Banff class sloop
Encyclopedia
The Banff-class sloops were a group of ten ships of the Royal Navy
. Built as United States Coast Guard
Lake-class cutters, in 1941 these ships were loaned to the Royal Navy
as anti-submarine warfare
escorts. The transfers took place at the Brooklyn Navy Yard
, where HMS Malaya
was under repair after being torpedoed by U-106. The sloops were manned for transport to England by personnel from the damaged battleship
. The sloops were initially used to escort eastern Atlantic trade convoys between England
and Sierra Leone
, and one was sunk while so employed. The nine surviving sloops were assigned to Operation Torch
where two were destroyed attacking Oran
in Operation Reservist
. The remaining seven escorted Mediterranean convoys in support of the North African invasion and saw varied employment in the Atlantic until assigned to the Kilindini Escort Force in late 1943 and early 1944. They stayed in the Indian Ocean
for the remainder of the war escorting trade convoys in the Arabian Sea
, and five served in the Bay of Bengal
supporting Operation Dracula
and Operation Zipper
in the last months of conflict with Japan. Six were returned to the United States after the conclusion of hostilities; and one, disabled by mechanical failure, was scrapped overseas.
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
. Built as United States Coast Guard
United States Coast Guard
The United States Coast Guard is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency...
Lake-class cutters, in 1941 these ships were loaned to the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
as anti-submarine warfare
Anti-submarine warfare
Anti-submarine warfare is a branch of naval warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, or other submarines to find, track and deter, damage or destroy enemy submarines....
escorts. The transfers took place at the Brooklyn Navy Yard
Brooklyn Navy Yard
The United States Navy Yard, New York–better known as the Brooklyn Navy Yard or the New York Naval Shipyard –was an American shipyard located in Brooklyn, northeast of the Battery on the East River in Wallabout Basin, a semicircular bend of the river across from Corlear's Hook in Manhattan...
, where HMS Malaya
HMS Malaya (1915)
HMS Malaya was a Queen Elizabeth class battleship of the British Royal Navy, built by Sir W. G. Armstrong Whitworth and Company at High Walker and launched in March 1915...
was under repair after being torpedoed by U-106. The sloops were manned for transport to England by personnel from the damaged battleship
Battleship
A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of heavy caliber guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers and destroyers. As the largest armed ships in a fleet, battleships were used to attain command of the sea and represented the apex of a...
. The sloops were initially used to escort eastern Atlantic trade convoys between England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
, and one was sunk while so employed. The nine surviving sloops were assigned to Operation Torch
Operation Torch
Operation Torch was the British-American invasion of French North Africa in World War II during the North African Campaign, started on 8 November 1942....
where two were destroyed attacking Oran
Oran
Oran is a major city on the northwestern Mediterranean coast of Algeria, and the second largest city of the country.It is the capital of the Oran Province . The city has a population of 759,645 , while the metropolitan area has a population of approximately 1,500,000, making it the second largest...
in Operation Reservist
Operation Reservist
Operation Reservist was an Allied military operation during World War II. Part of Operation Torch , it was an attempted landing of troops directly into the harbour at Oran....
. The remaining seven escorted Mediterranean convoys in support of the North African invasion and saw varied employment in the Atlantic until assigned to the Kilindini Escort Force in late 1943 and early 1944. They stayed in the Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
for the remainder of the war escorting trade convoys in the Arabian Sea
Arabian Sea
The Arabian Sea is a region of the Indian Ocean bounded on the east by India, on the north by Pakistan and Iran, on the west by the Arabian Peninsula, on the south, approximately, by a line between Cape Guardafui in northeastern Somalia and Kanyakumari in India...
