The HMS Hesperus, launched in 1939, was a British destroyer belonging to the H class, one of the alphabetical series produced after 1930. In each
series the ships differentiated from each other by the number and disposition of the funnels and the design of the hull. The purpose was to achieve
increasingly solid and reliable ships. In general, British destroyers enjoyed very good reputation during the Second World War regarding the effectiveness
of their naval actions. All the ships of the H class, of good seaworthiness and reliability, passed for a hard experience during the war, being sunk ten of them.
The illustration shows the HMS Hesperus as she was in the early 1943; note the antisubmarine mortar known as "Hedgehog" in place of the fore
119-millimeter turret and the suppression of the aft 76.2-millimeter high-angle cannon and torpedo launcher to accommodate extra depth charges. The HMS Hesperus
survived the war and was scrapped in 1946.
Class: H (15 units - Hardy, Harvester (ex Handy, ex Jurua), Hasty, Havant (ex Javary), Havelock (ex Jutahy), Havock, Hereward,
Hero, Hesperus (ex Hearty, ex Juruena), Highlander (ex Jaguaribe), Hostile, Hotspur, Hunter, Hurricane (ex Japarua), Hyperion)
Type: Destroyer
Length: 98.4 meters
Beam: 9.9 meters
Draught: 2.65 meters
Displacement (standard): 1361 tonnes
Propulsion: 2 x shaft, 2 x steam turbine Parsons, 3 x boiler Admiralty, 34000 horsepower
Speed: 36 knots (66.7 kilometers/hour)
Range: 5530 nautical miles (10241 kilometers) at 15 knots
Fuel: 457 tonnes of petrol
Complement: 145
Armament (as built): 3 x 119-millimeter 45-caliber cannon, 1 x 76.2-millimeter cannon, 8 x 12.7-millimeter machine gun,
8 x 533-millimeter torpedo tube, 20 x depth charge (three rails and eight throwers)
Armament (in 1943): 2 x 119-millimeter 45-caliber cannon, 4 x 20-millimeter cannon, 4 x 533-millimeter torpedo tube,
110 x depth charge (three rails and eight throwers)
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