HMS Bittern (L07)

Last updated

HMS Bittern ablaze.jpg
Bittern ablaze in Namsos Fjord after having suffered a direct hit in the stern by a bomb
History
Naval Ensign of the United Kingdom.svgUnited Kingdom
NameBittern
Builder J. Samuel White, Cowes, Isle of Wight
Laid down27 August 1936
Launched14 July 1937
Commissioned15 March 1938
Identification Pennant number: L07
FateSunk by German bombers, 30 April 1940
General characteristics [1]
Class and type Bittern-class sloop
Displacement1,190 tons
Length266 ft (81 m)
Beam37 ft (11 m)
PropulsionGeared steam turbines on two shafts, 3,300  hp (2,500 kW)
Speed18.75 knots (34.73 km/h; 21.58 mph)
Complement125
Armament

HMS Bittern was a Bittern-class sloop of the Royal Navy. Although the last to be completed she was the name ship of her class, replacing an earlier Bittern which had been re-named before launch. Bittern was laid down on 27 August 1936 by J. Samuel White, of Cowes, Isle of Wight, launched on 14 July 1937 and completed on 15 March 1938.

Contents

She served in Home waters and off the coast of Norway during the Second World War. She took part in the ill-fated Namsos Campaign of 1940, where she was used to defend allied troop ships entering and leaving Namsos harbour from submarine attacks. The harbour came under regular air attack by the Luftwaffe, and on 30 April, Bittern was spotted by a squadron of Junkers Ju 87 dive bombers. Bittern came under repeated attack from 0700 hours onwards. She was hit and severely damaged, being set on fire by a bomb dropped from Oberleutnant Elmo Schäfer's aircraft belonging to I./StG 1. Nearby allied ships came alongside and took the survivors off. When this had been completed, Bittern was sunk by a torpedo from the destroyer Janus. [2]

In 2011 it was reported that the ship has started to leak oil and contained roughly 200,000 litres (44,000 imp gal; 53,000 US gal) of oil. [3]

Notes

  1. ↑ Campbell, p. 57
  2. ↑ Mason, Geoffrey B. (2005). "HMS Janus (F.53) - J-class Destroyer". naval-history.net. Retrieved 23 June 2015.
  3. ↑ "Gammalt brittiskt vrak har börjat läcka olja" (in Swedish). HBL.fi. 21 July 2011. Archived from the original on 16 February 2015. Retrieved 15 February 2015.

Related Research Articles

HMS <i>Janus</i> (F53) J-class destroyer

HMS Janus, named after the Roman god, was a Javelin or J-class destroyer of the Royal Navy. She was ordered from the Swan Hunter & Wigham Richardson Limited at Wallsend-on-Tyne as part of the 1936 Build Programme and laid down on 29 September 1937, launched on 10 November 1938 and commissioned on 5 August 1939.

HMS <i>Javelin</i> Destroyer of the Royal Navy

HMS Javelin was a J-class destroyer of the Royal Navy.

HMS <i>Jervis</i> J-class destroyer

HMS Jervis, was a J-class destroyer built for the Royal Navy in the late 1930s. She was named after Admiral John Jervis (1735–1823). She was laid down by R. and W. Hawthorn, Leslie and Company, Limited, at Hebburn-on-Tyne on 26 August 1937. The ship was launched on 9 September 1938 and commissioned on 8 May 1939, four months before the start of the Second World War.

HMS <i>Calcutta</i> (D82) C-class light cruiser of the Royal Navy

HMS Calcutta was a C-class light cruiser of the Royal Navy, named after the Indian city of Calcutta. She was part of the Carlisle group of the C class of cruisers. She was laid down by Vickers Limited at Barrow-in-Furness in 1917 and launched on 9 July 1918. Calcutta was commissioned too late to see action in the First World War and was converted to an anti-aircraft cruiser in 1939. Calcutta served during the Norwegian Campaign and the evacuation from Dunkirk in 1940. She was used to escort allied convoys across the Mediterranean and was sunk on 1 June 1941 by Luftwaffe aircraft off Alexandria, Egypt.

