HMS Laforey (G99)
![]() Laforey in 1942
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History | |
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Name | HMS Laforey |
Ordered | 31 March 1938 |
Builder | Yarrow Shipbuilders, Scotstoun, Glasgow |
Laid down | 1 March 1939 |
Launched | 15 February 1941 |
Commissioned | 26 August 1941 |
Identification | Pennant number: G99 |
Fate | Torpedoed and sunk by U-223 on 30 March 1944 |
Badge | On a Field Blue, a lion's gamb Gold holding a torch in flamed Proper. |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | L-class destroyer |
Displacement | 1,920 tons |
Length | 362.5 ft (110.5 m) |
Beam | 36.7 ft (11.2 m) |
Draught | 10 ft (3.0 m) |
Propulsion |
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Speed | 36 kt (66.7 km/h) |
Range | 5,500 nmi (10,200 km) at 15 knots (28 km/h) |
Complement | 221 |
Armament |
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HMS Laforey was an
Construction and commissioning
Laforey was ordered from the yards of
Career
Mediterranean waters
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d2/HMS_Laforey_Ark_Royal.jpg/200px-HMS_Laforey_Ark_Royal.jpg)
Laforey was almost immediately reassigned to the Mediterranean, where she joined
Laforey spent January as part of anti-submarine patrols that had been instigated to intercept U-boats as they passed through the Strait of Gibraltar. On 18 January she and Hesperus intercepted and attacked U-93 with depth charges. February and March were then spent escorting convoys through the Atlantic, and screening aircraft carriers on operations to deliver aircraft to Malta. On 1 April Laforey was detached from Force H and sailed to Freetown to screen fleet units and cover convoys in the Atlantic. She arrived at Cape Town on 18 April with a military convoy, and escorted them on to Durban, arriving there on 22 April.
Operation Ironclad
On 28 April she was deployed to support Operation Ironclad, the planned
Return to the Mediterranean
Arriving at Mombasa on 1 July, she was initially deployed in the South Atlantic to hunt
The next day, 12 August, the ships of the convoy came under heavy air attack. Laforey managed to escape damage and with a number of other ships, was detached from the convoy when it reached the
On 4 September she and Lookout escorted Leinster into Gibraltar. Laforey then sailed for Southampton for a refit, arriving there on 17 September. She spent October and most of November under refit, followed by a period of post-trial workup exercises with her sister Lightning at Scapa Flow. She and Lightning then escorted the troopship Duchess of Atholl out of Liverpool en route to Gibraltar, where they arrived on 20 December. On 21 December Laforey and Lightning carried out rescue operations after the torpedoing of Strathallan.
Force Q
Laforey and her flotilla were assigned to
In May she was assigned with Force Q to intercept ships attempting to evacuate German troops from
In June she took part in covering the allied landings at Pantelleria (Operation Corkscrew), during which she bombarded enemy positions, before sailing to Alexandria to escort convoys for the planned invasion of Sicily. After the landings on 9 July she bombarded enemy targets inland. On 15 August she embarked General Alexander, Air Marshall Coningham and Admiral Ramsey and conveyed them to Augusta.[1] She continued to carry out bombardments and anti-submarine patrols throughout July.
On 23 July she and Eclipse engaged in a box search for the Italian submarine Ascianghi after she had torpedoed the cruiser Newfoundland.[1] The Ascianghi fired two torpedoes at the Laforey which both missed and the Laforey and Eclipse carried out five depth charge attacks in response.[1] The Ascianghi was forced to surface where it came under an immediate and heavy fire from the Laforey's guns and was at last sunk.[1] A survivor was picked up who confirmed that the Italian sub had indeed fired four torpedoes at the Newfoundland two hours previously.[1]
In August Laforey was nominated to support the invasion of mainland Italy and on 21 August, she and four other destroyers carried out an offensive sweep through the Strait of Messina. She then escorted the convoys and covered the landings. On 9 August she came under fire during a shore bombardment and was hit by five shells. One of the ship's company was killed and another two were injured, while one boiler room was put out of action. She returned to Malta for repairs to the structural damage. She was under repair until mid-October, when she returned to patrolling off the Italian coast.
