HMCS Bonaventure
HMCS Bonaventure in 1961
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History | |
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Canada | |
Name | Bonaventure |
Namesake | Bonaventure Island |
Builder | Harland & Wolff, Belfast, Northern Ireland |
Laid down | 27 November 1943 |
Launched | 27 February 1945 |
Acquired | 23 April 1952 |
Commissioned | 17 January 1957 |
Decommissioned | 3 July 1970 |
Homeport | Halifax, Nova Scotia |
Motto | Nos toz seus (Not for us alone)[1] |
Nickname(s) | "Bonnie" |
Fate | Broken up in Taiwan 1971 |
Badge | On a field barry wavy of ten argent and azure a horseshoe with base or in which a wyvern wings displayed gules gorged with a coronet of Canada[1] |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Majestic-class aircraft carrier |
Displacement |
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Length |
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Beam |
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Draught | 24.5 ft (7.5 m) |
Propulsion | Admiralty 3-drum type 350 psi (2.4 MPa) boilers, two shafts; 40,000 hp (30,000 kW) |
Speed | 24.5 knots (45.4 km/h) |
Complement | 1,200 (1,370 war) |
Sensors and processing systems | |
Armament |
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Aircraft carried |
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HMCS Bonaventure was a
Description
Initially
The ship had a
Aircraft
As part of the modernized design, Bonaventure was equipped with three relatively new technologies in relation to her air complement. The Majestic subclass' design allowed for heavier aircraft, those up to 20,000 pounds (9,100 kg) landing at 87 knots (161 km/h; 100 mph), to be launched and recovered.[5] Bonaventure improved on that limit, able to land aircraft of up to 24,000 pounds (11,000 kg). The aircraft lifts were enlarged to 54 by 34 feet (16 m × 10 m) in order to accommodate larger aircraft.[6] The new design also incorporated an angled flight deck, steam catapults, and optical landing system.[2] The angled flight deck increased the carrier's landing area without limiting space for aircraft parking and allowed for the removal of antiquated crash barriers.[7]
During her service life, Bonaventure carried five
The Banshees were a tight fit, with Bonaventure barely able to accommodate them.
History
Construction and acquisition
The British government ordered a second hull constructed of what would become the Majestic class on 16 October 1942 once a dock opened at Harland & Wolff's shipyard in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The aircraft carrier's
In 1952, the Royal Canadian Navy was looking to replace their existing aircraft carrier
Early service
Bonaventure was named for Bonaventure Island, a bird sanctuary in the Gulf of St. Lawrence and was the first aircraft carrier owned outright by Canada,[15] initially tasked with trade protection.[16] In March 1957, the aircraft carrier began trials in the English Channel with her aircraft. Bonaventure sailed for Canada on 19 June and arrived at her home port, Halifax, Nova Scotia, on 26 June, carrying the experimental hydrofoil Bras d'Or to Canada on her flight deck.[12][18] In October, the aircraft carrier began further trials with her air group composed of VF 870 (Banshee), VS 881 (Tracker) and one HO4S helicopter in the Caribbean Sea that lasted until early 1958. This included cross-deck operations with the Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Bulwark.[12] On 2 October, a Banshee fighter flying from Bonaventure to the naval air base HMCS Shearwater was lost at sea. The resulting search did not find the plane or the pilot.[18] Captain William Landymore became the ship's senior officer on 15 January 1958.[7] On 25 February 1958, a Banshee crashed into the sea after takeoff and the pilot was killed. On 4 March, a Banshee suffered another fatal crash, as the aircraft made a normal deck landing, an apparent brake failure caused the fighter to flip over the port side of the aircraft carrier, killing the pilot.[19] Later in the year, Bonaventure participated in the naval exercises New Broom IX and Sharp Squall IV.[12] During Sharp Squall IV a Banshee was lost off the bow of the ship during takeoff. This time, the pilot was recovered by the destroyer HMCS Athabaskan.[20] In November 1958, while operating off the Grand Banks of Newfoundland, Bonaventure and her escorts made contact with a Soviet Navy submarine while patrolling around a group of Russian fishing trawlers.[21] The aircraft carrier ended the year with a visit to the United Kingdom before going into refit at Saint John, New Brunswick.[12] On 12 September 1959, Captain John O'Brien took command of the ship.[7]
In 1960,
On 13 October 1962, at the onset of the Cuban Missile Crisis, Bonaventure and the 1st Canadian Escort Squadron were sailing through United Kingdom territorial waters. As the crisis deepened, Bonaventure and her escorts were recalled to Canada.[24] The ship returned to her homeport following the crisis and in January 1963, began a refit at Saint John. During the refit, the ship was modified for the operation of the Sea King helicopters. The aircraft carrier rejoined the fleet in May, but suffered a boiler explosion while in port at Halifax. Repairs took six weeks to complete.[12] On 7 August, Captain Robert Timbrell took command of the vessel.[7] That year Bonaventure took part in the Sharp Squall naval exercise and in September, participated in testing ASW defences in the Greenland-Iceland gap. That was followed by cross-deck operations with the aircraft carrier HNLMS Karel Doorman.[12]
Mid-life refit and fate
The 1964 Navy estimates called for the major refit of Bonaventure in order to extend the aircraft carrier's service life.
