HMS Warrior (R31)

Warrior was a Colossus-class light aircraft carrier that was 630 feet 0 inches (192.0 m) long between perpendiculars and 695 feet 0 inches (211.8 m) overall with a beam at the waterline of 80 feet 0 inches (24.4 m) and an overall width of 112 feet 6 inches (34.3 m).^[2][3] The ship had a mean draught of 23 feet 3 inches (7.1 m).^[4] Warrior had a standard displacement of 13,350 long tons (13,560 t) when built and a full load displacement of 18,300 long tons (18,600 t). The aircraft carrier had a flight deck 690 feet 0 inches (210.3 m) long that was 80 feet 0 inches (24.4 m) wide and was 39 feet 0 inches (11.9 m) above the water.^[2] The flight deck tapered to 45 feet (14 m) at the bow.^[5] For takeoffs, the flight deck was equipped with one BH 3 aircraft catapult capable of launching 16,000-pound (7,257 kg) aircraft at 66 knots (122 km/h). For landings, the ship was fitted with 10 arrestor wires capable of stopping a 15,000-pound (6,804 kg) aircraft, with two safety barriers rated at stopping a 15,000-pound aircraft at 40 knots (74 km/h) Warrior had two aircraft lifts located along the centreline of the ship that were 45 by 34 feet (13.7 by 10.4 m) and could handle aircraft up to 15,000 pounds on a 36-second cycle.^[6] The aircraft hangar was 275 by 52 feet (83.8 by 15.8 m) with a further 57 by 52 feet (17.4 by 15.8 m) section beyond the aft elevator, all with a clearance of 17 feet 6 inches (5.3 m). The hangar was divided into four sections by asbestos fire curtains. The hangar was fully enclosed and could only be entered by air locks and the lifts, due to the hazardous nature of aviation fuel and oil vapours.^[7] The vessel had stowage for 98,600 imperial gallons (448,244 l; 118,414 US gal) of aviation fuel.^[4]

The ship was powered by steam created by four Admiralty 3-drum type boilers driving two Parsons geared turbines, each turning one shaft. The machinery was split into two spaces, each containing two boilers and one turbine, separated by 24-foot (7.3 m) spaces containing aviation fuel. The spaces were situated en echelon within the ship to prevent a single disabling torpedo strike.^[4][8] The engines were rated at 42,000 shaft horsepower (31,319 kW) and the vessel had a capacity for 3,196 long tons (3,247 t) of fuel oil, with an range of 8,300 nautical miles (15,372 km) at 20 knots (37 km/h).^[4][3] The ship's maximum speed was 25 knots (46 km/h). There was no armour aboard the vessel save for mantlets around the torpedo storage area. There were no longitudinal bulkheads, but the transverse bulkheads were designed to allow the ship to survive two complete sections of the ship being flooded.^[4]

Warrior was designed to handle up to 42 aircraft. The aircraft carrier carried a wide range of ordnance for their aircraft from torpedoes, depth charges, bombs, 20 mm cannon ammunition and flares.^[3] For anti-aircraft defence, the aircraft carrier was initially armed with four twin-mounted and twenty single-mounted 40 mm Bofors guns.^[9] The original radar installation included the Type 79 and Type 281 long-range air search radars, the Type 293 and Type 277 fighter direction radar and the "YE" aircraft homing beacon. The ship had a maximum ship's company of 1,300, which was reduced in peacetime.^[10]

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1942 Design Light Fleet Carrier

1942 Design Light Fleet Carrier

The 1942 Design Light Fleet Carrier, commonly referred to as the British Light Fleet Carrier, was a light aircraft carrier design created by the Royal Navy during the Second World War, and used by eight naval forces between 1944 and 2001. They were designed and constructed by civilian shipyards to serve as an intermediate step between the expensive, full-size fleet aircraft carriers and the less expensive but limited-capability escort carriers.

Length between perpendiculars

Length between perpendiculars

Length between perpendiculars is the length of a ship along the summer load line from the forward surface of the stem, or main bow perpendicular member, to the after surface of the sternpost, or main stern perpendicular member. When there is no sternpost, the centerline axis of the rudder stock is used as the aft end of the length between perpendiculars.

Length overall

Length overall

Length overall is the maximum length of a vessel's hull measured parallel to the waterline. This length is important while docking the ship. It is the most commonly used way of expressing the size of a ship, and is also used for calculating the cost of a marina berth.