, and five served in the Bay of Bengal
Bay of Bengal
The Bay of Bengal , the largest bay in the world, forms the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean. It resembles a triangle in shape, and is bordered mostly by the Eastern Coast of India, southern coast of Bangladesh and Sri Lanka to the west and Burma and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to the...
supporting Operation Dracula
Operation Dracula
During World War II, Operation Dracula was the name given to an airborne and amphibious attack on Rangoon by British and Indian forces, part of the Burma Campaign. When it was launched, the Imperial Japanese Army had already abandoned the city.-Background:...
and Operation Zipper
Operation Zipper
During the Second World War, Operation Zipper was a British plan to capture either Port Swettenham or Port Dickson, Malaya as staging areas for the recapture of Singapore. However, due to the end of the war in the Pacific, it was never fully executed. Some of the proposed landings on Penang went...
in the last months of conflict with Japan. Six were returned to the United States after the conclusion of hostilities; and one, disabled by mechanical failure, was scrapped overseas.
Ships
- USCGC Chelan
- Originally cutter # 45. She was named for Lake ChelanLake ChelanLake Chelan is a narrow, 55-mile-long lake in Chelan County, northern Washington state, U.S. It is the largest natural lake in Washington state...
, built by Bethlehem ShipbuildingBethlehem ShipbuildingBethlehem Sparrows Point Shipyard was founded in 1887 as Maryland Steel in Sparrows Point, Maryland. It was acquired by Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation in 1916 and renamed Bethlehem Sparrows Point Shipyard. The shipyard was sold in 1997 to Baltimore Marine Industries Inc....
Quincy, MassachusettsQuincy, MassachusettsQuincy is a city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Its nicknames are "City of Presidents", "City of Legends", and "Birthplace of the American Dream". As a major part of Metropolitan Boston, Quincy is a member of Boston's Inner Core Committee for the Metropolitan Area Planning Council...
, and launched on 19 May 1928. She performed Bering SeaBering SeaThe Bering Sea is a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean. It comprises a deep water basin, which then rises through a narrow slope into the shallower water above the continental shelves....
patrols, international ice patrols, and patrolled more regattas than other ships of the class. She became HMS Lulworth on 2 May 1941 and sailed to England with convoy SC 31. After refit at CardiffCardiffCardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
, Lulworth escorted convoys OS 4, SL 87, OS 10 and SL 93. While escorting convoy OS 10 on 31 October 1941, Lulworth attacked U-96. Lothar-Günther BuchheimLothar-Günther BuchheimLothar-Günther Buchheim was a German author and painter. He is best known for his novel Das Boot , which became an international bestseller and was adapted in 1981 as an Oscar-nominated film.-Early life:...
, author of Das Boot, was aboard U-96 at the time. Following installation of HF/DF in December 1941, Lulworth escorted convoys OS 15, SL 98, OS 20, SL 103, OS 25, SL 109, OS 31 and SL 115. Lulworth was assigned to Operation Torch following repair of damage sustained while ramming and sinking the Italian submarine Pietro Calvi on 14 July 1942 while defending convoy SL 115. Lulworth then escorted convoys KMS 8G, MKS 7, HX229A, ONS 3, SC 128, ONS 9, SC 132, ON 189 and HX 244 with the 40th Escort Group. After refit at Cardiff, Lulworth went to the Indian Ocean and unsuccessfully depth chargeDepth chargeA depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare weapon intended to destroy or cripple a target submarine by the shock of exploding near it. Most use explosives and a fuze set to go off at a preselected depth in the ocean. Depth charges can be dropped by either surface ships, patrol aircraft, or from...
d Japanese submarine I-37 on 16 March 1944 while escorting trade convoys with the Kilindini Escort Force. After refit at DurbanDurbanDurban is the largest city in the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal and the third largest city in South Africa. It forms part of the eThekwini metropolitan municipality. Durban is famous for being the busiest port in South Africa. It is also seen as one of the major centres of tourism...
, Lulworth escorted invasion convoys for Operation Dracula at Rangoon and Operation Zipper. Lulworth was returned to the United States on 12 February 1946, used for spare parts and scrapped in 1947.
