''Arromanches'' (R95) was an
aircraft carrier of the
French Navy
The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in t ...
, which served from 1946 to 1974. She was previously HMS ''Colossus'' (15) of the
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...
. She was the name-ship of the
''Colossus'' class of light carriers. She was commissioned in 1944, but did not see any action in World War II. She served with the
British Pacific Fleet
The British Pacific Fleet (BPF) was a Royal Navy formation that saw action against Japan during the Second World War. The fleet was composed of empire naval vessels. The BPF formally came into being on 22 November 1944 from the remaining ships o ...
in 1945–46, as an aircraft transport and repatriation ship.
In 1946, she was loaned to the
French Navy
The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in t ...
, and renamed ''Arromanches''; she was bought by the French in 1951.
''Arromanches'' participated in the
First Indochina War
The First Indochina War (generally known as the Indochina War in France, and as the Anti-French Resistance War in Vietnam) began in French Indochina from 19 December 1946 to 20 July 1954 between France and Việt Minh (Democratic Republic of Vi ...
in three campaigns from 1948 to 1954, and the
Suez Crisis of 1956. In 1968 she was converted to an
anti-submarine warfare
Anti-submarine warfare (ASW, or in older form A/S) is a branch of underwater warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, submarines, or other platforms, to find, track, and deter, damage, or destroy enemy submarines. Such operations are t ...
(ASW) carrier. She was decommissioned in 1974, and broken up in 1978.
Design and construction
The ''Colossus'' class was designed to meet the Royal Navy's wartime need for more carriers as cheaply as possible. They were built to mercantile standards, with no armour, no heavy AA guns, and only speed.
''Colossus'' was ordered on 14 March 1942 under
Admiralty
Admiralty most often refers to:
*Admiralty, Hong Kong
*Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964
*The rank of admiral
*Admiralty law
Admiralty can also refer to:
Buildings
* Admiralty, Traf ...
Job Number J 4576, one of three ''Colossus''-class carriers ordered that day. The ship was
laid down
Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a ship's construction. It is often marked with a ceremony attended by dignitaries from the shipbuilding company and the ultimate owners of the ship.
Keel laying is one o ...
at
Vickers-Armstrongs
Vickers-Armstrongs Limited was a British engineering conglomerate formed by the merger of the assets of Vickers Limited and Sir W G Armstrong Whitworth & Company in 1927. The majority of the company was nationalised in the 1960s and 1970s, w ...
'
High Walker
Walker is a residential suburb and electoral ward in the south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne, England.
History
The place-name 'Walker' is first attested in 1242, where it appears as ''Waucre''. This means 'wall-carr', that is to say, 'the marsh ...
shipyard on 1 June 1942 with the
55 and was
launched on 30 September 1943. ''Colossus'' was formally
commissioned on 1 December 1944, being completed and handed over to the Royal Navy on 16 December 1944.
Weapons and systems
Radars
In 1947 she had for
air scanning only, one 79B, for
air and surface scanning, one 277 and one 281B. With those she also had a
target indicator
Target indicators, also known as target markers or TI's for short, were flares used by the RAF's Bomber Command during World War II. TIs were normally dropped by Pathfinders onto the target, providing an easily seen visual aiming point for the ...
, a 293. Then in 1954 she still had in her possession a 281B for air and surface scanning a 291B and a 277. ''Arromanches'' also still had a 293 as her target indicator. Still for air scanning only she had the 79B, but she also gained later that year a YE and for navigation a DRBN-30. In 1959 she was down-graded and only had a YE in her possession left. That year she gained new scanning equipment. She had a DRBV-22 for air scanning and for surface scanning and navigation a new DRBV-31. And finally in 1972 she was fully downgraded and had her YE removed, but kept her DRBV-22 and DRBV-31 for air, surface, and navigation.
Armament
Weaponry
During her time in military service she had twenty-four
Vickers Armstrongs
Vickers-Armstrongs Limited was a British engineering conglomerate formed by the merger of the assets of Vickers Limited and Sir W G Armstrong Whitworth & Company in 1927. The majority of the company was nationalised in the 1960s and 1970s, wi ...
2-pounder guns, thirty-two
Oerlikon 20 mm cannon
The Oerlikon 20 mm cannon is a series of autocannons, based on an original German Becker Type M2 20 mm cannon design that appeared very early in World War I. It was widely produced by Oerlikon Contraves and others, with various models em ...
, later replaced in 1945 by twenty-one
Bofors 40 mm gun Bofors 40 mm gun is a name or designation given to two models of 40 mm calibre anti-aircraft guns designed and developed by the Swedish company Bofors:
*Bofors 40 mm L/60 gun - developed in the 1930s, widely used in World War II and into the 1990s
...
s and four
Ordnance QF 3-pounder Vickers
The Ordnance QF 3-pounder Vickers (47 mm / L50) was a British artillery piece first tested in Britain in 1903. It was used on Royal Navy warships. It was more powerful than and unrelated to the older QF 3-pounder Hotchkiss, with a propell ...
guns.
