HMSBitternwas aBittern-classsloopof theRoyal Navy.Although the last to be completed she was thename shipof her class, replacingan earlierBitternwhich had been re-named before launch.Bitternwas laid down on 27 August 1936 byJ. Samuel White,ofCowes,Isle of Wight, launched on 14 July 1937 and completed on 15 March 1938.
 Bitternablaze inNamsos Fjordafter having suffered a direct hit in the stern by a bomb
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | Bittern |
| Builder | J. Samuel White,Cowes,Isle of Wight |
| Laid down | 27 August 1936 |
| Launched | 14 July 1937 |
| Commissioned | 15 March 1938 |
| Identification | Pennant number:L07 |
| Fate | Sunk by German bombers, 30 April 1940 |
| General characteristics[1] | |
| Class and type | Bittern-classsloop |
| Displacement | 1,190 tons |
| Length | 266 ft (81 m) |
| Beam | 37 ft (11 m) |
| Propulsion | Gearedsteam turbineson two shafts, 3,300hp(2,500 kW) |
| Speed | 18.75 knots (34.73 km/h; 21.58 mph) |
| Complement | 125 |
| Armament | |
She served in Home waters and off the coast ofNorwayduring theSecond World War.She took part in the ill-fatedNamsos Campaignof 1940, where she was used to defend alliedtroop shipsentering and leavingNamsosharbour from submarine attacks. The harbour came under regular air attack by theLuftwaffe,and on 30 April,Bitternwas spotted by a squadron ofJunkers Ju 87dive bombers.Bitterncame 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,Bitternwas sunk by a torpedo from the destroyerJanus.[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
edit- ^Campbell, p. 57
- ^Mason, Geoffrey B. (2005)."HMS Janus (F.53) - J-class Destroyer".naval-history.net.Retrieved23 June2015.
- ^"Gammalt brittiskt vrak har börjat läcka olja"(in Swedish). HBL.fi. 21 July 2011. Archived fromthe originalon 16 February 2015.Retrieved15 February2015.
References
edit- Campbell, N. J. M. (1980). "Great Britain (including Empire Forces)". In Chesneau, Roger (ed.).Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946.Greenwich, UK: Conway Maritime Press. pp. 2–85.ISBN0-85177-146-7.
- Colledge, J. J.; Warlow, Ben & Bush, Steve (2020).Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy from the 15th Century to the Present(5th revised and updated ed.). Barnsley, UK: Seaforth Publishing.ISBN978-1-5267-9327-0.
- Hague, Arnold (1993).Sloops: A History of the 71 Sloops Built in Britain and Australia for the British, Australian and Indian Navies 1926–1946.Kendal, UK: World Ship Society.ISBN0-905617-67-3.
- Lenton, H. T.(1998).British & Empire Warships of the Second World War.Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press.ISBN1-55750-048-7.
- 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.ISBN1-59114-119-2.