HMS <i>Carlisle</i> (D67) Royal Navy C-class light cruiser

HMS Carlisle was a C-class light cruiser of the Royal Navy, named after the English city of Carlisle. She was the name ship of the Carlisle group of the C-class of cruisers. Carlisle was credited with shooting down eleven Axis aircraft during the Second World War and was the top scoring anti-aircraft ship in the Royal Navy.

HMS <i>Vortigern</i> (D37) Destroyer of the Royal Navy

HMS Vortigern was a V-class destroyer of the Royal Navy. She served in both World Wars, and was sunk in 1942.

<i>Bittern</i>-class sloop

The Bittern-class sloop was a three-ship class of long-range escort vessels used in the Second World War by the Royal Navy.

<i>Egret</i>-class sloop

The Egret-class sloops were a three ship class of a long-range escort vessels used in the Second World War by the Royal Navy. They were an enlarged version of the Bittern class with an extra twin 4-inch gun mounting. They were fitted with Denny Brown stabilisers and the Fuze Keeping Clock anti-aircraft fire control system.

French destroyer <i>Bison</i> (1928) Destroyer of the French Navy

The French destroyer Bison was a Guépard-class destroyer (contre-torpilleurs) built for the French Navy during the 1920s.

HMS <i>Puffin</i> (L52) Sloop of the Royal Navy

HMS Puffin (L52), was a Kingfisher-class sloop of the British Royal Navy, built in the 1930s, that saw service during World War II. The ship was laid down on 12 June 1935 by Alexander Stephens and Sons, based at Linthouse in Glasgow, launched on 5 May 1936, and commissioned on 6 August 1936.

HMS <i>Stork</i> (L81) Sloop of the Royal Navy

HMS Stork (L81) was a Bittern-class sloop of the Royal Navy. She was active during the Second World War, serving in convoy escort groups, and was a successful anti-submarine warfare vessel, being credited with the destruction of four U-boats.

HMS <i>Whitley</i> (L23) Destroyer of the Royal Navy

HMS Whitley (L23), ex-Whitby, was a W-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy that saw service in the British campaign in the Baltic Sea against Bolshevik forces during the Russian Civil War and in the early months of World War II.

HMS <i>Vivacious</i> (D36) Destroyer of the Royal Navy

HMS Vivacious (D36) was a V-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy that saw service in World War I and World War II.

HMS Venetia (D53) was a V-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy that saw service in World War I and World War II.

HMS <i>Versatile</i> (D32) Destroyer of the Royal Navy

HMS Versatile (D32) was an Admiralty V-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy that saw service in World War I, the Russian Civil War, and World War II.

HMS <i>Wolsey</i> Destroyer of the Royal Navy

HMS Wolsey (D98) was a W-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy that saw service in the final months of World War I, in the Nanking incident of 1927, and in World War II.

HMS <i>Worcester</i> (D96) Destroyer of the Royal Navy

The eighth HMS Worcester, was a Modified W-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy that saw service in World War II. She later served as an accommodation ship as the second HMS Yeoman.

HMS <i>Enchantress</i> (L56) Sloop of the Royal Navy

HMS Enchantress (L56) was a Bittern-class sloop, built for the British Royal Navy. She was the lead ship of her class, being laid down as Bittern, but renamed as Enchantress before being launched by Lady Jean Alice Elaine Cochrane. She was active during the Second World War, serving mainly as a convoy escort, and was a successful anti-submarine warfare vessel, being credited with the destruction of an Italian submarine in 1942.

HMS <i>Auckland</i> (L61) Sloop of the Royal Navy

HMS Auckland (L61) was an Egret-class sloop built for the British Royal Navy. She was active during the Second World War and was employed as a convoy escort and anti-submarine warfare vessel. Auckland was sunk in an air attack in the eastern Mediterranean in June 1941.

References

64°28′N11°30′E / 64.467°N 11.500°E / 64.467; 11.500

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.