Beam (nautical)

Beam (nautical)

The beam of a ship is its width at its widest point. The maximum beam (BMAX) is the distance between planes passing through the outer extremities of the ship, beam of the hull (BH) only includes permanently fixed parts of the hull, and beam at waterline (BWL) is the maximum width where the hull intersects the surface of the water.

Draft (hull)

Draft (hull)

The draft or draught of a ship's hull is the vertical distance between the waterline and the bottom of the hull (keel). The draught of the vessel is the maximum depth of any part of the vessel, including appendages such as rudders, propellers and drop keels if deployed. Draft determines the minimum depth of water a ship or boat can safely navigate. The related term air draft is the maximum height of any part of the vessel above the water.

Displacement (ship)

Displacement (ship)

The displacement or displacement tonnage of a ship is its weight. As the term indicates, it is measured indirectly, using Archimedes' principle, by first calculating the volume of water displaced by the ship, then converting that value into weight. Traditionally, various measurement rules have been in use, giving various measures in long tons. Today, tonnes are more commonly used.

Flight deck

Flight deck

The flight deck of an aircraft carrier is the surface from which its aircraft take off and land, essentially a miniature airfield at sea. On smaller naval ships which do not have aviation as a primary mission, the landing area for helicopters and other VTOL aircraft is also referred to as the flight deck. The official U.S. Navy term for these vessels is "air-capable ships".

Aircraft catapult

Aircraft catapult

An aircraft catapult is a device used to allow aircraft to take off from a very limited amount of space, such as the deck of a vessel, but can also be installed on land-based runways in rare cases. It is now most commonly used on aircraft carriers, as a form of assisted take off.

Knot (unit)

Knot (unit)

The knot is a unit of speed equal to one nautical mile per hour, exactly 1.852 km/h. The ISO standard symbol for the knot is kn. The same symbol is preferred by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), while kt is also common, especially in aviation, where it is the form recommended by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). The knot is a non-SI unit. The knot is used in meteorology, and in maritime and air navigation. A vessel travelling at 1 knot along a meridian travels approximately one minute of geographic latitude in one hour.

Hangar

Hangar

A hangar is a building or structure designed to hold aircraft or spacecraft. Hangars are built of metal, wood, or concrete. The word hangar comes from Middle French hanghart, of Germanic origin, from Frankish *haimgard, from *haim and gard ("yard"). The term, gard, comes from the Old Norse garðr.

Asbestos

Asbestos

Asbestos is a naturally occurring fibrous silicate mineral. There are six types, all of which are composed of long and thin fibrous crystals, each fibre being composed of many microscopic "fibrils" that can be released into the atmosphere by abrasion and other processes. Inhalation of asbestos fibres can lead to various dangerous lung conditions, including mesothelioma, asbestosis, and lung cancer, so it is now notorious as a serious health and safety hazard.

Aviation fuel

Aviation fuel

Aviation fuels are petroleum-based fuels, or petroleum and synthetic fuel blends, used to power aircraft. They have more stringent requirements than fuels used for ground use, such as heating and road transport, and contain additives to enhance or maintain properties important to fuel performance or handling. They are kerosene-based for gas turbine-powered aircraft. Piston-engined aircraft use leaded gasoline and those with diesel engines may use jet fuel (kerosene). By 2012, all aircraft operated by the U.S. Air Force had been certified to use a 50-50 blend of kerosene and synthetic fuel derived from coal or natural gas as a way of stabilizing the cost of fuel.

The contract to construct Warrior was placed on 7 August 1942. Warrior was built by Harland and Wolff at their yard in Belfast and given the yard number 1224, originally to be called Brave. Before construction began, once-innovative armoured frigate (at the time just a floating oil jetty) HMS Warrior was renamed to Oil Fuel Hulk C77 in August 1942 to free up her name, and the carrier was renamed to Warrior. Her keel was laid down on 12 December 1942, she was launched on 20 May 1944 and became the last of the Colossus class to finish construction.^[11] The Royal Navy had originally intended to rush Warrior into service for operations in the Indian Ocean during the Second World War, thus she was built without heaters for some onboard equipment since heat was unnecessary in tropical operations.

