HMCS Capilano
HMCS Capilano
| |
History | |
---|---|
Canada | |
Name | Capilano |
Namesake | Capilano Lake, North Vancouver, British Columbia |
Ordered | 1 February 1943 |
Builder | Esquimalt |
Yard number | 95 |
Laid down | 18 November 1943 |
Launched | 8 April 1944 |
Commissioned | 25 August 1944 |
Decommissioned | 24 November 1945 |
Identification | Pennant number:K409 |
Honours and awards | Atlantic, 1944-45.[1] |
Fate | Foundered 1953 off coast of Cuba. |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | River-class frigate |
Displacement |
|
Length | |
Beam | 36.5 ft (11.13 m) |
Draught | 9 ft (2.74 m); 13 ft (3.96 m) (deep load) |
Propulsion | 2 x Admiralty 3-drum boilers, 2 shafts, reciprocating vertical triple expansion, 5,500 ihp (4,100 kW) |
Speed |
|
Range | 646 long tons (656 t; 724 short tons) oil fuel; 7,500 nautical miles (13,890 km) at 15 knots (27.8 km/h) |
Complement | 157 |
Armament |
|
HMCS Capilano was a
Capilano was ordered on 1 February 1943 as part of the 1943–44 River-class building program.
Background
The River-class frigate was designed by William Reed of Smith's Dock Company of South Bank-on-Tees. Originally called a "twin-screw corvette," its purpose was to improve on the convoy escort classes in service with the
Improvements over the Corvette design included improved accommodation, which was markedly better. The twin engines gave only three more knots of speed but extended the range of the ship to nearly double that of a corvette at 7,200 nautical miles (13,300 km) at 12 knots.
River-class frigates were the first Royal Canadian Navy warships to carry the 147B Sword horizontal fan echo sonar transmitter in addition to the irregular ASDIC. This allowed the ship to maintain contact with targets even while firing, unless a target was struck. Improved radar and direction-finding equipment improved the RCN's ability to find and track enemy submarines over the previous classes.[4]
Canada originally ordered the construction of 33 frigates in October 1941.[4][5] The design was too big for the shipyards on the Great Lakes, so all the frigates built in Canada were built in dockyards along the west coast or along the St. Lawrence River.[5] In all, Canada ordered the construction of 60 frigates, including ten for the Royal Navy, which transferred two to the United States Navy.[4]
Service history
After commissioning, Capilano transited to
Capilano was sold for mercantile use in 1947 and underwent conversion. In 1948, she reappeared as the Panamanian-registered Irving Francis M., owned by Irving Mindel.[6] On 8 December 1953, while under tow from Jamaica to Miami, she foundered off the coast of Cabo Maysi, Cuba.[2][6] In 2010, a framed photo of the ship and its badge was presented to the City of North Vancouver to mark the Canadian Naval Centennial.[7]
See also
- List of ships of the Canadian Navy
References
Notes
- ^ "Battle Honours". Britain's Navy. Retrieved 27 March 2014.
- ^ ISBN 0-00216-856-1.
- ^ a b c "HMCS Capilano (K 409)". uboat.net. Retrieved 27 March 2014.
- ^ a b c d e f "Fact Sheet No. 21 - Canadian River Class Frigates". Retrieved 3 April 2014.
- ^ ISBN 0920277225.
- ^ a b "Capilano (6130154)". Miramar Ship Index. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
- ^ "Naval Centennial marked with ship named for North Vancouver" (PDF). City of North Vancouver. 6 July 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 March 2014. Retrieved 27 March 2014.
Sources
- Macpherson, Ken; Burgess, John. The ships of Canada's naval forces 1910-1981 : a complete pictorial history of Canadian warships. Collins: Toronto, 1981. ISBN 0-00216-856-1