- USCGC Ponchartrain
- Originally cutter # 46. She was named for Lake Ponchartrain, built by Bethlehem Shipbuilding Quincy, Massachusetts, and launched on 16 June 1928. She performed winter cruising for the Coast Guard and became HMS Hartland on 30 April 1941. Following installation of Type 271 Radar, Hartland escorted convoys OS 5, SL 88, OS 11, SL 94, OS 17, SL 99, OS 21, SL 104, OS 26, SL 110, OS 38 and SL 122. Hartland sailed with Operation Torch invasion convoy KMF 1. She was abandoned and sank on 8 November 1942 following a magazine explosion after sustaining heavy damage from coastal artilleryCoastal artilleryCoastal artillery is the branch of armed forces concerned with operating anti-ship artillery or fixed gun batteries in coastal fortifications....
and the French destroyer TyphonBourrasque class destroyerThe Bourrasque class was a group of twelve French navy destroyers laid down in 1923 and commissioned from 1926 to 1936. Along with the heavier Chacal class, they were part of a plan to modernise the French fleet after World War I. The Bourrasques were smaller and slower than the Chacals, but were...
during the Operation Reservist attack on Oran.
- USCGC Tahoe,
- Originally cutter # 47, she was named for Lake TahoeLake TahoeLake Tahoe is a large freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada of the United States. At a surface elevation of , it is located along the border between California and Nevada, west of Carson City. Lake Tahoe is the largest alpine lake in North America. Its depth is , making it the USA's second-deepest...
, built by Bethlehem Shipbuilding Quincy, Massachusetts, and launched on 12 June 1928. She did more Coast Guard boarding work and spent more time icebreaking than other ships of the class. She became HMS Fishguard, named after the Welsh town of FishguardFishguardFishguard is a coastal town in Pembrokeshire, south-west Wales, with a population of 3,300 . The community of Fishguard and Goodwick had a population of 5043 at the 2001 census....
, on 30 April 1941 and sailed to England with convoy HX 125. After refit in LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Fishguard was assigned to the 44th Escort Group. Fishguard escorted convoys OS 3, SL 86, OS 9, SL 92, OS 14 and SL 97 before HF/DF was installed in early 1942, and then escorted convoys OS 19, SL 102, OS 24, SL 108, OS 30, SL 114, OS 36 and SL 120. Refit at FalmouthFalmouth-Canada:*Falmouth, Nova Scotia, a community in Hants County*Upper Falmouth, Nova Scotia-United States:*Falmouth, Florida*Falmouth, Indiana*Falmouth, Kentucky*Falmouth, Maine*Falmouth, Massachusetts...
included installation of Type 271 Radar and replacement of the American 5-inch/51 caliber gun by a Royal Navy 4-inch gun. Fishguard continued service with the 44th Escort Group on convoys KMF 6, MKF 6, KMF 8, MKF 8, KMF 10A, MKF 10A, KMS 12G, MKS 11, ON 182 and HX 240. Fishguard was then assigned to the invasion convoys for Operation Husky followed by a trip to Chesapeake BayChesapeake BayThe Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's drainage basin covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West...
with convoys GUS 10XUG convoysThe UG convoys were a series of east-bound trans-Atlantic convoys from the United States to Gibraltar carrying food, ammunition, and military hardware to the United States Army in North Africa and southern Europe during World War II...
and UT 1 prior to refit. Fishguard went to the Indian Ocean after refit at Cardiff, spent 1944 with the Kilindini Escort Force, and finished the war assigned to Operation Zipper after refit at Durban from November 1944 through March 1945. She was returned to the United States on 27 March 1946, used for spare parts, and scrapped in 1947.
- USCGC Champlain
- Originally cutter # 48. She was named for Lake ChamplainLake ChamplainLake Champlain is a natural, freshwater lake in North America, located mainly within the borders of the United States but partially situated across the Canada—United States border in the Canadian province of Quebec.The New York portion of the Champlain Valley includes the eastern portions of...
, built by Bethlehem Shipbuilding Quincy, Massachusetts, and launched on 11 October 1928. She performed international ice patrols and became HMS Sennen on 12 May 1941. She sailed to England with convoy HX 128 and was assigned to the 42nd Escort Group after refit on the River ThamesRiver ThamesThe River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
. She escorted convoys WS 11, SL 89, OS 12, SL 95, OS 17, SL 100, OS 22 and SL 106 prior to installation of Type 271 Radar during refit on the River HullRiver HullThe River Hull is a navigable river in the East Riding of Yorkshire in the north of England. It rises from a series of springs to the west of Driffield, and enters the Humber estuary at Kingston upon Hull. Following a period when the Archbishops of York charged tolls for its use, it became a free...