Royal Canadian Navy service

HMCS Warrior passing under the Lions' Gate Bridge, ca. 1946–1947

As the focus of future operations at sea during the Second World War shifted to the Pacific theatre, planning began in May 1944 that the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) would require a larger fleet both in numbers and in size of ships. In the effort to get bigger, the RCN returned the escort carriers then on loan, Puncher and Nabob, in exchange for the loan of two light fleet carriers. A formal approach was first made in July, with negotiations being finalised in April 1945 when Warrior and Magnificent were acquired on loan with the option to purchase them outright at a later date. Negotiations were completed in May for the naval air squadrons that would be needed to man the aircraft carrier, however the war ended before the ships were completed.^[12][13]

After the agreement with Canada went through, Canadian naval aviation was established with the formation of four squadrons transferred from the Fleet Air Arm intended to fly from Warrior; 803 Squadron and 883 Squadron equipped with Supermarine Seafires and 825 Squadron and 826 Squadron with Fairey Fireflys.^[14] Warrior was completed, transferred to the RCN and commissioned as HMCS Warrior on 24 January 1946 and placed under the command of Captain Frank Houghton.^[15] Sea trials were completed in March and flying trials were performed at Spithead following that. For the voyage to Canada, 803 and 825 Squadrons were embarked, while 883 and 826 Squadrons were paid off.^[16]

Warrior entered Halifax harbour on 31 March 1946, a week after leaving Portsmouth. She was escorted by the destroyer HMCS Micmac and the minesweeper HMCS Middlesex, having officially joined the Canadian Atlantic Fleet on 23 March.^[11][15] April through May was spent alongside fixing builder's defects before the ship began major fleet operations. In August, the aircraft carrier had its first loss, when a Firefly from 825 Squadron ditched, though both the pilot and observer were recovered. That same month, on 23 August while transiting the St. Lawrence River, Warrior ran aground at Pointe Sainte Antoine, near Montreal while en route to the city after her rudder jammed. Tugboats got the aircraft carrier unstuck from the mud bank she had run into the same day and Warrior continued on to Montreal where she became the largest ship to visit that port to that date.^[17]

HMCS Warrior in Vancouver, British Columbia

The RCN experienced problems with the unheated equipment during operations in cold North Atlantic waters off eastern Canada during 1946. The ship was transferred west to Esquimalt, British Columbia in November 1946, visiting Bermuda, Acapulco, Mexico and San Diego, California before arriving in December. On 18 January 1947, Commodore Harry DeWolf took command of Warrior while the vessel was undergoing repairs to the damages to her hull that had been received during her August grounding. On 31 January, one 825 Squadron's Fireflys was lost along with its pilot off Portland Island during a training mission. It was during this period, that the RCN, facing reduced defence spending and manning constraints, came to the conclusion that they could not operate two aircraft carriers. Negotiations began to return Warrior when Magnificent became ready, with the RCN deeming Warrior unfit for service due to her lack of heating. In February 1947, the aircraft carrier began her voyage back to Halifax, accompanied by the cruiser Uganda and destroyer Crescent. The Canadian group stopped at San Pedro, California before the aircraft carrier transited the Panama Canal by herself, meeting the destroyers Nootka and Micmac on the other side. The three Canadian ships visited Havana, Cuba, marking the first time a Canadian warship had visited the Cuban capital since 1929. Warrior returned to Halifax on 27 March. The ship then sailed for Bermuda with Nootka to take part in a naval exercise with the Royal Navy. Most of mid-1947 was spent undergoing repairs at Halifax and performing short cruises along east coast. In August, Warrior sailed for the United Kingdom where her squadrons would be re-equipped with Firefly Mark IV and Hawker Sea Fury aircraft, returning to Halifax on 28 August. Meanwhile, preparations were being made for the return of Warrior and the acquisition of Magnificent. In November, Magnificent's air group consisting of 826 and 883 Squadrons trained aboard Warrior off the coast of Nova Scotia. Following this, Warrior, escorted by the destroyer Haida sailed to Bermuda where the ship was prepared to be paid off. The ship sailed for the UK on 12 February, arriving at Belfast on 20 February. On 1 March the ship moved to Spithead where the aviation fuel was removed.^[18] Warrior was returned to the Royal Navy on 23 March 1948 at Portsmouth.^[11]

Royal Navy service

HMCS Warrior returned to the United Kingdom and was recommissioned as HMS Warrior on 23 March 1948. Warrior was then refitted at Devonport and equipped with a flexible flight deck to test the feasibility of receiving undercarriage-less aircraft; modified de Havilland Sea Vampire aircraft were used to test the concept, which was successful but not introduced into service. The flexible deck was composed of a rubber sheet supported by air bags. The new deck extended from the bow to the barrier forward of the island and was superimposed on the existing flight deck.^[2] Aft of the flexible deck, a light steel ramp was placed over the flight deck rising to 2 feet 6 inches (0.8 m) in height with a single arrestor wire.^[9] The trials lasted from November 1948 to March 1949 and upon completion, Warrior was paid off into the reserve at Portsmouth.^[11]

