HMS Allington Castle

HMS Allington Castle was one of 44 Castle-class corvette built for the Royal Navy during the Second World War. She was named after Allington Castle in Kent. Completed in 1944, she served as a convoy escort during the war and on fishery patrol duties in 1945–1947, being sold for scrap in 1958.

History
United Kingdom
Name	Allington Castle
Namesake	Allington Castle
Ordered	9 December 1942
Builder	Fleming and Ferguson, Paisley, Scotland
Laid down	22 July 1943
Launched	29 February 1944
Completed	19 June 1944
Decommissioned	1947
Identification	Pennant number: K689
Fate	Scrapped, 20 December 1958
General characteristics
Class and type	Castle-class corvette
Displacement	1,010 long tons (1,030 t) (standard) 1,510 long tons (1,530 t) (deep load)
Length	252 ft (76.8 m)
Beam	33 ft (10.1 m)
Draught	14 ft (4.3 m)
Installed power	2 Admiralty 3-drum boilers 2,880 ihp (2,150 kW)
Propulsion	2 shafts, 2 geared steam turbines
Speed	16.5 knots (30.6 km/h; 19.0 mph)
Range	6,500 nmi (12,000 km; 7,500 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph)
Complement	99
Sensors and processing systems	Type 145 and Type 147 ASDIC Type 277 search radar HF/DF radio direction finder
Armament	1 × single 4 in (102 mm) gun 2 × twin, 2 × single 20 mm (0.8 in) AA guns 1 × 3-barrel Squid anti-submarine mortar 15 × depth charges, 1 rack and 2 throwers

Design and description

The Castle-class corvette was a stretched version of the preceding Flower class, enlarged to improve seakeeping and to accommodate modern weapons. The ships displaced 1,010 long tons (1,030 t) at standard load and 1,510 long tons (1,530 t) at deep load. They had an overall length of 252 feet (76.8 m), a beam of 36 feet 9 inches (11.2 m) and a deep draught of 14 feet (4.3 m). They were powered by a pair of triple-expansion steam engines, each driving one propeller shaft using steam provided by two Admiralty three-drum boilers. The engines developed a total of 2,880 indicated horsepower (2,150 kW) and gave a maximum speed of 16.5 knots (30.6 km/h; 19.0 mph). The Castles carried enough fuel oil to give them a range of 6,500 nautical miles (12,000 km; 7,500 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph). The ships' complement was 99 officers and ratings.^[1]

The Castle-class ships were equipped with a single QF 4-inch (102 mm) Mk XVI gun forward, but their primary weapon was their single three-barrel Squid anti-submarine mortar. This was backed up by one depth charge rail and two throwers for 15 depth charges. The ships were fitted with two twin and a pair of single mounts for 20-millimetre (0.8 in) Oerlikon light AA guns.^[2] Provision was made for a further four single mounts if needed. They were equipped with Type 145Q and Type 147B ASDIC sets to detect submarines by reflections from sound waves beamed into the water. A Type 277 search radar and a HF/DF radio direction finder rounded out the Castles' sensor suite.^[3]

Construction and career

Allington Castle was laid down by Fleming and Ferguson at their shipyard at Paisley, Scotland, on 22 July 1943 and launched on 29 February 1944. She was completed on 19 June and served as a convoy escort until the end of the Second World War in May 1945. The ship was placed in reserve on 25 May. Allington Castle was reactivated in November and assigned to the Fishery Protection Flotilla based at Fleetwood. In 1947 she returned to reserve.^[4] The ship was sold and arrived at Sunderland on 20 December 1958 to be broken up.^[5]

Citations

1. Lenton, p. 297
2. Chesneau, p. 63; Lenton, p. 297
3. Goodwin, p. 3
4. Goodwin, p. 71
5. Lenton, p. 298

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.
• Goodwin, Norman (2007). Castle Class Corvettes: An Account of the Service of the Ships and of Their Ships' Companies. Liskeard, UK: Maritime Books. ISBN 978-1-904459-27-9.
• Lenton, H. T. (1998). British & Empire Warships of the Second World War. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-048-7.
• Rohwer, Jürgen (2005). Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two (Third Revised ed.). Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-59114-119-2.