. Sennen escorted convoys OS 39 and SL 123 with the 45th Escort Group before assignment to Operation Torch. After the invasion of North Africa, Sennen escorted convoys OS 43 and SL 127 prior to assignment to the 1st Support Group during the battles for convoys ONS 4, ONS 5, and SC 130. Sennen was credited with sinking U-954German submarine U-954The German submarine U-954 was a Type VIIC submarine of World War II.She was sunk with all hands by hedgehog attacks from the Banff class sloop HMS Sennen and the River class frigate HMS Jed, both escorting Convoy SC 130. One of those killed in the sinking was Admiral Karl Dönitz's son Peter Dönitz....
while defending the latter convoy on 19 May 1943. Admiral Karl DönitzKarl DönitzKarl Dönitz was a German naval commander during World War II. He started his career in the German Navy during World War I. In 1918, while he was in command of , the submarine was sunk by British forces and Dönitz was taken prisoner...
's son Peter Dönitz was among those lost aboard U-954. After refit at GrimsbyGrimsbyGrimsby is a seaport on the Humber Estuary in Lincolnshire, England. It has been the administrative centre of the unitary authority area of North East Lincolnshire since 1996...
, Sennen sailed with convoy KMS 26 to join the Indian Ocean Kilindini Escort Force from 26 October 1943 until refit at Durban in November 1944. Following completion of refit in March 1945, Sennen was assigned to Operation Zipper for the remainder of the war and returned to the United States on 27 March 1946. She was redesignated USCGC Champlain until scrapped in 1948.
- USCGC Mendota
- Originally cutter # 49. She was named for Lake MendotaLake MendotaLake Mendota is the northernmost and largest of the four lakes near Madison, Wisconsin. The lake borders Madison on the north, east and south, Middleton on the west, Shorewood Hills on the southwest, Maple Bluff on the northeast, and Westport on the northwest....
, built by Bethlehem Shipbuilding Quincy, Massachusetts, and launched on 27 November 1928. She performed Coast Guard anti-smuggling patrols and winter cruising, and became HMS Culver on 30 April 1941. Culver sailed to England with convoy HX 125 and was assigned to the 40th Escort Group. She escorted convoys OB 346 and SL 83 prior to installation of HF/DF and Type 271 Radar during refit at WoolwichWoolwichWoolwich is a district in south London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.Woolwich formed part of Kent until 1889 when the County of London was created...
. Culver escorted convoys OS 10, SL 93, OS 15 and SL 98 after refit. While escorting the latter convoy, she was hit by two torpedoes fired by U-105German submarine U-105 (1940)German submarine U-105 was a Type IXB U-boat of the German Kriegsmarine. U-105 was ordered by the Kriegsmarine on 24 May 1938 as part of Nazi Germany's naval rearmament program. Her keel was laid down by AG Weser in Bremen on 16 November 1938...
on 31 January 1942 and sank south-west of Ireland following a magazine explosion. Only twelve of the crew survived.
- USCGC ItascaUSCGC Itasca (1929)The USCGC Itasca was a of the United States Coast Guard launched on 16 November 1929 and commissioned 12 July 1930. Itasca performed Bering Sea patrols; but is most remembered as the "picket ship" that would provide air navigation and radio links for Amelia Earhart when she made her 1937...
- Originally cutter # 50, she was named for Lake ItascaLake ItascaLake Itasca is a small glacial lake, approximately in area, in the Headwaters area of north central Minnesota. The lake is located in southeastern Clearwater County within Itasca State Park and it has an average depth of 20–35 feet , and is 1,475 ft above sea level.The Ojibwe name for...
