HMS Audacity (D10) Escort Aircraft Carrier (1941)
The United Kingdom had always been on the cutting edge of naval design and the HMS Audacity was no exception.
Audacity was originally built and launched as a German 5,537 ton merchant ship known as the MV Hannover by the German company Bremer Vulkan, Vegesack, and launched in 1939. As a cargo ship, Hanover was first used in the West Indies as a fruit carrier. With her port of registry being Bremen, Germany, she was allowed to be sunk when war was declared. Hannover was ordered to steam to the natural port of Netherlands Antilles and, in early 1940, Hannover's Captain Wahnschaff received orders to return to Germany. She was sighted close to Puerto Rico and was ordered to stop by the light cruiser HMS Dunedin and the destroyer HMCS Assiniboine. Hanover chose to try and escape to the neutral port of the Dominican Republic. The escape was cut off by the British war ships so Capitan Wahnschaff instructed the sea cocks be opened and to set the ship on fire. Boarding parties from HMS Dunedin captured the crew and were able to close the sea cocks. Hannover was towed into international waters and it took four days to bring the fire under control. Taken as a war prize, the Hannover was towed to Jamaica on March 11, 1940.
Now under British control, Hannover was renamed Sinbad and given a United Kingdom Official Number and code letters. Her port of registry was changed to Kingston, Jamaica, under the British flag. In late 1940, Sinbad was renamed Empire Audacity by the Ministry of War Transport. Her port of registry was changed from Jamaica to London and was placed under the management of the White Star Line Ltd.
The Royal Navy had recognized a need for defense carriers in the 1930s but no action was taken at that time. When the war broke out, the Admiralty needing carriers to protect valuable cargo ships en route to British bases around the world and decided the escort carrier concept needed to be acted upon. In January 1941, she was sent to Blyth shipbuilding docks to be rebuilt as an escort carrier. Empire Audacity was the largest ship ever handled at Blyth and the shipwrights wondered why the superstructure was being removed at a time when Britain was short of ships. Empire Audacity was commissioned on June 17, 1941, and was the first escort carrier of the Royal Navy. Being pressed for time, the new carrier was not fitted with an elevator to bring aircraft below to a hanger deck. This forced all repairs of the aircraft to be done top side and reduced the overall amount of space for additional aircraft. They were typically half the length and one-third the displacement of the larger fleet carriers. While they were slower, less well-armed and armored and carried fewer planes, they were still much less expensive to produce.
HMS Empire Audacity's first Squadron was the 802 FAA comprised of Grumman Martlet fighter aircraft and the first landing on her deck was on July10, 1941. The Martlet was the F4F Wildcat in British Royal Navy service, Grumman's first monoplane and one of the outstanding Naval fighters of World War 2 (particularly in the Pacific Theater). This American fighter was called the Martlet by the Royal Navy until March 1944 when it reverted back to its US name Wildcat. The Admiralty disliked her merchant name and HMS Empire Audacity was renamed HMS Audacity (D-10).
No major problems were found during sea trials and with her need to be on station being so great, Audacity was put into full service. Three arrestor wires for deck landings were used as was the case on all carriers (even to this day). A small conning tower was built on the starboard side and for air defense 8 x AA (anti-aircraft) guns were mounted. Radar Type 79B air warning radar was installed for two reasons, the first being to find inbound threat aircraft and the second to track her own aircraft within 75 miles. The major air threat was expected to be the German Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condor long-range reconnaissance aircraft. Hurricanes were proposed to be used on the ship but they were not available while the Grumman Martlet, being specifically designed for carrier operations and were proven, became the mount of choice for Audacity. She embarked with six or eight Grumman Martlets assigned to No. 802 Squadron FAA (Fleet Air Arm). Audacity was assigned to support convoys from England to Gibraltar. She commenced her war service when she sailed with her first convoy - OG 74 (Out to Gibraltar) - in September of 1941 to Gibraltar as a guard for the convoy. During the voyage the convoy was attacked by Condors and one was shot down by a Martlet. Her next convoy - HG 74 (Homeward from Gibraltar) - she lost one of her aircraft but shot down 4 x Condors.
Her fourth and last convoy was HG 76. Many felt the carrier should be in the center of the convoy with the warships on the outside perimeter. This would provide maximum protection for the unarmored carrier against torpedo attack. This was tried but was found to be impractical due to the large area need to maneuver and launch/recover aircraft into the wind. As such, the carrier had to operate outside the protective ring of these ships.
HG 76 was comprised of 36 merchant ships and a very strong escort of 17 warships. The 36th escort group was under the command of Captain Walker, comprised of 2 sloops (Stork and Deptford) and 7 corvettes (Convulvulus, Gardenia, Marigold, Penstemon, Rhodedendron, Samphire and Vetch). For this voyage, additional forces were assigned to Walker's group. There was the carrier Audacity along with her destroyers, the Blanckney, Stanley and Exmoor II as well as 2 additional sloops-of-war - the Black Swan and Fowey - and corvettes Carnation and La Malouine. Attacking the convoy was a German Wolfpack consisting of U-boats U-67, U-107, U-108, U-131, U-434 and U-574.
