EAGLE HMS aircraft carrier 1920

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EAGLE HMS aircraft carrier 1920

Post by shipstamps » Mon Mar 23, 2009 3:39 pm

Built under yard no 858 as a battleship by the yard of Armstrong Whitworth, Newcastle for the Navy of Chile.
Intended name "ALMIRANTE COCHRANE".
She was designed by J.R.Perrett.
29 July 1912 contract signed with the builder.
24 Feb. 1913, laid down.
August 1914, work ceased at that time her hull and machinery were nearly completed. She was taken over the same year by Great Britain, with the promise to Chile that after the war she was given back. But during the war her guns and mountings were given to other ships, she could not be completed as a battleship without inordinate expense, and it was decided in 1918 to purchase her, the purchase price was £ 1.334.358 and then convert her in an aircraft carrier.
The conversion was ordered on 25 Jan 1918, renamed in March as HMS "EAGLE".
08 June 1918 launched.
Displacement 22.600 ts, standard, 26.680 ts maximum load. Dim. 203.45 x 32.06 x 6.63m. (draught).
Two sets of Parsons LP turbines, 55.000 shp., two screws, speed 24 knots.
Bunker capacity coal 1.750 ts, oil 3.750 ts.
Armament 6 - 6 inch, 2 - 3 inch AA, 4 MG.
Carried 22 aircraft in 1940.
Crew 748.
After the war, work proceeded slowly and stopped altogether 21 Oct. 1919.
13 April 1920 commissioned for trials.
She left for the Portsmouth Dockyard 20 April 1920.

After commissioned used for flying trials only partly completed, with her island in place but only one funnel and no masts. After trials she was pressed to full completion at Portsmouth Dockyard with two funnels, a heavy tripod foremast and a pole main-mast. Finally commissioned in 1923. After she was commissioned the following seven years she spent in the Mediterranean, only for refits she sailed to the U.K.
1932 Arrived in Devonport for modernization, thereafter she spent two years on the China Station. During 1936 and 1937 she was again at Devonport.
1938 Sailed for the Far East.
By outbreak of World War II she was at Singapore. In October 1939 was she part of Force I, hunting for the German Battleship GRAF SPEE.
The first two months of 1940 she escorted troop convoys in the Indian Ocean.
14 March 1940 an internal explosion in her fore bomb room killed 13 crew, returned to Singapore for repairs.
May 1940 joined the Mediterranean fleet.
05 July, her aircraft attacked enemy shipping in Tobruk. They sank the Italian destroyer ZEFFIRO and the merchant ship MANZONI of 3.955 tons and SERENITAS of 5.171 tons, also her aircraft damaged the LIGURIA of 15.354 tons, which had to be scuttled later.
09 July her aircraft were again in action against the Italian fleet off Calabria. After the attack she returned to Alexandria, during the voyage she came under heavy bombed air attacks, four enemy bombers were shot down.
20 July 1940 during a second attack on Tobruk by her aircraft, the Italian destroyer OSTRO and Nembo were sunk, also a merchant ship the SERENO of 2.333 tons was sank.
22 August her aircraft attacked and sank the Italian submarine IRIDE in the Gulf of Bomba.
The same month she took part in Operation Hats (reinforcement of the Mediterranean fleet), her aircraft attacked the airfield Maritza on the island Rhodes.
Then used for aircover of convoys in the eastern Mediterranean, her aircraft attacked Italian airfields, laid mines and attacked enemy shipping.
March 1941 she got orders to pass the Suez canal, her passage was delayed by a wreck in the canal, but her aircraft flew to Port Sudan and assisted in the destruction of the Italian ships at Massawa and the Red Seas.
When the HMS EAGLE had passed the canal she arrived at Simonstown, South Africa on 8 May 1941, then she sailed to Freetown, stayed at the South Atlantic Station until October.
06 June, her aircraft sank the German m.v. ELBE of 9.179 tons and on 15 June together with the HMS DUNEDIN she intercepted the U boat supply ship LOTHRINGEN of 10.746 tons which surrendered.
Both attacks took place about 1000 miles west of the Cape Verde Islands.
She returned to England in October and after a refit, she sailed out again in February 1942 carrying aircraft for Malta.
Took part in Operations Spotter and Picket.

In August 1942 was she one of the squadron of four aircraft carriers, operating in the Mediterranean under command of rear-Admiral Lyster. An important convoy (Operation Pedestal) for Malta was passing through the Sicilian Narrows in face of most determined opposition from German submarines and dive-bombers, and a few Italian torpedoboats.
The convoy was attacked on 11 August by enemy submarines which attacked in packs. Four torpedoes from the German submarine U-73 under command of Rosenbaum hit the EAGLE on 13.15.
Her aircraft already flying safely landed on other aircraft carriers of the convoy.
She sank shortly thereafter in position 83 05N 03 02E.
68 Officers and 862 ratings were taken off under which her commander Capt. L.D. Mackintosh by HMS LAFOREY and HMS LOOKOUT and the tug JAUNTY, 2 Officers and 158 ratings were lost.
Ascension SG124
Gibraltar 1987 44p sg568 (crest only)
Maldive Island 1974 4l sg 538, scott 527, 10R sg MS543, scott?
St Helena 2001 40p sg836, scott?

Source: Warships for Export Armstrong Warships 1867 – 1927 by Peter Brook. Wikipedia and other web-sites. Dictionary of Disasters at sea during the age of steam by Charles Hocking.
Attachments
SG836
SG836
SG124
SG124
SG538
SG538
SG568
SG568
Eagle.jpg

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