HMNZSAchilles

For other ships with the same name, seeHMS Achilles.

For post-1948 service in theIndian Navy,seeINS Delhi (1948).

History
United Kingdom
Name	HMSAchilles
Namesake	Achilles
Builder	Cammell Laird,Birkenhead
Laid down	11 June 1931
Launched	1 September 1932
Commissioned	10 October 1933
Out of service	Loaned toRoyal New Zealand Navy1 October 1936
Identification	Pennant number:70
Honours and awards	River Plate 1939
Fate	Sold toIndian Navy5 July 1948
New Zealand
Name	HMNZSAchilles
Commissioned	1 October 1941
Decommissioned	17 September 1946
Identification	Pennant number: 70
Honours and awards	Guadalcanal 1942-43, Okinawa 1945
Fate	Returned to Royal Navy 17 September 1946
General characteristics
Class and type	Leander-classlight cruiser
Displacement	7,270 tons standard 9,740 tons full load (Oct 1945)
Length	555.5 ft (169.3 m)
Beam	56 ft (17 m)
Draught	19.1 ft (5.8 m)
Installed power	73,280 shaft horsepower (54,640 kW)
Propulsion	Four Parsons geared steam turbines Six Yarrow boilers Four shafts
Speed	32.5 knots (60 km/h)
Range	5,730 nmi (10,610 km; 6,590 mi) at 13 kn (24 km/h)
Complement	peacetime 550 wartime 680
Armament	8 ×BL 6 in Mk.XXIII (152 mm L/50) guns,twin turrets Mk.XXI 4 ×QF 4 in Mk.V (102 mm L/45) guns,single mounts HA Mk.IV 12 ×QF 0.5 in Mk.III Vickers(12.7 mm) machine guns, quad mounts Mk.I 8 (2×4) tubes for21-inch (533 mm) torpedo Mk.IX
Armour	3 inmagazinebox 1 inchdeck 1 inchturrets
Aircraft carried	Catapult-launchedFairey Seafox AmphibiousSupermarine Walrus Radio controlledDH.82 Queen Bee

HMNZSAchilleswas aLeander-classlight cruiser,the second of five in the class. She served in theRoyal New Zealand Navyin theSecond World War.She was launched in 1931 for theRoyal Navy,loaned to New Zealand in 1936 and transferred to the new Royal New Zealand Navy in 1941. She became famous for her part in theBattle of the River Plate,alongsideHMSAjaxandHMSExeterand notable for being the first Royal Navy cruiser to have fire control radar, with the installation of the New Zealand-made SS1 fire-control radar in June 1940.

After Second World War service in the Atlantic and Pacific, she was returned to the Royal Navy. She was sold to theIndian Navyin 1948 and recommissioned as INSDelhi.She was scrapped in 1978.

Design

She was the second of five ships of theLeander-class light cruisers, designed as effective follow-ons to theYorkclass.Upgraded toImproved Leander-class, she could carry an aircraft and was the first ship to carry aSupermarine Walrus,although both Walruses were lost before the Second World War began. At one time she carried the unusualDH.82 Queen Beewhich was a radio-controlled unmanned aircraft, normally used as a drone.

Service

Achilleswas originally built for the Royal Navy, and was commissioned asHMSAchilleson 10 October 1933. She would serve with the Royal Navy's New Zealand Division from 31 March 1936 up to the creation of the Royal New Zealand Navy, into which she was transferred in September 1941 and recommissioned HMNZSAchilles.About 60 per cent of her crew was from New Zealand.

At the outbreak of the Second World War,Achillesbegan patrolling the west coast of South America looking for German merchant ships, but by 22 October 1939 she had arrived at theFalkland Islands,where she was assigned to the South American Division under CommodoreHenry Harwoodand allocated toForce G(withExeterandCumberland).

Battle of the River Plate

Main article:Battle of the River Plate

Achillesas seen fromAjaxat the Battle of the River Plate

HMS "Achilles" in Battle of the River Plate,a painting by Frank Norton, is part of the National Collection of War Art held byArchives New Zealand

In the early morning of 13 December 1939, a force consisting ofAchilles,AjaxandExeterdetected smoke on the horizon, which was confirmed at 06:16 to be apocket battleship,thought to be theGerman battleshipAdmiral Scheerbut which turned out to beAdmiral Graf Spee.A fierce battle ensued, at a range of about 11 nautical miles (20 km).Achillessuffered some damage. In the exchange of fire, four crew were killed, her captain, WE Parry, was wounded; 36 ofGraf Spee's crew were killed.