In January 1965, Bonaventure's air group was composed of VS 880 (Tracker), HS 50 (Sea King), an HO4S plane guard from HU 21 squadron and a COD Tracker from VU 32 squadron. From February to March 1965, Bonaventure took part in naval exercises and in May, visited the United Kingdom.[27] On 2 April 1965, Captain Henry Porter became the commanding officer of the aircraft carrier.[7] In June, Bonaventure visited the Joint Anti-Submarine School at Londonderry and took part in joint operations in the Southwest Approaches with HMS Ark Royal and HNLMS Karel Doorman. The following year in January, Bonaventure, along with six escorts, took part in the largest Canadian naval activity in the Caribbean Sea and South American waters. During the exercise, the ship visited Rio de Janeiro in February and in March, returned to Halifax.[27]
Beginning in April 1966, the carrier began a mid-life refit at
Following the 1968
A few last missions were left for Bonaventure. On 9 January 1970, Captain H. W. Vondette became the final commanding officer of Bonaventure.[7] In January 1970, the aircraft carrier (minus her aircraft) was sent to carry troops of the Royal 22nd Regiment to Jamaica for training exercises. In February, Bonaventure was used as a replenishment oiler to replenish the fuel stores of frigates taking part in Exercise Maple Spring. During this operation, Bonaventure had six Sea Kings of HS 50 aboard. In April the ship was sent to recover Canadian forces from Narvik, Norway, after a military exercise and made a final visit to Portsmouth on the way back to Canada.[31]
Bonaventure was decommissioned at HMC Dockyard in Halifax on 3 July 1970, and sold for disposal.[32][33] The vessel was purchased by Tung Chen S Steel Company of Taiwan for scrap and broken up in 1971.[31] Components from Bonaventure's steam catapult were used to rebuild the catapult aboard Australian aircraft carrier HMAS Melbourne, another Majestic-class carrier.[34]
Commemoration
Bonaventure had two ships' anchors. One anchor is preserved at Point Pleasant Park in Halifax as the Bonaventure Anchor Memorial. The monument was dedicated in 1973 initially to aircrew lost at sea, but later to all naval personnel who died in service. The monument consists of the anchor and chains, along with a small chain running from the monument into the water to make the connection between monument and the sea. The anchor faces the mouth of the harbour. The names of navy and air force personnel who died during peacetime are etched into plaques beside the anchor.[35][36] Her starboard anchor, donated by Maritime Command on 6 May 1998, is on display at Royal Military College Saint-Jean. Her two saluting guns are mounted at HMCS Discovery in Vancouver's Stanley Park. The ship's bell is preserved at the Shearwater Aviation Museum in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, which also hosts a large model and exhibit about the carrier.[37]
Notes
Citations
- ^ a b Arbuckle 1987, p. 14.
- ^ a b c d e f g Hobbs 2013, p. 336.
- ^ a b c d e f g Gardiner, Chumbley & Budzbon 1995, p. 43.
- ^ a b Blackman 1953, p. 94.
- ^ Hobbs 2013, p. 323.
