History | |
---|---|
United Kingdom | |
Name | HMS Greetham |
Namesake | Greetham, Lincolnshire |
Ordered | 17 October 1951 |
Builder | Herd & McKenzie, Buckie |
Launched | 19 April 1954 |
Completed | 5 February 1955 |
Fate | Transferred to Libya 1962 |
Libya | |
Name | Zuara |
Acquired | November 1962 |
Decommissioned | 1973 |
Fate | Sold in Malta, 1973. |
Malta | |
Name | Lady Davinia |
Operator | Captain Morgan Cruises |
Port of registry | Valletta |
Acquired | 1973 |
Fate |
|
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Ham-class minesweeper |
Displacement |
|
Length | |
Beam | 21 ft 4 in (6.50 m) |
Draught | 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) |
Propulsion |
|
Speed | 14 knots (16 mph; 26 km/h) |
Complement | 2 officers, 13 ratings |
Armament | 1 × Bofors 40 mm L/60 gun or Oerlikon 20 mm cannon |
Notes | Pennant number(s): M2632 / IMS34 |
HMS Greetham was one of 93 ships of the Ham class of inshore minesweepers. All ships in this class had names chosen from villages ending in -ham. The minesweeper was built by the firm of Herd & McKenzie in Buckie, Moray and was named after Greetham, Lincolnshire. Entering service in 1955, the vessel was transferred to the Libyan Navy in 1962 on loan and permanently in 1966. Renamed Zuara, the minesweeper was used as a patrol vessel until 1973. Zuara was sold to Captain Morgan Cruises of Malta for commercial use and renamed Lady Davinia. The ship was taken out of service in 2007 and laid up at Sliema Creek. Lady Davinia sank at her moorings in 2008 and for a short time became a diving attraction but in 2011 the wreck was partially broken up after being named a navigational hazard.
The Ham class had a normal displacement of 120 long tons (120 t) and 159 long tons (162 t) at deep load. The minesweepers were 100 feet (30 m) long between perpendiculars and from 106.6–107.6 feet (32.5–32.8 m) long overall with a beam of 21–22 feet (6.4–6.7 m) and a draught of 5.6–5.9 feet (1.7–1.8 m). The vessels were propelled by two shafts powered by two Davey Paxman 12-cylinder diesel engines creating 1,100 brake horsepower (820 kW). This gave the minesweepers a maximum speed of 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph). The Ham class had a range of 2,350 nautical miles (4,350 km; 2,700 mi) at 9 knots (17 km/h; 10 mph). [1]
Ham-class minesweepers were armed with one 40-millimetre (1.6 in) Mk 7 Bofors gun or one 20-millimetre (0.8 in) cannon. The vessels were equipped with Type 978 radar and had a complement of 15. [1] The class was designed to operate in shallow coastal waters and were of wooden construction. [2]
The minesweeper was ordered on 17 October 1951 and constructed by Herd & McKenzie at their yard in Buckie, Scotland. [1] [3] The ship was launched on 19 April 1954. [4] Greetham was loaned to the Libyan Navy in November 1962, along with HMS Harpham. These were the first two ships in the newly formed Libyan Navy. She was transferred permanently in September 1966, and she was renamed Zuara. She was used as a coastal patrol vessel until 1973, when she was decommissioned. [5] [lower-alpha 1]
That year, Zuara was sold to Captain Morgan Cruises, a Maltese tour operator, and was renamed MV Lady Davinia. For a number of years she had a distinctive red and white Kit Kat paint scheme. In 2007 she was decommissioned and was laid up in Sliema Creek awaiting her fate. Lady Davinia sank at her moorings in Sliema Creek in 2008. The exact date of sinking is unknown. The site quickly became popular with divers, as it was easily accessible and was full of marine life. Since it was not purposely sunk, the wreck was intact, with wine bottles and cutlery scattered around it, and soft drinks and beer cans still in the fridge. [6]
The wreck was to be lifted and broken up in June 2011 as it was considered a navigational hazard. [7] However, the workers only managed to remove part of the wreck, leaving the stern, engines and heaps of twisted metal at the bottom. Some remaining oil in the ship's tanks was spilt, and large holes were dug in the seabed. Due to this, most of the marine life area around the wreck was killed off. [8]
HMS Kirkliston (M1157) was a Ton-class minesweeper of the Royal Navy, built by Harland and Wolff and launched on 18 February 1954. In a brief episode from 1956 to 1960 she was temporarily renamed HMS Kilmorey and was assigned to the Ulster division Royal Naval Reserve (RNR).