, built by General Engineering and Drydock at Oakland, CaliforniaOakland, CaliforniaOakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
, and launched on 16 November 1929. She performed Bering SeaBering SeaThe Bering Sea is a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean. It comprises a deep water basin, which then rises through a narrow slope into the shallower water above the continental shelves....
patrols, and provided navigation assistance at Howland IslandHowland IslandHowland Island is an uninhabited coral island located just north of the equator in the central Pacific Ocean, about southwest of Honolulu. The island lies almost halfway between Hawaii and Australia and is an unincorporated, unorganized territory of the United States. Geographically, it is part...
for Amelia EarhartAmelia EarhartAmelia Mary Earhart was a noted American aviation pioneer and author. Earhart was the first woman to receive the U.S. Distinguished Flying Cross, awarded for becoming the first aviatrix to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean...
's ill-fated 1937 attempt to fly around the world - Earhart and her navigator were unable to find Itasca or Howland Island and were never seen again. On transfer to the RN she became HMS Gorleston after the East Anglian port of GorlestonGorlestonGorleston-On-Sea, also known colloquially as Gorleston, is a settlement in Norfolk in the United Kingdom, forming part of the larger town of Great Yarmouth. Situated at the mouth of the River Yare it was a port town at the time of the Domesday Book. The port then became a centre of fishing for...
on 30 May 1941. She was uniquely armed with ten .50 caliber and two 20 mm machine guns in place of the 3"/50 and four 20 mm AA guns carried by the remainder of the class. Her career was mostly spent on convoy escorts from West Africa and India. She was the escort leader for convoy SL 87, escorted convoy SL 118,. She was returned on 23 April 1946 and redesignated USCGC Itasca. She was scrapped in 1950.
- USCGC Sebago
- Originally cutter # 51. She was named for Sebago LakeSebago LakeSebago Lake is the deepest and second largest lake in the U.S. state of Maine. The lake is deep at its deepest point, with a mean depth of , covers about in surface area, has a length of and a shoreline length of . The surface is around above sea level, so the deep bottom is below the present...
, built by General Engineering and Drydock at Oakland, California, and launched on 10 February 1930. She destroyed more derelicts than other ships of the class, and became HMS Walney on 12 May 1941, named after Walney IslandWalney IslandThe Isle of Walney, also known as Walney Island, is an island in the United Kingdom which lies off the west coast of England, at the northern tip of Morecambe Bay. It forms part of the Borough of Barrow-in-Furness, and it is separated from the mainland at Barrow by Walney Channel, a narrow channel...
. She was lost on 8 November 1942 in Operation Reservist, an attack on Oran that formed part of Operation Torch.
- USCGC Saranac
- Originally cutter # 52. She was named for the Saranac LakeSaranac LakeSaranac Lake may refer to:* Saranac Lake, New York, a village in the northern Adirondacks*One of the three nearby Saranac Lakes, part of the Saranac River:**Upper Saranac Lake**Middle Saranac Lake**Lower Saranac LakeSee also...
s, built by General Engineering and Drydock at Oakland, California, and launched on 12 April 1930. She became HMS Banff on 30 April 1941 and sailed to England with convoy HX 125. After refit on the River Thames, Banff escorted convoys OS 3, SL 86, OS 9, SL 92, OS 14 and SL 97 prior to installation of HF/DF. Banff then escorted convoys OS 19, SL102, OS 30, SL 114, OS 36 and SL 120 prior to assignment to Operation Torch. Hedgehog anti-submarine mortarHedgehog (weapon)The Hedgehog was an anti-submarine weapon developed by the Royal Navy during World War II, that was deployed on convoy escort warships such as destroyers to supplement the depth charge. The weapon worked by firing a number of small spigot mortar bombs from spiked fittings...
was installed during refit at ImminghamImminghamImmingham is a town in North East Lincolnshire, located on the south bank of the Humber Estuary...
following escort of North African invasion convoys. Banff then escorted convoys ON 182 and HX 240 prior to return to the Mediterranean for Operation Husky. After a trip to Chesapeake Bay escorting convoys GUS 10X and UT 1, Banff completed refit at HMNB DevonportHMNB DevonportHer Majesty's Naval Base Devonport , is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy . HMNB Devonport is located in Devonport, in the west of the city of Plymouth in Devon, England...
and joined the Kilindini Escort Force in November 1943. After spending the remainder of the war escorting Indian Ocean convoys, she was returned to the United States on 27 February 1946 and recommissioned as USCGC Tampa on 27 May 1947. She was decommissioned on 10 August 1954 and was scrapped in 1959.
