HMS ''Rye'' (J76) was a built for the
Royal Navy during the Second World War.
Design and description
The ''Bangor'' class was designed as a small minesweeper that could be easily built in large numbers by civilian shipyards; as
steam turbine
A steam turbine is a machine that extracts thermal energy from pressurized steam and uses it to do mechanical work on a rotating output shaft. Its modern manifestation was invented by Charles Parsons in 1884. Fabrication of a modern steam turbin ...
s were difficult to manufacture, the ships were designed to accept a wide variety of engines. ''Rye'' displaced at
standard load and at
deep load. The ship had an
overall length of , a
beam
Beam may refer to:
Streams of particles or energy
*Light beam, or beam of light, a directional projection of light energy
**Laser beam
*Particle beam, a stream of charged or neutral particles
**Charged particle beam, a spatially localized grou ...
of and a
draught of .
[Lenton, pp. 253–54] The ship's complement consisted of 60 officers and
ratings.
[Chesneau, p. 64]
She was powered by two
Parsons
Parsons may refer to:
Places
In the United States:
* Parsons, Kansas, a city
* Parsons, Missouri, an unincorporated community
* Parsons, Tennessee, a city
* Parsons, West Virginia, a town
* Camp Parsons, a Boy Scout camp in the state of Washingto ...
geared steam turbines, each driving one shaft, using steam provided by two
Admiralty three-drum boiler
Three-drum boilers are a class of water-tube boiler used to generate steam, typically to power ships. They are compact and of high evaporative power, factors that encourage this use. Other boiler designs may be more efficient, although bulkier, an ...
s. The engines produced a total of and gave a maximum speed of . ''Rye'' carried a maximum of of
fuel oil
Fuel oil is any of various fractions obtained from the distillation of petroleum (crude oil). Such oils include distillates (the lighter fractions) and residues (the heavier fractions). Fuel oils include heavy fuel oil, marine fuel oil (MFO), bun ...
that gave her a range of at .
[Lenton, p. 254]
The turbine-powered ''Bangor''s were armed with a
12-pounder anti-aircraft gun
Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes surface based, ...
and a single
QF 2-pounder (4 cm) AA gun. In some ships the 2-pounder was replaced a single or twin
20 mm Oerlikon
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 emplo ...
AA gun, while most ships were fitted with four additional single Oerlikon mounts over the course of the war.
[ For escort work, her minesweeping gear could be exchanged for around 40 ]depth charge
A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) weapon. It is intended to destroy a submarine by being dropped into the water nearby and detonating, subjecting the target to a powerful and destructive Shock factor, hydraulic shock. Most depth ...
s.[
]
Construction and career
''Rye'' was built by the Ailsa Shipbuilding Company, Ailsa Shipbuilding Co. Ltd. in Troon, Scotland and commissioned in 1941. Her pennant number was J 76. ''Rye'' served in the Mediterranean Sea based in Malta as part of the 14th/17th Minesweeper Flotilla. She took part in the Malta Convoys, notably Operation Harpoon (1942), Operation Harpoon during which she rescued 84 survivors from the SS ''Chant'', and in Operation Pedestal during which she was one of the ships that rescued the SS Ohio, SS ''Ohio''. The ''Rye''s captain, John Andrew Pearson (naval officer), Iain Pearson, was awarded a bar to his Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom), DSC for service during the Malta Convoys.
After the Mediterranean, ''Rye'' returned to Home waters and served with the 14th M/S Flotilla based in Plymouth. She was part of Operation Neptune, the naval component of Operation Overlord (D-Day). The flotilla participated in minesweeping operations from 5–30 June, initially clearing paths through the German minefields to the invasion beaches, and subsequently clearing wider areas to allow transport and supply vessels to operate in safety.
Postwar
''Rye'' was decommissioned on 24 August 1948. She was scrapped at Purfleet in Essex in September 1948. Her White Ensign, ensign is laid up in St Mary's parish church in the town of Rye, East Sussex, Rye, East Sussex.
The Rye and District Sea Cadet Corps (United Kingdom), Sea Cadets maintain the traditions of HMS ''Rye''.
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
External links
HMS Rye (J 76)
- ''uboat.net''
Operation Harpoon, 15 June 1942
HMS Rye record at Clydebuilt Ships Database
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rye (J76)
Bangor-class minesweepers of the Royal Navy
Ships built on the River Clyde
1940 ships
World War II minesweepers of the United Kingdom