HMS ''Largo Bay'' was a anti-aircraft frigate of the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

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 ...

, named for Largo Bay in Fife. The ship was originally ordered from William Pickersgill & Sons Ltd. of

Southwick, Sunderland Southwick is a former village and now a suburb on the north banks of the River Wear in the city of Sunderland in the county of Tyne and Wear, historically in County Durham. From 1894 to 1928, Southwick was administered by the Southwick-on-Wear Ur ...

on 25 January 1943 as the ''Loch Foin'', and laid down on 8 February 1944. However, the contract was then changed, and the ship was completed to a revised design as a Bay-class anti-aircraft frigate, launched on 3 October 1944, and commissioned on 26 January 1946.

Service history

After

sea trial A sea trial is the testing phase of a watercraft (including boats, ships, and submarines). It is also referred to as a " shakedown cruise" by many naval personnel. It is usually the last phase of construction and takes place on open water, and ...

s, ''Largo Bay'' sailed for the Mediterranean, joining the Escort Flotilla at

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

on 23 February 1946. She was first deployed in the eastern Mediterranean for the interception of merchant ships carrying illegal Jewish immigrants to Palestine. In March she returned to Malta for Flotilla duties. In August 1946 she returned to the UK to decommission and was placed into Plymouth Reserve Fleet. In 1953 she took part in the

Fleet Review A fleet review or naval review is an event where a gathering of ships from a particular navy is paraded and reviewed by an incumbent head of state and/or other official civilian and military dignitaries. A number of national navies continue to ...

to celebrate the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.Souvenir Programme, ''Coronation Review of the Fleet, Spithead, 15th June 1953'', HMSO, Gale and Polden ''Largo Bay'' was placed on the Disposal List in 1958 and sold to the British Iron & Steel Corporation (BISCO) for demolition by

Thos. W. Ward Thos. W. Ward Ltd was a Sheffield, Yorkshire, steel, engineering and cement business, which began as coal and coke merchants. It expanded into recycling metal for Sheffield's steel industry, and then the supply and manufacture of machinery. I ...

Inverkeithing Inverkeithing ( ; gd, Inbhir Chèitinn) is a port town and parish, in Fife, Scotland, on the Firth of Forth. A town of ancient origin, Inverkeithing was given royal burgh status during the reign of Malcolm IV in the 12th century. It was an imp ...

. She was towed to the breaker's yard, arriving on 11 July 1959.

References

Publications

1944 ships Bay-class frigates {{UK-frigate-stub