The T 47 class or ''Surcouf'' class were the first

destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoeuvrable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against powerful short range attackers. They were originally developed in ...

s built for 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 ...

after the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Twelve ships were built between 1955 and 1957. The ships were modernised in the 1960s and decommissioned in the 1980s, when they were replaced by the and s. The class was authorised in 1949 and were designed as

aircraft carrier An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and facilities for carrying, arming, deploying, and recovering aircraft. Typically, it is the capital ship of a fleet, as it allows a ...

escort vessels. Three were modified to become

flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically the fi ...

s, four became

anti-air 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, ...

guided missile destroyer A guided-missile destroyer (DDG) is a destroyer whose primary armament is guided missiles so they can provide anti-aircraft warfare screening for the fleet. The NATO standard designation for these vessels is DDG, while destroyers who have a prim ...

s and five became

anti-submarine An anti-submarine weapon (ASW) is any one of a number of devices that are intended to act against a submarine and its crew, to destroy (sink) the vessel or reduce its capability as a weapon of war. In its simplest sense, an anti-submarine weapo ...

destroyers. One member of the class survives, as a

museum ship A museum ship, also called a memorial ship, is a ship that has been preserved and converted into a museum open to the public for educational or memorial purposes. Some are also used for training and recruitment purposes, mostly for the small numb ...

Nantes Nantes (, , ; Gallo: or ; ) is a city in Loire-Atlantique on the Loire, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the sixth largest in France, with a population of 314,138 in Nantes proper and a metropolitan area of nearly 1 million inhabita ...

Design and description

These ships were based on the wartime , but were enlarged and had a dual purpose armament. The ships were designed as

Squadron Squadron may refer to: * Squadron (army), a military unit of cavalry, tanks, or equivalent subdivided into troops or tank companies * Squadron (aviation), a military unit that consists of three or four flights with a total of 12 to 24 aircraft, ...

escorts (''Escorteur d'escadre'') rather than for independent operations, therefore they had a slower speed than their predecessors. As built, the vessels had

standard displacement The displacement or displacement tonnage of a ship is its weight. As the term indicates, it is measured indirectly, using Archimedes' principle, by first calculating the volume of water displaced by the ship, then converting that value into wei ...

of and at full load. They measured

long overall __NOTOC__ Length overall (LOA, o/a, o.a. or oa) is the maximum length of a vessel's hull measured parallel to the waterline. This length is important while docking the ship. It is the most commonly used way of expressing the size of a ship, an ...

with 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 ...

and a draught of . They were propelled by Rateau

geared 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 turning two

shafts ''Shafts'' was an English feminist magazine produced by Margaret Sibthorp from 1892 until 1899. Initially published weekly and priced at one penny, its themes included votes for women, women's education, and radical attitudes towards vivisection, ...

rated at , powered by four boilers raising steam at . They had a maximum speed of and a range of at . They carried 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 ...

.Gardiner, Chumbley & Budzbon (1995), p. 110.Blackman (1953), p. 201. The class was initially designed for fleet

anti-aircraft warfare 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-to-air m ...

(AA). The main guns were the dual-purpose French-designed Model 1948 /54 calibre gun, which enabled them to use standard U.S. ammunition. The main armament was mounted in three twin turrets. The secondary armament was composed of 57mm/60 modèle 1951 guns in three twin turrets and four single-mounted

20 mm Oerlikon 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 emplo ...

. Their heavy AA armament was chosen due to the lack of pre-war vessels with this ability. Originally, the ships did not have much

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) armament included in the design beyond

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 ...

racks. The design initially included a single quadruple mount of

torpedo tube A torpedo tube is a cylindrical device for launching torpedoes. There are two main types of torpedo tube: underwater tubes fitted to submarines and some surface ships, and deck-mounted units (also referred to as torpedo launchers) installed aboa ...

s mounted between the aft 127 mm and 57 mm gun mounts. This was changed to four triple banks of 550 mm torpedo tubes with two placed along either side of the ship. These forward pair were designed to fire L3 ASW homing

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, su ...

es and the aft pair, either L3 torpedoes or K2 anti-ship torpedoes. The ships were equipped with French

sonar Sonar (sound navigation and ranging or sonic navigation and ranging) is a technique that uses sound propagation (usually underwater, as in submarine navigation) to navigation, navigate, measure distances (ranging), communicate with or detect o ...

s DUBV 1 and DUBA 1 mounted on the hull. They were intended to have a British-pattern

lattice mast Lattice masts, or cage masts, or basket masts, are a type of observation mast common on United States Navy major warships in the early 20th century. They are a type of hyperboloid structure, whose weight-saving design was invented by the Russian ...

, but had twin tripods with lattice installed carrying a DRBV 11 surface and air search

radar Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance (''ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, w ...

. They also carried DRBV 20A and DRBC 11 and DRBC 30 radars. The main armament was guided by a single fire control director, with a second slotted aft for the 57 mm guns. The ships had a complement of 347. During the 1960s the entire class were modernised and modified as either

flotilla A flotilla (from Spanish, meaning a small ''flota'' (fleet) of ships), or naval flotilla, is a formation of small warships that may be part of a larger fleet. Composition A flotilla is usually composed of a homogeneous group of the same class ...

s, anti-aircraft

guided missile In military terminology, a missile is a guided airborne ranged weapon capable of self-propelled flight usually by a jet engine or rocket motor. Missiles are thus also called guided missiles or guided rockets (when a previously unguided rocket ...

or anti-submarine destroyers.