Aircraft
During her service with France before 1968 she carried the
Breguet Br-1050 Alizé Breguet or Bréguet may refer to:
* Breguet (watch), watch manufacturer
**Abraham-Louis Breguet (1747–1823), Swiss watchmaker
**Louis-François-Clement Breguet (1804–1883), French physicist, watchmaker, electrical and telegraph work
* Bréguet ...
, the
Vought F4U-7 Corsair
The Vought F4U Corsair is an American fighter aircraft which saw service primarily in World War II and the Korean War. Designed and initially manufactured by Chance Vought, the Corsair was soon in great demand; additional production contracts ...
, the
Grumman F6F-5 Hellcat
The Grumman F6F Hellcat is an American Carrier-based aircraft, carrier-based fighter aircraft of World War II. Designed to replace the earlier Grumman F4F Wildcat, F4F Wildcat and to counter the Japanese Mitsubishi A6M Zero, it was the United St ...
, the
Fouga CM-175 Zéphyr
Fouga (also known as Air Fouga) was a French manufacturing company established by Gaston Fouga at Béziers during 1920. Originally specialising in the repair of railway rolling stock, the firm eventually became most noted for the aircraft it p ...
, the
Curtiss SB2C-5 Helldiver
The Curtiss SB2C Helldiver is a dive bomber developed by Curtiss-Wright during World War II. As a carrier-based bomber with the United States Navy (USN), in Pacific theaters, it supplemented and replaced the Douglas SBD Dauntless. A few surviv ...
, the
Douglas SBD-5 Dauntless
The Douglas SBD Dauntless is a World War II American naval scout plane and dive bomber that was manufactured by Douglas Aircraft from 1940 through 1944. The SBD ("Scout Bomber Douglas") was the United States Navy's main carrier-based scout/div ...
, the
SNCASE Aquilon, the
Supermarine Seafire Mk III and
XV, and the
Grumman TBM Avenger
The Grumman TBF Avenger (designated TBM for aircraft manufactured by General Motors) is an American World War II-era torpedo bomber developed initially for the United States Navy and Marine Corps, and eventually used by several air and naval a ...
.
After 1968, she was converted to a helicopter carrier and carried the
Alouette II
Alouette or alouettes may refer to:
Music and literature
* "Alouette" (song), a French-language children's song
* Alouette, a character in ''The King of Braves GaoGaiGar''
Aerospace
* SNCASE Alouette, a utility helicopter developed in France i ...
and
Alouette III, the
Sikorsky S-51
The Sikorsky H-5 (initially designated R-5 and also known as S-48, S-51 and by company designation VS-327Fitzsimons, Bernard, (general editor). ''Illustrated Encyclopedia of 20th Century Weapons and Warfare'' (London: Phoebus, 1978), Volume 20, ...
,
Sikorsky S-55
The Sikorsky H-19 Chickasaw (company model number S-55) was a multi-purpose helicopter used by the United States Army and United States Air Force. It was also license-built by Westland Aircraft as the Westland Whirlwind in the United Kingdom ...
, and
Sikorsky S-58, the
Piasecki H-21 and
Piasecki H-25
The Piasecki HUP Retriever/H-25 Army Mule is a compact single radial engine, twin overlapping Tandem rotors, tandem rotor utility helicopter developed by the Piasecki Helicopter, Piasecki Helicopter Corporation of Morton, Pennsylvania. Designed to ...
, and the
Morane-Saulnier MS-500 Criquet.
Aeronautical installations
The carrier had a regular flight deck , catapult at the bow of the ship, two lifts (13.72 m x 10.36 m wide), and a hangar (104.24 × 15.85 m wide) fitted (in 1964) to accommodate 13 TBMs, 2 HUP-2s or 15 F4Us and 2 HUP-2.
Manning
As ''Colossus'', she carried 854 crew, plus 222
Fleet Air Arm
The Fleet Air Arm (FAA) is one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy and is responsible for the delivery of naval air power both from land and at sea. The Fleet Air Arm operates the F-35 Lightning II for maritime strike, the AW159 Wil ...
personnel in the air group.
In French service, she carried 42 officers, 145 petty officers, and 516 sailors in peacetime. Her war complement was 60 officers, 171 petty officers, and 613 sailors.
Operational history
Royal Navy
After working up ''Colossus'' left
Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
on 12 March 1945 for the Far East. She carried 24
Vought Corsair IV fighters from 1846 Naval Air Squadron, and 18
Fairey Barracuda II torpedo bombers from
827 NAS. She arrived at
Colombo
Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo m ...