HMS Bodenham was one of 93 ships of the Ham-class of inshore minesweepers. Completed in 1953 for use in the British Royal Navy, she served as a tender to HMS Vernon between 1954 and 1955 before being placed in reserve. In 1967 she was transferred to the newly-independent country of South Yemen renamed Al Saqr. She was renamed Jihla in 1975 and discarded in 1984.
HMS Dittisham was one of 93 ships of the Ham-class of inshore minesweepers built for the British Royal Navy. Their names were all chosen from villages ending in -ham. The minesweeper was named after Dittisham in Devon.
HMS Harpham was one of 93 ships of the Ham-class of inshore minesweepers. She was built in 1954 by the Jones Shipyard in Buckie, Moray. She was sold to Libya in 1962 and renamed Brak. She remained in Libyan service until she was broken up in 1973.
HMS Mersham was a Ham-class minesweeper of the Royal Navy. All ships of the class were named after villages ending in -ham. The minesweeper was named after Mersham in Kent. Constructed at Appledore, in Devon, Mersham was launched in April 1954 and completed in January 1955. In April 1955, the ship was transferred to the French Navy and in French service, was known by its pennant number, M773, until it was renamed Violette in 1964. Throughout the 1950s and early 1960s, the vessel undertook minesweeping duties from Brest in Brittany, before being laid up in 1965. In 1974, the ship was transferred to the Gendarmerie and undertook patrol duties until finally being decommissioned in 1987.
HMS Puttenham(M2784) was a Ham-class inshore minesweeper of the Royal Navy. She was launched in 1956 and entered service in 1958. The 93 ships of the Ham class had names chosen from villages ending in -ham. The minesweeper was named after Puttenham.
HMS Aberdare was the name ship of her sub-class of the Hunt-class minesweepers built for the Royal Navy during World War I. She survived both World Wars to be scrapped in 1947.
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HMCS Nipigon was a Bangor-class minesweeper that served in the Royal Canadian Navy during the Second World War. She saw action in the Battle of the Atlantic and the Battle of the St. Lawrence. She was named for Nipigon, Ontario. After the war she was sold to Turkey and renamed Bafra. She served as such from 1957 until 1972.
HMS Unbroken (P42) was a Royal Navy U-class submarine built by Vickers-Armstrong at Barrow-in-Furness; it was part of the third group of that class and has been the only vessel of the Royal Navy to bear the name. She entered service as P42 and was renamed Unbroken on 1 February 1943.
HMCyS Vijaya, named in honor of Vijaya, the first king of Sri Lanka, was an Algerine-class minesweeper of the Royal Ceylon Navy, the first warship of that navy. Vijaya had been built as HMS Flying Fish (J370) for the Royal Navy during World War II, but was given to Ceylon by the United Kingdom upon the 1951 formation of Ceylon's navy.
HMCS Comox was a Bay-class minesweeper built for the Royal Canadian Navy during the Cold War. The vessel was named for Comox Harbour, a bay in British Columbia. The minesweeper was later transferred to the Turkish Navy where she was renamed Tirebolu and served until 1996.
HMS Hodgeston was a Ton-class minesweeper which saw service with the Royal Navy during the Cold War. Built by Fleetlands Shipyard, she was launched on 6 April 1954 and broken up in 1988.
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HMS Chevron was a C-class destroyer of the Royal Navy that was in service from August 1945 to the 1960s. She was scrapped in 1969.
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HMCS Westmount was a Bangor-class minesweeper that served with the Royal Canadian Navy during the Second World War. Entering service in 1942, the minesweeper spent the entire war on the Atlantic Canada coast. Following the war, the ship was laid up in reserve until reacquired in 1952 during the Korean War. Never re-entering service with the Royal Canadian Navy, the vessel was sold to the Turkish Navy in 1958. Renamed Bornova, the minesweeper was discarded in 1972.
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