On 1 November she escorted two merchant ships during their passage from Malta to Naples and on 3 November she escorted a military convoy en route to Augusta. On 5 November she came to the assistance of a US merchant ship that had run aground northeast of Augusta, and towed the vessel clear before returning to Malta to refuel. She spent the rest of the month and most of December at Malta, before returning to the Italian coast on 23 December. On 25 December she detected two E-boats on her radar and moved to intercept them, but they escaped contact and fled. Further shore bombardment operations followed.
Laforey was deployed on patrol off
In February she was transferred to the 14th Destroyer Flotilla and on 18 February she bombarded Formica and was deployed with Faulknor on 25 February to intercept E-boats. Laforey was briefly detached to assist a Landing Ship, Tank that had run aground at Sabaudio, but was unable to help her. She rejoined Faulknor and together they carried out depth charge attacks on a suspected submarine contact. On 26 February they were joined by the destroyers Lamerton and Hambledon. Laforey herself came under attack from an acoustic torpedo, which exploded in her wake. Anti-submarine operations continued on 27 February when another two destroyers joined, and finished on 28 February when the ships returned to Naples. Laforey sailed to Naples with survivors from Inglefield, which had been sunk off Anzio on 15 February by a glider bomb.
Sinking
Laforey returned to Naples and was deployed off Anzio on 9 March 1944 on support and patrol duties that were scheduled to last until 19 March. On 23 March she again returned to Anzio and on 24 March she was deployed for night interception and anti-submarine patrols with Grenville. On 25 March they engaged a number of E-boats after picking them up on their radar. Laforey then sailed to Naples. She deployed for another patrol off the west coast of Italy on 28 March and on 29 March she carried out a hunt for U-223 north of Palermo, in company with the destroyers Tumult, Tuscan, Urchin, Hambledon and Blencathra. U-223 had been detected by Ulster during a routine sweep. The search lasted until 30 March, when after sustaining several hours of depth charge attacks, U-223 surfaced, and was then attacked by the destroyers with gunfire at a range of 1,500 yards (1,400 m). U-223 was able to fire three torpedoes which struck Laforey. She sank quickly, resulting in the loss of most of her company, including her captain. There were only 65 survivors out of the 247 on board. One survivor was Petty Officer Ronald Sired, who gives an account of life on board and the sinking in "Enemy Engaged", published in 1957. U-223 was sunk soon afterwards, and the survivors from Laforey and U-223 were picked up by Blencathra, Hambledon and Tumult.
Notes
References
- ISBN 978-1-86176-281-8.
- English, John (2001). Afridi to Nizam: British Fleet Destroyers 1937–43. Gravesend, Kent: World Ship Society. ISBN 0-905617-64-9.
- Friedman, Norman (2006). British Destroyers & Frigates: The Second World War and After. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-86176-137-6.
- ISBN 1-55750-048-7.
- March, Edgar J. (1966). British Destroyers: A History of Development, 1892–1953; Drawn by Admiralty Permission From Official Records & Returns, Ships' Covers & Building Plans. London: Seeley Service. OCLC 164893555.
- Rohwer, Jürgen (2005). Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two (Third Revised ed.). Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-59114-119-2.
- Sired, Ronald (1957). Enemy Engaged: a Naval Rating with the Mediterranean Fleet, 1942–44. London: William Kimber.
- Smith, Peter C. (2010). Fighting Flotilla: RN Laforey Class Destroyers in WW2 (2nd ed.). Barnsley, UK: Pen & Sword Maritime. ISBN 978-1-84884-273-1.
- Whitley, M. J. (1988). Destroyers of World War 2. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-326-1.
- Mike Rossiter, Ark Royal: the life, death and rediscovery of the legendary Second World War aircraft carrier (Corgi Books, London, 2007). ISBN 978-0-552-15369-0
External links
- "Allied Warships: Destroyer HMS Laforey of the L class". Retrieved 17 December 2007.
- Lt Cdr Geoffrey B Mason RN (Rtd) (2002). "HMS Laforey – L-class Destroyer". Retrieved 17 December 2007.
- Commander C D H Briggs (1941–42). "The Destroyer HMS Laforey in action, 1941–42" (Film). Imperial War Museum.
- Bob Burns, D.S.M. (2005). "WW2 People's War". Account of sinking of H.M.S. 'Laforey'. BBC.
- HMS Cavalier Association (2007). "HMS 'Laforey' Casualty List".