|
|
|
HMS Ajax
This light cruiser won fame for her part in the Battle of the River Plate which ended with the German
battleship Admiral Graf Spee being scuttled.
HMS Belfast
This famous cruiser, preserved in the Pool of London, is depicted in the illustration as she was during
her engagement with the German battlecruiser Scharnhorst at the Battle of North Cape.
HMS Campbeltown
Remembered as the ship which took part in the famous raid on Saint-Nazaire in 1942, the Campbeltown was
one of fifty American destroyers transferred to the Royal Navy in the Second World War.
HMS Cossack
The Cossack was the best known of the famous Tribal class destroyers, having an impressive wartime
record. She is best remembered for the audacious raid on the German prison ship Altmark, and for the
action against the Bismarck.
HMS Hotspur
This was one of the famous Hero class destroyers and played a leading part in the earliest naval action
of the Second World War. The Hotspur survived to take part in the D-Day landings.
HMS Manxman
One of the fastest ships ever to serve in the Royal Navy, the Manxman was a high-speed minelayer that
became famous transporting troops and stores to Malta.
Narvik class destroyer
These large German destroyers were very active during the early campaigns of 1941/42, although they
fared badly at the hands of the Royal Navy. A number of them survived to serve under foreign flags after
the war.
Vosper M.T.B.
The Vosper 73 ft M.T.B. (Motor Torpedo Boat) were armed with 4 x 18 inch torpedoes, one or two 40-millimeter
Bofors guns, twin 20-millimeter Oerlikon guns and Lewis machine-guns. The Royal Navy used these types of boats
very effectively to harass enemy shipping in the later stages of the Second World War. They entered
service in 1944 and were powered by three V12 Packard engines producing 4050 bhp supercharged; this gave
them a top speed of 38-40 knots. They were fitted with radar and w/t and had a complement of thirteen.
E-Boat
Fast and heavily armed, the famous German E-boats were a formidable enemy and remained a thorn in the
side of the Royal Navy through the early war years, when they were well known for its hit-and-run forays
against Allied shipping in the English Channel and the North Sea.
RAF rescue launch
Downed aircrew of both sides had reason to be thankful to the high speed rescue launches of the RAF
Marine Craft units during the Second World War, and of these launches, the 63 ft British Power Boat
Type 2 design figures prominently in wartime operations and unashamedly came to be regarded as the
'Spitfire' of the ASR units. The sweeping curve of the deck justifyably earned it the name 'Whaleback'
among its crews and gave some hint to its speed which was a handsome 38 knots. Distinctive features of
these launches were the two gun turrets, the essential anti-flak protective padding around the
wheelhouse and cabin, and a stern-mounted 20-millimeter Oerlikon frequently fitted to these launches during
later periods of the war.
|
|