Warrior was reactivated in June 1950 and modified to carry troops and aircraft to the Far East during the Korean War, departing in August on the first such mission. In June 1951, with 16 Parachute Brigade embarked, Warrior sailed to Cyprus in response to a crisis in the Middle East.^[11] The ship underwent refit during most of 1952 and 1953 at Devonport Dockyard. The ship was fitted with a new lattice mast and new radars with Type 281Q fitted to the mast and Type 277Q radars installed fore and aft of the island. Identification friend or foe aerials were also installed on the mast. The bridge was enlarged and enclosed. The Fleet Air Arm 811 Squadron in Sea Furys and 825 Squadron in Fireflys were embarked after sea trials. During 1954, Warrior was deployed to the Far East, patrolling off the coast of Korea, following the ceasefire. In September, during Operation Passage to Freedom, the ship was among those sent to evacuate non-Communist refugees from Haiphong, North Vietnam to Vung Tau, South Vietnam, transporting more than 3,221 people in two voyages and being awarded a South Vietnamese Presidential Citation.^[19][20]

After returning to England another refit was carried out in 1955 at Devonport. This time Warrior received an angled flight deck of 5 degrees for trials.^[21] To install the angled deck, portside sponsons were removed, the angled deck installed portside amidships and the deck itself was upgraded to take aircraft up to 20,000 pounds (9,072 kg). Furthermore, the catapult was upgraded to launch 20,000-pound aircraft and the arrester wire system improved to take the same weight of aircraft at 60 knots (111 km/h). The aircraft carrier also received a mirror landing aid and Type 961 CCA radar. As the only ship in the class to receive the upgrade, it was intended to turn Warrior into a training and trials ship.^[22]

Following a short period as a training ship, Warrior was dispatched to the Pacific Ocean, where the aircraft carrier took part in Operation Grapple, the first British hydrogen bomb tests, as the headquarters ship embarking a flight of Westland Whirlwind helicopters and Grumman Avenger AS4 aircraft to collect air samples from the tests and ferry them back for examination.^[22] After the operation was completed the Avengers were catapulted into the sea as they were contaminated with radioactivity. Considered surplus to requirements by the late 1950s, the Royal Navy decommissioned Warrior in February 1958 and offered her for sale. The return voyage from the Grapple tests was via Argentina, with port visits and demonstrations to the Argentine Navy, to whom the Admiralty was trying to sell her.^[22]

Argentine Navy service

ARA Independencia in 1965

The badge of ARA Independencia

Warrior was sold to Argentina in 1958 and renamed ARA Independencia on 6 August 1958. The Argentine naval ensign was raised on 4 November at Portsmouth and sailed for Argentina on 10 December.^[21][22] The Argentine Naval Aviation began air operations from Independencia on 8 June 1959, even before the vessel was officially commissioned into the fleet. The ship was commissioned into the Argentine Navy on 8 July 1959.^[21][a] The anti-aircraft armament was initially reduced to twelve 40 mm guns, soon further reduced to eight. In May 1962 the ship was however provided with one quadruple and nine double mountings of that caliber. After all the modifications the displacement of the ship had climbed to 19,600 long tons (19,900 t) while the vessel's maximum speed had declined to 23 knots (43 km/h; 26 mph).^[21]

The air group, which had a maximum of 24 aircraft, was mainly formed from Vought F4U Corsairs, North American SNJ-5Cs Texans and Grumman S2F-1 (S-2A) Trackers. Naval Aviation inventory also included Grumman F9F Panther (the first jet fighters in service with the Argentine Naval Aviation, starting from August 1963 which launched from Independencia) and TF-9J Cougar jets, although Independencia proved to be unsuitable for operating them. The ship also used the North American T-28 Trojan trainer.^[21] After the aircraft carrier ARA Veinticinco de Mayo entered service in 1969, Independencia moved to the reserve in 1970. She was scrapped in 1971.^[22]

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Belfast

Belfast

Belfast is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 10th-largest primary urban area in the United Kingdom and the second-largest city in Ireland. It had a population of 345,418 in 2021.

