HMS Chaser (D32)

For other ships with the same name, see USS Breton.

HMS Chaser in 1945
History
United States
Name	USS Breton
Builder	Ingalls Shipbuilding
Laid down	28 June 1941
Launched	15 February 1943
Fate	Transferred to Royal Navy
United Kingdom
Name	HMS Chaser
Commissioned	9 April 1943
Stricken	1946
Fate	Sold as a merchant ship; scrapped between 1972 and 1973
General characteristics
Class and type	Template:Sclass- (US) Template:Sclass- (UK)
Displacement	14,400 tons
Length	491 ft 6 in (149.81 m)
Beam	105 ft (32 m)
Draught	26 ft (7.9 m)
Propulsion	Steam turbines, 1 shaft, 8,500 shp (6,300 kW)
Speed	18 knots (33 km/h)
Complement	646
Armament	2 × 4"/50, 5"/38 or 5"/51 guns 8 × 40 mm AA guns 20 × 20 mm AA guns
Aircraft carried	28 aircraft
Service record
Operations:	Battle of the Atlantic, Arctic convoys (1943-45)
Victories:	Sank U-472, U-366, U-973 (1944)

USS Breton (CVE-10) (originally AVG-10 then later ACV-10) was a Template:Sclass- that served during World War II as the British Template:Sclass- HMS Chaser (D32).

She was laid down on 28 June 1941 under Maritime Commission contract at Pascagoula, Mississippi by Ingalls Shipbuilding. The ship was commissioned by the United States Navy on 9 April 1943 and simultaneously transferred via the Lend-Lease program to the United Kingdom. That same day, the ship was renamed HMS Chaser and commissioned by the Royal Navy. Chaser was assigned to convoy escort on Arctic routes, assisting in the sinking of U-472 on 4 March 1944 and U-366 and U-973 in the next two days.

From March to August 1945 was part of the British Pacific Fleet attached to the 30th Aircraft Carrier Squadron.

The carrier was returned to United States' custody 12 May 1946 and sold into merchant service 20 December 1946 as Aagtekerk. The ship was renamed E Yung in 1967.

The ship had a serious fire in #2 hold on 3 December 1972 and was scrapped at Kaohsiung, Taiwan soon thereafter.

Design and description

There were eight Attacker class escort carriers in service with the Royal Navy during the Second World War. They were built between 1941 and 1942 by Ingalls Shipbuilding and Western Pipe & Steel shipyards in the United States, both building four ships each.

The ships had a complement of 646 men and crew accommodation was different from the normal Royal Navy's arrangements. The separate messes no longer had to prepare their own food, as everything was cooked in the galley and served cafeteria style in a central dining area. They were also equipped with a modern laundry and a barber shop. The traditional hammocks were replaced by three tier bunk beds, eighteen to a cabin which were hinged and could be tied up to provide extra space when not in use.

The ships dimensions were; an overall length of 492.25 feet (150.04 m), a beam of 69.5 feet (21.2 m) and a height of 23.25 ft (7.09 m). They had a displacement of 11,420 long tons (11,600 t) at deep load. Propulsion was provided by four diesel engines connected to one shaft giving 8,500 brake horsepower (BHP), which could propel the ship at 17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph).

Aircraft facilities were a small combined bridge–flight control on the starboard side and above the 450 feet (140 m) x 120 feet (37 m) flight deck, two aircraft lifts 42 feet (13 m) by 34 feet (10 m), and nine arrestor wires. Aircraft could be housed in the 260 feet (79 m) by 62 feet (19 m) hangar below the flight deck. Armament comprised two 4"/50, 5"/38 or 5"/51 in single mounts, eight 40 mm anti-aircraft gun in twin mounts and twenty-one 20 mm anti-aircraft cannons in single or twin mounts. They had the capacity for up to eighteen aircraft which could be a mixture of Grumman Martlet, Hawker Sea Hurricane, Vought F4U Corsair fighter aircraft and Fairey Swordfish or Grumman Avenger anti-submarine aircraft.

Bibliography

• Cocker, Maurice (2008). Aircraft-Carrying Ships of the Royal Navy. Stroud, Gloucestershire: The History Press. ISBN 978-0-7524-4633-2.
• Poolman, Kenneth (1972). Escort Carrier 1941–1945. London: Ian Allen. ISBN 0-7110-0273-8.