDGEWATER. Deployed for training of submarine crews in Clyde area.
HMS ICARUS continued her submarine training role until November 1945 when she was detached to take part in Operation DEADLIGHT (destruction of surrendered U-Boats). In January 1946 the ship escorted U3515 to Libau in the Baltic for handing over to USSR. After her return to Clyde she resumed submarine training duties until July 1946 when she paid-off and was reduced in the Reserve. This ship was placed on the Disposal List and sold to BISCO for demolition by South of Scotland Shipbreakers. She arrived in tow at the shipbreaker’s yard in Troon on 29th October 1946.
Sources Wikipedia.
http://www.naval-history.net/xGM-Chrono ... ICARUS.htm.
Mr P Crichton
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