,
Ceylon, on 13 June 1945, sailing on to Sydney, Australia, where she arrived the following month. Here, her 20 mm Oerlikon guns were replaced by 40 mm Bofors guns. In August she became the flagship of Rear Admiral
Cecil Harcourt
Admiral Sir Cecil Halliday Jepson Harcourt (translated to Chinese as zh , t= 夏 慤 , j=haa6 kok3 , labels=no; 11 April 1892 – 19 December 1959) was a British naval officer. He was the ''de facto'' governor of Hong Kong as commander-in-chi ...
, commanding the
11th Aircraft Carrier Squadron
The British 11th Aircraft Carrier Squadron also called Eleventh Aircraft Carrier Squadron was a military formation of aircraft carriers of the Royal Navy from 1 March 1945 to December 1945.
History
The 11th Aircraft Carrier Squadron was establis ...
(''Colossus'', , , and ). This force was sent to re-occupy Hong Kong. ''Colossus'' also headed a task force to occupy Shanghai, together with the
cruisers and and five destroyers.
In December 1945, ''Colossus'' transported released Dutch prisoners of war to Colombo. From 17 January to 26 March 1946, ''Colossus'' was refitted and repaired at
Cape Town
Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...
in the Selborne drydock at Simonstown.
French Navy
In August 1946 ''Colossus'' was loaned to France and renamed ''Arromanches'', after the
French commune of the same name, which was the site of the British
D-Day landings. In 1948, ''Arromanches'' participated in the
First Indochina War
The First Indochina War (generally known as the Indochina War in France, and as the Anti-French Resistance War in Vietnam) began in French Indochina from 19 December 1946 to 20 July 1954 between France and Việt Minh (Democratic Republic of Vi ...
for three months. She returned to France in 1949.
In 1951, France purchased the ship. She was again deployed to
Indochina
Mainland Southeast Asia, also known as the Indochinese Peninsula or Indochina, is the continental portion of Southeast Asia. It lies east of the Indian subcontinent and south of Mainland China and is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the west an ...
in 1951–52, in 1952-53 and 1953–54.
In 1956, ''Arromanches'' was deployed to the eastern
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ...
during the
Suez Crisis. On 3 November, 18
F4U Corsair
The Vought F4U Corsair is an American fighter aircraft which saw service primarily in World War II and the Korean War. Designed and initially manufactured by Chance Vought, the Corsair was soon in great demand; additional production contracts ...
s from ''Arromanches'' and bombed
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...
ian airfields around
Cairo
Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the Capital city, capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, List of ...
.
Arromanches
In 1957–58 ''Arromanches'' was reconstructed with a four-degree angled flight deck, a mirror landing sight
and with other modifications for anti-submarine warfare
Anti-submarine warfare (ASW, or in older form A/S) is a branch of underwater warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, submarines, or other platforms, to find, track, and deter, damage, or destroy enemy submarines. Such operations are t ...
, including operation of Breguet Alizé Breguet or Bréguet may refer to:
* Breguet (watch), watch manufacturer
**Abraham-Louis Breguet (1747–1823), Swiss watchmaker
**Louis-François-Clement Breguet (1804–1883), French physicist, watchmaker, electrical and telegraph work
* Bréguet ...
ASW aircraft. She was also equipped for training operations. In 1959 she returned once again to the Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by t ...
.
In 1968 ''Arromanches'' was converted to a helicopter carrier for the French Marines French Marines may refer to any of the following:
Historical
* Troupes de la marine, the corps maintained by the French Navy to protect its ships
** Compagnies Franches de la Marine, the above which was renamed and retrained serve as amphibious t ...
, with up to 24 helicopters on board. This ended her role as a training carrier.
''Arromanches'' was decommissioned on 22 January 1974, and in 1978 broken up at Toulon
Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...
, a place of importance for both the first ''Colossus'' in 1793, and the last in 1978.
See also
* List of aircraft carriers
This list of aircraft carriers contains aircraft carriers listed alphabetically by name. An aircraft carrier is a warship with a full-length flight deck and facilities for carrying, arming, deploying, and recovering aircraft, that serves a ...
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
Further reading
*
External links
Maritimquest HMS ''Colossus'' photo gallery
*
on NetMarine.net
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arromanches (R95)
Colossus
Colossus, Colossos, or the plural Colossi or Colossuses, may refer to:
Statues
* Any exceptionally large statue
** List of tallest statues
** :Colossal statues
* ''Colossus of Barletta'', a bronze statue of an unidentified Roman emperor
* ''Col ...
Ships built in Barrow-in-Furness
1943 ships
World War II aircraft carriers of the United Kingdom
Colossus-class aircraft carriers of the French Navy
Cold War aircraft carriers of France
Aircraft carriers of the French Navy