When the convoy sailed, German spies stationed in Spain across the bay notified U-boat command of the time the ships sailed out and their overall strength. The U-boat line was south of Cape St Vincent but did not come in contact with the convoy until she was spotted by a Condor on December 16th to which U- 108 was contacted. The boat started shadowing the convoy and by the next morning four U-boats were in position to attack. Regular air patrols from Audacity located U-131 and notified the escort group. U-131 was attacked by the sloops Stork and Penstemon and destroyers Blanckney, Stanley and Exmoor II. The destroyer's depth charged U-131 and forced her to the surface and her deck crew shot down a Martlet before she was sunk. On the 18th, U-434 was discovered by the destroyer Blankney to which she attacked and rammed the U-boat. The battle caused the escorts to use large amounts of fuel so Corvettes Carnation and La Malouine returned to Gibraltar to re-fuel along with the damaged Blankney, the latter now needing repairs, and all were escorted by Exmoor II. The sloops Black Swan , Fowey, left for Gibraltar soon after to also receive fuel. Text ©2003-2013 www.MilitaryFactory.com • All Rights Reserved • No Reproduction Permitted
MilitaryFactory.com does NOT sell equipment/weaponry. Material presented throughout this website is for historical and entertainment value and should not to be construed as usable for hardware restoration, maintenance or general operation. Please consult manufacturers for such information. Our disclaimer. Email corrections / Comments to MilitaryFactory at Gmail dot com.
Specifications for the
HMS Audacity (D10)
Escort Aircraft Carrier
Country of Origin: United Kingdom
Initial Year of Service: 1941
Operators: Nazi Germany; United Kingdom
Crew: 210
Length: 461.2ft (140.57m)
Beam: 56.2ft (17.13m)
Draught: 60ft (18.29m)
Displacement: 11,000tons
Machinery: 1 x 7-cylinder MAN diesel engines; 1 x single shaft delivering 5,200bhp (some sources state two engines).
Surface Speed: 15kts (17mph)
Range: 0miles (0km)
Armament:
1 x 4-inch 100mm gun
1 x 6-pdr gun
4 x QF 2-pdr anti-aircraff guns
4 x 20mm anti-aircraft cannons
Air Arm: 802 Squadron with 6 or 8 Martlet (Grumman F4F Wildcat) fighters.
Ship Class: Audacity-class
Number-in-Class: 1
Ships-in-Class: HMS Audacity (D10)
BY TYPE:
• Age of Sail
• Aircraft Carriers
• Escort Carriers
• Amphibious
• Amphibious Assault
• Battlecruisers
• Battleships
• Cargo Ships
• Corvettes
• Cruisers
• Destroyers
• Destroyer Escorts
• Dreadnoughts
• Pre-Dreadnoughts
• Personal Watercraft
• Frigates
• Helicopter Carriers
• Ironclads
• Mine Warfare
• Patrol Craft
• Special Forces Watercraft
• Special Purpose
• Submarines
• Steam and Sail Warships
• Torpedo Boats
• VIEW ALL
BATTLESHIPS:
• Battleships
• 2nd Class Battleships
• Pocket Battleships
SUBMARINES:
• Diesel-Electric Submarines
• Ballistic Missile Submarines
• Midget Submarines
• Nuclear Attack Submarines
• VIEW ALL
• VIEW ALL
WORLD WAR 2:
• Aircraft Carriers
• Battleships
• British Warships
• Destroyers
• French Warships
• German Warships
• German U-Boat Submarines
• Italian Warships
• Japanese Warships
• American Warships
• Submarines
• WW2 Warships (ALL)
VIETNAM WAR:
• VIEW ALL
MISCELLANEOUS:
• Battle of Trafalgar
• Civil War Ships
• How Submarines Work
• Modern Aircraft Carriers
• Modern Warships
• United States Navy Carriers
• United States Navy Classification
©2013 www.MilitaryFactory.com • Content ©2003-2013 MilitaryFactory.com • All Rights Reserved • Site Contact Email: militaryfactory at gmail dot com. The "Military Factory" name and MilitaryFactory.com logo are registered ® trademarks and protected by all applicable domestic and international intellectual property laws.
Top MF Stuff: 2013 Military Pay Scale | Military Ranks | WW2 Weapons | Sniper Rifles | Kts to Mph | WW1 Aircraft | Automatic Rifles | Aircraft Cockpits | Vietnam War Weapons | Main Battle Tanks | Submachine Guns | Shotguns | French Military Victories
Most photographic images appearing on this site are courtesy of the United States Department of Defense and are approved for public use. Other images acquired through the public domain. Digital art work courtesy of Dan Alex. Business Consulting by Kyle Williams. Material presented throughout this website is for historical and entertainment value and should not to be construed as usable for hardware restoration, maintenance or general operation. Please consult manufacturers for such information.
