HMIS Oudh (J245)

History
India
Name	Oudh
Ordered	14 October 1940
Builder	Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers
Laid down	7 June 1941
Launched	3 March 1942
Commissioned	21 October 1943
Out of service	1948
Fate	Transferred to Pakistan
Pakistan
Name	Dacca
Acquired	1948
Fate	Scrapped 22 January 1959
General characteristics
Class and type	Bangor-class minesweeper
Displacement	673 long tons (684 t) standard 860 long tons (874 t) full
Length	189 ft (58 m) o/a
Beam	28 ft 6 in (8.69 m)
Draught	10 ft 6 in (3.20 m)
Installed power	2,400  ihp (1,800 kW) 2 × Admiralty 3-drum boilers
Propulsion	2 shafts 2 vertical triple-expansion steam engines
Speed	16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph)
Range	2,800  nmi (5,200 km; 3,200 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)
Complement	60
Armament	1 × single QF 12-pounder (7.62 cm) anti-aircraft gun 1 × single QF 2-pounder (4 cm) AA gun or 1 × quadruple Vickers .50 machine gun

HMIS Oudh (J245) was a Bangor-class minesweepers built for the Royal Navy, but transferred to the Royal Indian Navy (RIN) during the Second World War.

Design and description

The Bangor class was designed as a small minesweeper that could be easily built in large numbers by civilian shipyards; as steam turbines were difficult to manufacture, the ships were designed to accept a wide variety of engines. Oudh displaced 673 long tons (684 t) at standard load and 860 long tons (870 t) at deep load. The ship had an overall length of 189 feet (57.6 m), a beam of 28 feet 6 inches (8.7 m) and a draught of 10 feet 6 inches (3.2 m). ^[1] The ship's complement consisted of 60 officers and ratings. ^[2]

She was powered by two vertical triple-expansion steam engines (VTE), each driving one shaft, using steam provided by two Admiralty three-drum boilers. The engines produced a total of 2,400 shaft horsepower (1,800 kW) and gave a maximum speed of 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph). The ship carried a maximum of 160 long tons (163 t) of fuel oil that gave her a range of 2,800 nautical miles (5,200 km; 3,200 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph). ^[3]

The VTE-powered Bangors were armed with a QF 12-pounder (7.62 cm) anti-aircraft gun and a single QF 2-pounder (4 cm) AA gun or a quadruple mount for the Vickers .50 machine gun. In some ships the 2-pounder was replaced a single or twin 20 mm Oerlikon AA gun, while most ships were fitted with four additional single Oerlikon mounts over the course of the war. ^[3] For escort work, their minesweeping gear could be exchanged for around 40 depth charges. ^[2]

Construction and career

HMIS Oudh was ordered in 1940, and built by Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers in India. She was commissioned in 1943, into the Eastern Fleet. She escorted a number of convoys until the end of the war. ^{[4] [5] [6]}

Pakistan service

For other ships with the same name, see PNS Dacca.

After the independence of India and the subsequent partition, she was among the vessels transferred to Pakistan and renamed PNS Dacca.

References

1. Lenton, pp. 253–54
2. Chesneau, p. 64
3. Lenton, p. 254
4. "Eastern Fleet War Diary 1943" . Retrieved 23 August 2015.
5. "East Indies Fleet War Diary 1944" . Retrieved 23 August 2015.
6. "East Indies Fleet War Diary 1945" . Retrieved 23 August 2015.

Bibliography

• Chesneau, Roger, ed. (1980). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946. Greenwich, UK: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN   0-85177-146-7.
• Colledge, J. J.; Warlow, Ben (2006) [1969]. Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy (Rev. ed.). London: Chatham Publishing. ISBN   978-1-86176-281-8.
• Lenton, H. T. (1998). British & Empire Warships of the Second World War. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN   1-55750-048-7.