Flagships

Three ships – ''Surcouf'', ''Cassard'', and ''Chevalier Paul'' – were converted into flotilla flagships (''conducteurs de flottilles'') between 1960 and 1962. One 57 mm gun turret, two triple torpedo launchers and two 20 mm guns were removed in order to enlarge the superstructure to accommodate an admiral, his staff, and additional communications equipment. They were modified as replacements for two

light cruiser A light cruiser is a type of small or medium-sized warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light armored cruiser", describing a small ship that carried armor in the same way as an armored cruiser: a protective belt and deck. Prior to thi ...

s which had been withdrawn from service. In 1962, ''Cassard'' was used for helicopter experiments and fitted with a

flight deck The flight deck of an aircraft carrier is the surface from which its aircraft take off and land, essentially a miniature airfield at sea. On smaller naval ships which do not have aviation as a primary mission, the landing area for helicopters ...

AAW modernisation

Four ships – ''Bouvet'', ''Kersaint'', ''Dupetit-Thouars'' and ''Du Chayla'' – were modernised as anti-aircraft guided missile destroyers in 1962–1965. They were given one

Tartar Tartar may refer to: Places * Tartar (river), a river in Azerbaijan * Tartar, Switzerland, a village in the Grisons * Tərtər, capital of Tartar District, Azerbaijan * Tartar District, Azerbaijan * Tartar Island, South Shetland Islands, Ant ...

missile launcher, retained their three twin turrets of 57 mm guns. They were also given one Model 1972 sextuple

anti-submarine mortar Anti-submarine mortars are artillery pieces deployed on ships for the purpose of sinking submarines by a direct hit with a small explosive charge. They are often larger versions of the mortar used by infantry and fire a projectile in relatively t ...

. The missile launcher replaced the aft 127 mm turrets and a raised deckhouse was installed between the aft 57 mm guns where SPG-51 tracker-illuminators were situated. The Model 1972 mortar replaced the forward 127 mm turret and the fire control director for the main armament was removed. The DRBC 31 radar was moved to the fire control director's former spot atop the

bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...

and the DRBV 11 radar was replaced by an SPS-39A 3D model, later upgraded to the B model. The complement was reduced to 278, comprising 17 officers and 261 ratings.Moore (1974), p. 116. Further upgrades including receiving a SENIT 2 action information centre within the bridge superstructure towards the aft and in 1979, two ships, ''Dupetit-Thouars'' and ''Du Chayla'', had their DRBV 11 air search radar exchanged with a DRBV 22 system. Only the forward set of torpedo tubes were kept.

ASW modernisation

Five ships – ''D'Estrées'', ''Maillé-Brézé'', ''Vauquelin'', ''Casabianca'' and ''Guépratte'' – were modernised as anti-submarine destroyers in 1968–1970. ''D'Estrées'' had served as the trial vessel for French

variable depth sonar A towed array sonar is a system of hydrophones towed behind a submarine or a surface ship on a cable. Trailing the hydrophones behind the vessel, on a cable that can be kilometers long, keeps the array's sensors away from the ship's own noise sour ...

in the early 1960s. The armament was modified to two Mod 53 guns, one Mod 1972 375 mm sextuple anti-submarine rocket launcher, one

Malafon Malafon (MArine LAtécoère FONds) was a French ship-launched anti-submarine missile system. Developed in the 1950s and 1960s, the weapon was intended to take advantage of the greater detection ranges possible with towed sonar arrays. The missil ...

anti-submarine missile An anti-submarine missile is a standoff anti-submarine weapon. Often a variant of anti-ship missile designs, an anti-submarine systems typically use a jet or rocket engine, to deliver an explosive warhead aimed directly at a submarine, a depth ch ...

launcher and two 20 mm guns. The Malafon system was installed aft with the

magazine A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combinatio ...

located directly in front of it. The single-mounted 100 mm guns were located fore and aft and were controlled by a DRBC 32A fire control director. The 375 mm ASW mortar was situated in the "B" position forward. The ships were given DRBV 22A air search radar situated atop the tripod mast with the DRBV 50 air/surface radar located below it. The five destroyers were had DUBV 23 and DUBV 43 sonars installed, with the new sonars requiring that the bow be reconfigured. Those that were modernised this way received a

clipper bow The bow () is the forward part of the hull of a ship or boat, the point that is usually most forward when the vessel is underway. The aft end of the boat is the stern. Prow may be used as a synonym for bow or it may mean the forward-most part ...

and a stern anchor, which increased the overall length to . The complement was reduced to 260.

Ships

Service history

One ship was authorised under the 1949 building programme, one under the 1950, four in 1951 and eight in 1952. ''Bouvet'', ''Kersaint'', ''Dupetit-Thouars'' and ''Du Chayla'' all served with the Atlantic Squadron for their entire careers. ''Bouvet'' was taken out of service in 1982 and the ship's missile system was removed and installed on the new . ''Kersaint'' was removed from service in 1983 and its missile system was installed aboard . The remaining two vessels remained in service until the ''Cassard'' class entered service in 1991. ''Kersaint''s hull was used for testing shipboard fires after the

Falklands War The Falklands War ( es, link=no, Guerra de las Malvinas) was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and its territorial de ...

. ''D'Estrées'', ''Maillé-Brézé'', ''Vauquelin'', ''Casabianca'' and ''Guépratte'' remained in service until the mid-1980s when they were replaced with the s. ''D'Estrées'' and ''Guépratte'' were assigned to the Mediterranean Squadron while the other three served with the Atlantic Squadron. After being taken out of service in 1988, ''Maillé-Brézé'' was made a

Notes

Bibliography

* * * *

External links

ex-''Bouvet'' D624 waiting scrapping May 2012 on ShipSpotting.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:T 47-class Destroyer Destroyer classes Ship classes of the French Navy