HMNZS Monowai (F59)
 Monowai in Milford Sound in 1933.
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 New Zealand | |
| Name | SS Razmak |
| Namesake | Northwest Frontier |
| Builder | Harland and Wolff |
| Yard number | 659[1] |
| Laid down | 1923 |
| Launched | 16 October 1924 |
| Completed | 26 February 1925[1] |
| In service | 1925 |
| Out of service | 1930 |
| New Zealand | |
| Name | SS Monowai |
| Namesake | Lake Monowai.[Note 1] |
| In service | 1930 |
| Out of service | 1939 |
 New Zealand | |
| Name | HMNZS Monowai |
| Acquired | 21 October 1939 |
| Commissioned | 30 August 1940 |
| Decommissioned | 18 June 1943 |
| Identification | F59 |
| United Kingdom | |
| Name | HMS Monowai |
| Acquired | 1943 |
| Commissioned | 18 June 1943 |
| Decommissioned | August 1946 |
| Fate | Scrapped 1960 |
| New Zealand | |
| Name | SS Monowai |
| Acquired | Returned to owners 1946 |
| Fate | Sold for breaking up 1960 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type |
|
| Tonnage | 10,852 GRT, 4,925 NRT |
| Length | 158.2/152.5 m (519/500 ft) |
| Beam | 19.3 m (63 ft) |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph) max |
| Complement | 366 as AMC |
| Sensors and processing systems | SS1 Type Radar[2] |
| Armament |
|
| Notes | Davits fitted for 20 LCAs (Landing Craft Assault) for 800 plus troops. Capacity of each 35 troops or 365 kg (805 lb) cargo. |
HMNZS
Civilian career
SS Razmak was built at
Conversion to armed merchant cruiser
Guns suitable for Monowai had been ordered and stored at the Devonport Naval Base in Auckland. Monowai was requisitioned by the Royal New Zealand Navy on 21 October 1939 and was prepared for mounting the guns. Then followed a period of indecision, and in February 1940 work on her was suspended for over four months. After construction was completed in August 1940, she was commissioned.
The Japanese submarine I-20 conducted an unsuccessful attack on her on 16 January 1942.[4]
Monowai was the first of two ships with this name to serve in the Royal New Zealand Navy. She was named after the New Zealand glacial lake Monowai. Monowai is a Māori word meaning "channel full of water".
Conversion to LSI
As surplus, in 1943 she was transferred to
In the later period of the war she was used as a troopship transporting soldiers and after the end of the war in repatriation.
Post war
On 31 August 1946 she was returned to her owner. She resumed merchant service in January 1949 after extensive repair. In 1960 she was sold for breaking up in Hong Kong.
Notes
Citations
- ^ ISBN 9780752488615.
- ^ Mason, Geoffrey B (2007) New Zealand radar development in World War 2
- ^ His Majesty's New Zealand Ship
- ^ Hackett, Bob and Sander Kingsepp (2001) Tabular Record of Movement: HIJMS Submarine I-20
References
- Bell, Andrew; Robinson, Murray (2009). A Tasman Trio: Wanganella - Awatea - Monowai. London: Ships in Focus Publications. ISBN 9781901703559.
- McDougall, R.J (1989). New Zealand Naval Vessels. Government Printing Office. pp. 34–35. ISBN 978-0-477-01399-4.