- ^ Brown & Moore 2012, p. 56.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Macpherson & Barrie 2002, p. 237.
- ^ Hobbs 2013, pp. 336–339.
- ^ Milner 2010, p. 211.
- ^ Milner 2010, p. 213.
- ^ Milner 2010, p. 225.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Hobbs 2013, p. 337.
- ^ Milner 2010, p. 226.
- ^ Boutiller 1982, p. 284.
- ^ a b c Kealy & Russell 1967, p. 99.
- ^ a b c Milner 2010, p. 210.
- ^ Kealy & Russell 1967, p. 100.
- ^ a b Kealy & Russell 1967, p. 102.
- ^ Kealy & Russell 1967, p. 104.
- ^ Kealy & Russell 1967, p. 109.
- ^ Milner 2010, p. 223.
- ^ Tracy 2012, p. 133.
- ^ Milner 2010, pp. 229, 233.
- ^ Milner 2010, pp. 233–34.
- ^ Milner 2010, p. 247.
- ^ Hobbs 2013, pp. 337–338.
- ^ a b c d e Hobbs 2013, p. 338.
- ^ Murray, Robert T. "HMCS Bonaventure - CVL 22 and her Aircraft 1957 - 1970" (PDF). Canada Aviation and Space Museum. p. 28.
- ^ Milner 2010, pp. 259–260.
- ^ Milner 2010, p. 264.
- ^ a b Hobbs 2013, p. 339.
- ^ Beaver 1982, p. 119.
- ^ "Bonaventure ends long career today". Halifax Chronicle-Herald. 3 July 1970. p. 16.
- ^ Hall 1982, p. 213.
- ^ Hennessey, Dan (9 April 2018). "The Bonaventure Monument given new life". Halifax Chronicle Herald. Retrieved 10 April 2018.
- ^ Palmeter, Paul (12 March 2018). "Halifax's Bonaventure Anchor Memorial finally getting repair upgrades". CBC News. Retrieved 10 April 2018.
- ^ "HMCS Bonaventure Exhibit and HMCS Assiniboine Exhibit". Shearwater Aviation Museum. Archived from the original on 10 April 2018. Retrieved 10 April 2018.
Bibliography
- Arbuckle, J. Graeme (1987). Badges of the Canadian Navy. Halifax, Nova Scotia: Nimbus Publishing. ISBN 0-920852-49-1.
- Beaver, Paul (1982). The British Aircraft Carrier. Cambridge, UK: Patrick Stephens. ISBN 0-85059-493-6.
- Blackman, Raymond V. B., ed. (1953). Jane's Fighting Ships 1953–54. London: Sampson, Low and Marston. OCLC 913556389.
- Boutiller, James A., ed. (1982). RCN in Retrospect, 1910–1968. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press. ISBN 0-7748-0196-4.
- Brown, David K.; Moore, George (2012). Rebuilding the Royal Navy: Warship Design since 1945. Barnsley, United Kingdom: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-184832-150-2.
- Gardiner, Robert; Chumbley, Stephen; Budzbon, Przemysław, eds. (1995). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1947–1995. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-132-7.
- Hall, Timothy (1982). HMAS Melbourne. North Sydney, NSW: George Allen & Unwin. OCLC 9753221.
- Hobbs, David (2013). British Aircraft Carriers: Design, Development and Service Histories. Barnsley, UK: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84832-138-0.
- Kealy, J. D. F.; Russell, E. C. (1967). A History of Canadian Naval Aviation 1918–1962. Ottawa: Queen's Printer. OCLC 460555.
- Macpherson, Ken; Barrie, Ron (2002). The Ships of Canada's Naval Forces 1910–2002 (Third ed.). St. Catharines, Ontario: Vanwell Publishing. ISBN 1-55125-072-1.
- Milner, Marc (2010). Canada's Navy: The First Century (Second ed.). Toronto: University of Toronto Press. ISBN 978-0-8020-9604-3.
- Tracy, Nicholas (2012). A Two-Edged Sword: The Navy as an Instrument of Canadian Foreign Policy. Montreal, Quebec and Kingston, Ontario: McGill-Queens University Press. ISBN 978-0-7735-4051-4.