HMS Warrior (1860)

HMS Warrior (1860)

HMS Warrior is a 40-gun steam-powered armoured frigate built for the Royal Navy in 1859–1861. She was the name ship of the Warrior-class ironclads. Warrior and her sister ship HMS Black Prince were the first armour-plated, iron-hulled warships, and were built in response to France's launching in 1859 of the first ocean-going ironclad warship, the wooden-hulled Gloire. Warrior conducted a publicity tour of Great Britain in 1863 and spent her active career with the Channel Squadron. Obsolescent following the 1873 commissioning of the mastless and more capable HMS Devastation, she was placed in reserve in 1875, and was "paid off" – decommissioned – in 1883.

Keel

Keel

The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element on a vessel. On some sailboats, it may have a hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose, as well. The laying of the keel is often the initial step in the construction of a ship. In the British and American shipbuilding traditions, this event marks the beginning date of a ships construction.

Keel laying

Keel laying

Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a ship's construction. It is often marked with a ceremony attended by dignitaries from the shipbuilding company and the ultimate owners of the ship.

Ceremonial ship launching

Ceremonial ship launching

Ceremonial ship launching involves the performance of ceremonies associated with the process of transferring a vessel to the water. It is a nautical tradition in many cultures, dating back thousands of years, to accompany the physical process with ceremonies which have been observed as public celebration and a solemn blessing, usually but not always, in association with the launch itself.

Pacific War

Pacific War

The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War, was the theater of World War II that was fought in eastern Asia, the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and Oceania. It was geographically the largest theater of the war, including the vast Pacific Ocean theater, the South West Pacific theater, the Second Sino-Japanese War, and the Soviet–Japanese War.

Royal Canadian Navy

Royal Canadian Navy

The Royal Canadian Navy is the naval force of Canada. The RCN is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of 2021, the RCN operates 12 frigates, four attack submarines, 12 coastal defence vessels, eight patrol class training vessels, two offshore patrol vessels, and several auxiliary vessels. The RCN consists of 8,570 Regular Force and 5,100 Primary Reserve sailors, supported by 3,800 civilians. Vice-Admiral Angus Topshee is the current commander of the Royal Canadian Navy and chief of the Naval Staff.

Escort carrier

Escort carrier

The escort carrier or escort aircraft carrier, also called a "jeep carrier" or "baby flattop" in the United States Navy (USN) or "Woolworth Carrier" by the Royal Navy, was a small and slow type of aircraft carrier used by the Royal Navy, the United States Navy, the Imperial Japanese Navy and Imperial Japanese Army Air Force in World War II. They were typically half the length and a third the displacement of larger fleet carriers, slower, more-lightly armed and armored, and carried fewer planes. Escort carriers were most often built upon a commercial ship hull, so they were cheaper and could be built quickly. This was their principal advantage as they could be completed in greater numbers as a stop-gap when fleet carriers were scarce. However, the lack of protection made escort carriers particularly vulnerable, and several were sunk with great loss of life. The light carrier was a similar concept to the escort carrier in most respects, but was fast enough to operate alongside fleet carriers.

HMS Puncher (D79)

HMS Puncher (D79)

USS Willapa (AVG-53/ACV-53/CVE-53) was a Bogue-class escort carrier built during World War II for the United States Navy. Never seeing American service, the ship was transferred to the United Kingdom as part of Lend-Lease. The escort carrier was renamed HMS Puncher (D79) of the British Ruler class and crewed by the Royal Canadian Navy with aircrew from the Fleet Air Arm. Primarily used as an aircraft transport, Puncher took part in operations along the Norwegian coast towards the end of the war. Following the war the ship was converted for mercantile service and renamed Muncaster Castle, Bardic and Ben Nevis, before being broken up in 1973.

HMS Nabob (D77)

HMS Nabob (D77)

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 the Bogue-class USS Edisto (CVE-41) but did not serve with the United States Navy. In August 1944 the ship was torpedoed by the German submarine U-354 while participating in an attack on the German battleship Tirpitz. Nabob survived the attack, but upon returning to port, was considered too damaged to repair. The escort carrier remained in port for the rest of the war and was returned to the United States following it. Nabob is one of two Royal Navy escort carriers built in the United States which is listed as lost in action during World War II. The ship was sold for scrap by the United States but found a second life when purchased and converted for mercantile use under her British name, Nabob. Later renamed Glory, the ship was sold for scrapping in 1977.

Fleet Air Arm

Fleet Air Arm

The Fleet Air Arm (FAA) is one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy and is responsible for the delivery of naval air power both from land and at sea. The Fleet Air Arm operates the F-35 Lightning II for maritime strike and the AW159 Wildcat and AW101 Merlin for commando and anti-submarine warfare.

803 Naval Air Squadron

803 Naval Air Squadron

803 Naval Air Squadron was a Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm squadron.