The range reduced to about 4 nautical miles (7.4 km) at around 07:15 andGraf Speebroke off the engagement around 07:45 to head for the neutral harbour ofMontevideowhich she entered at 22:00 that night, having been pursued byAchillesandAjaxall day.Graf Speewas forced by international law to leave within 72 hours. Faced with what he believed to be overwhelming odds, the captain ofGraf Spee,Hans Langsdorff,scuttled his ship rather than risk the lives of his crew. An ensign flag flown by HMSAchillesin the Battle of the River Plate was donated toChrist Church Cathedralin theFalkland Islandsand is still on display hanging on the south wall of the Cathedral atPort Stanley.

Pacific theatre

Following the Atlantic battle,Achillesreturned toAuckland,New Zealand, on 23 February 1940, where she underwent a refit until June. AfterGerman raider activity in the South Pacificin 1940Achillesescorted the first Trans-Tasman commercial convoy, VK.1, composed ofEmpire Star,Port Chalmers,Empress of Russia,andMaunganuileavingSydney30 December 1940 forAuckland.After Japan entered the war, she escorted troop convoys, then joined theANZAC Squadronin the south-west Pacific.

AchillesmetHMASCanberra,flagship ofRear-Admiral John G. Crace,andHMASPerthin December 1941 to form an escort for thePensacola Convoy.

While operating offGuadalcanalIsland with US NavyTask Force 67on 5 January 1943, she was attacked by four Japanese aircraft. A bomb blew the top off X turret, killing 13 sailors. Between April 1943 and May 1944Achilleswas docked inPortsmouth,England for repairs and modernisation. Her single 4-inch AA guns were replaced by the dual-purposeQF 4 inch Mk XVI naval gunin four twin mountings, modern radar was fitted, and the damaged X turret was replaced by fourQF 2 pom pomsin a quadruple-mount. The work was delayed by a dockyard explosion that killed 14 men. Stoker William Dale was awarded theAlbert Medal for Lifesavingfor his actions in saving the lives of several dockyard workers.

Sent back to the New Zealand Fleet,Achillesnext joined theBritish Pacific Fleetin May 1945 for final operations in thePacific War.

Indian Navy

Main article:INS Delhi (1948)

After the war,Achilleswas returned to the Royal Navy atSheernessin Kent, England on 17 September 1946. She was then sold to the Indian Navy and recommissioned on 5 July 1948 asINSDelhi.She remained in service until decommissioned for scrap inBombayon 30 June 1978. In 1968 she was present at the granting of independence toMauritiusrepresenting the Indian Government together with the Royal Navy frigateTartarunder Captain Cameron Rusby.As part of the scrapping her Y turret was removed and presented as a gift to the New Zealand government. It is now on display at the entrance ofDevonport Naval BaseinAuckland.On 22 January 1979, AdmiralJal Cursetji,the Indian Navy Chief of the Naval Staff, presentedAchilles'sbuilder's plaque, steering wheel and engine room telegraph to AdmiralTerence Lewin,the First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff of the Royal Navy.

Achillesplayed herself in the filmThe Battle of the River Platein 1956.

References

• 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.ISBN978-1-86176-281-8.
• Friedman, Norman(2010).British Cruisers: Two World Wars and After.Barnsley, UK: Seaforth Publishing.ISBN978-1-59114-078-8.
• Gill, G Hermon (1957). "14".Royal Australian Navy 1939–1942.Australia in the War of 1939–1945. Series 2 – Navy. Vol. 1. Canberra: Australian War Memorial. Archived fromthe originalon 25 May 2009.Retrieved19 May2013.
• Harker, Jack S (1980).HMNZS Achilles.London:William Collins, Sons.ISBN978-0002169615.
• Lenton, HT; Colledge, JJ (1968).British and Dominion Warships of World War Two.New York:Doubleday & Co.
• Raven, Alan & Roberts, John (1980).British Cruisers of World War Two.Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press.ISBN0-87021-922-7.
• 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.
• Whitley, M. J.(1995).Cruisers of World War Two: An International Encyclopedia.London: Cassell.ISBN1-86019-874-0.
• Woollard, Mike (2002).The Beekeepers' Honey.Stamford:Aeroplane.

External links

• Helgason, Guðmundur."HMNZSAchilles(70) ".uboat.net.
• Royal New Zealand Navy articleArchived2 January 2005 at theWayback Machine