HMS Crane (U23)

HMS ''Crane'' was a modified sloop of the Royal Navy. She was laid down by William Denny and Brothers, Dumbarton on 13 June 1941, launched on 9 November 1942 and commissioned on 10 May 1943, with the pennant number U23. The saw active service during the Second World War, performing convoy escort roles in the Atlantic initially before supporting the Normandy landings. In the final months of the war, ''Crane'' joined the British Pacific Fleet with whom the vessel saw service during the Battle of Okinawa. Post war, ''Crane'' remained in south-east Asia and took part in hostilities during the Korean War. She was redeployed to the Middle East during the Suez Crisis before returning to Asia for service during the Malayan Emergency. ''Crane'' was withdrawn from service in the early 1960s and scrapped in 1965.

Design

''Crane'' was one of two Modified ''Black Swan''-class sloops ordered by the Admiralty on 9 January 1941. The Modified ''Black Swan''s were an improved version of the pre-war ''Black Swan''-class sloops, with greater beam, allowing a heavier close-in anti-aircraft armament to be accommodated.

''Crane'' was long overall and between perpendiculars, with a beam of and a draught of at deep load. Displacement of the Modified ''Black Swan''s was standard and deep load depending on the armament and equipment fitted. Two Admiralty three-drum water-tube boilers provided steam to Parsons geared steam turbines which drove two shafts. The machinery was rated at , giving a speed of .

The ship's main gun armament (as fitted to all the Modified ''Black Swan''s) consisted of three twin QF Mk XVI guns, in dual purpose mounts, capable of both anti-ship and anti-aircraft use. ''Crane'' completed with a close-in anti-aircraft armament of 4 twin and 2 single Oerlikon 20 mm cannon. Anti-submarine armament consisted of eight depth charge throwers and two rails, with 110 depth charges carried.

''Crane''s close-in armament was modified during the war to 2 twin Bofors 40 mm guns and 1 twin and two single Oerlikon 20 mm cannon. Post-war, the ship's remaining 20 mm guns were replaced by 4 single Bofors guns, while a split Hedgehog anti submarine mortar was fitted.

Construction and career

HMS ''Crane'' was laid down at William Denny and Brothers' Dumbarton shipyard on 13 June 1941 and was launched on 9 November 1942 and was completed on 10 May 1943, with the pennant number U23.

After commissioning she joined the 7th Escort Group based at Greenock in Scotland, with other members including sister ships and and to be later joined by and . Duties included the escort and support of convoys in the North Atlantic and to Gibraltar. In July 1943, ''Crane'' took part in Operation Husky, the Anglo-American invasion of Sicily, escorting an assault convoy from Britain to the Mediterranean from 28 June to 7 July, and then a second assault convoy to the beaches on 13 July. In August 1943, in order to avoid attacks by aircraft of RAF Coastal Command in the Bay of Biscay, German U-boats on course for the north Atlantic started to hug the coast of France and Northern Spain. As a response, the Royal Navy deployed Escort groups to patrol off Cape Finisterre to stop the Germans from using this route, but German air attacks forced the patrols to move further west, where they were less effective. ''Crane'' was briefly deployed in one of these groups in September 1943, but saw no success.

On 13 November 1943 Convoy MKS 30 left Gibraltar from Britain, joining up with Convoy SL 139, Britain-bound from West Africa the next day, with the 7th Escort Group, including ''Crane'', ordered to reinforce the convoy, while the Germans formed three patrol lines of submarines to attack the convoy. On 18 December, ''Crane'' and ''Chanticleer'' attacked the submarine , with ''U-515'' firing a T5 acoustic homing torpedo which hit and damaged ''Chanticleer'', which had to be towed to port in the Azores. ''Crane'' continued to attack ''U-515'' with depth charges for 10 hours, damaging the submarine and driving ''U-515'' off. German attacks on the convoy continued, and on 21 November 1943 ''Crane'' and the frigate sank with depth charges. There were no survivors from the submarine.

''Crane'' and ''Cygnet'' depth charged and sank the German submarine on 8 April 1944 in the North Atlantic northwest of Cape Finisterre. In May 1944, the 7th Escort Group, including ''Crane'' she was transferred to the English Channel to support the Allies planned Normandy landings for Operation Neptune. On 6 June ''Crane'' formed part of the escort of an assault convoy to Gold Beach. In August 1944, she was released from support duties in the Channel and sent for refit at Hull, but while on passage to Hull, collided with the merchant steamer , sustaining structural damage. The refit and repairs continued until November 1944.

At the end of the work, she was transferred for service with the British Pacific Fleet, arriving in Sydney on 17 February 1945 and joining the fleet at Manus Island on 4 March 1945. ''Crane'' was employed in escorting the replenishment ships of the fleet train supporting the carriers of the fleet, supporting operations against Japanese airbases during the Battle of Okinawa in March–May 1945 She continued to protect replenishment ships in support of the British Pacific fleet until the end of the war, ''Crane'' was present in Tokyo Bay on 2 September 1945 during the signing of Japan's surrender. She was deployed on a Hong Kong-based patrol until refitted at Brisbane, Australia from October 1945 to January 1946.

Following completion of the refit, the ship was assigned to the 3rd Frigate Flotilla. She collided with the destroyer on 23 April 1946, and on 1 July 1946, she set out on her return journey to Britain. Upon arrival in England, she was reduced to reserve status in Harwich, transferring to the Chatham Reserve Fleet in 1948.

Following a refit during which Hedgehog was fitted and the ship's anti-aircraft outfit upgraded, ''Crane'' returned to active service in August 1951, joining the 3rd Frigate Squadron in the Far East. She was the leader of the squadron, and served on blockade and bombardment duties off the west coast of Korea during the Korean War, firing 1756 rounds of 4-inch ammunition during the war. ''Crane'' was refitted in Hong Kong in February 1952. On 27 March 1952, ''Crane'' was hit by a shell from a North Korean shore battery off He Do Island. ''Crane'' was not seriously damaged and suffered no casualties.

In 1956 she was deployed to the Red Sea during the Suez Crisis. While there, she was attacked by Israeli Air Force fighter aircraft after being mistaken for an Egyptian warship. ''Crane'' was hit by rocket fire from the aircraft and small bombs which exploded around the stern, spraying the ship with shrapnel. The attack inflicted widespread damage on the hull, damaging two antiaircraft guns, destroying a depth charge thrower, and cutting various electrical circuits and water mains, but damage was limited as the rockets were impact-fused and did not penetrate deep into the ship's hull. The ship's fighting efficiency was only slightly impaired. Three crewmen were wounded in the attack. ''Crane'' claimed to have shot down one of the Israeli fighters. She was then refitted at Singapore, being modernised and having her accommodation improved, returning to service in January 1958. Duties included shelling Malayan National Liberation Army targets in South Malaya during the Malayan Emergency as well as fishery protection patrols off Hong Kong and training. She continued to serve in the Far East until 1962, the last of her class in service with the Royal Navy.

The ship was paid off at the end of 1962 at Portsmouth, and was transferred to BISCO for disposal in 1965, being scrapped at the Queenborough, Kent yard of Lacmots Ltd from March 1965.

Legacy

The ship bell is placed in the foyer of Tower Hamlets Town Hall. The ship was adopted by the old Metropolitan Borough of Bethnal Green during the Second World War and the connection with the ship and its crew was maintained after the borough of Bethnal Green merged with neighbours to form the new London Borough of Tower Hamlets in 1965.

References

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Further reading

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Crane
Black Swan-class sloops
World War II sloops of the United Kingdom
Sloops of the United Kingdom
Ships built on the River Clyde
1942 ships