- USCGC Shoshone
- Originally cutter # 53. She was named for Shoshone Lake at the headwaters of the Lewis River (Wyoming)Lewis River (Wyoming)The Lewis River is an tributary of the Snake River. The entire course of the river is located within the boundaries of Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. The river is named for Meriwether Lewis, commander of the Lewis and Clark Expedition....
, built by General Engineering and Drydock at Oakland, California, and launched on 11 September 1930. She performed Bering SeaBering SeaThe Bering Sea is a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean. It comprises a deep water basin, which then rises through a narrow slope into the shallower water above the continental shelves....
patrols and reported more navigation law infractions than other ships of the class. She became HMS Landguard on 20 May 1941, and was assigned to the 40th Escort Group. Landguard escorted convoys OB 346 and SL 83 prior to refit on the River Thames, and convoys OS 10, SL 93, OS 15, SL 98, OS 20, SL 103, OS 25 and SL 109 prior to refit at Grimsby. She then escorted convoys OS 37 and SL 121 prior to assignment to Operation Torch. After escorting North African invasion convoys to the Mediterranaen, Landguard escorted convoys HX 229A, ONS 3, SC 128 and ON 192 with the 40th Escort Group prior to being damaged while patrolling the Bay of BiscayBay of BiscayThe Bay of Biscay is a gulf of the northeast Atlantic Ocean located south of the Celtic Sea. It lies along the western coast of France from Brest south to the Spanish border, and the northern coast of Spain west to Cape Ortegal, and is named in English after the province of Biscay, in the Spanish...
on 25 August 1943 by near misses during the first successful Henschel Hs 293Henschel Hs 293The Henschel Hs 293 was a World War II German anti-ship guided missile: a radio-controlled glide bomb with a rocket engine slung underneath it. It was designed by Herbert A. Wagner.- History :...
glide bombGlide bombA glide bomb is an aerial bomb modified with aerodynamic surfaces to modify its flight path from a purely ballistic one to a flatter, gliding, one. This extends the range between the launch aircraft and the target. Glide bombs are often fitted with control systems, allowing the controlling aircraft...
attack by Dornier Do 217Dornier Do 217The Dornier Do 217 was a bomber used by German Luftwaffe during World War II as a more powerful version of the Dornier Do 17, known as the Fliegender Bleistift . Designed in 1937 and 1938 as a heavy bomber, its design was refined during 1939 and production began in late 1940...
bombers. When the damage was repaired, Landguard sailed with convoy KMS 26 to join the Kilindini Escort Force in September 1943. She escorted Indian Ocean convoys until disabled by a machinery failure at ColomboColomboColombo is the largest city of Sri Lanka. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte, the capital of Sri Lanka. Colombo is often referred to as the capital of the country, since Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte is a satellite city of Colombo...
in March 1945. She served as a depot ship at Colombo until February 1946 and was sold there by the United States government in 1947 to be scrapped in ManilaManilaManila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
in 1949.
- USCGC Cayuga
- Originally cutter # 54. She was named for Cayuga LakeCayuga LakeCayuga Lake is the longest of central New York's glacial Finger Lakes, and is the second largest in surface area and second largest in volume. It is just under 40 miles long. Its average width is 1.7 miles , and it is at its widest point near Aurora...
, built by Bethlehem ShipbuildingBethlehem ShipbuildingBethlehem Sparrows Point Shipyard was founded in 1887 as Maryland Steel in Sparrows Point, Maryland. It was acquired by Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation in 1916 and renamed Bethlehem Sparrows Point Shipyard. The shipyard was sold in 1997 to Baltimore Marine Industries Inc....
Staten IslandStaten IslandStaten Island is a borough of New York City, New York, United States, located in the southwest part of the city. Staten Island is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull, and from the rest of New York by New York Bay...
, and launched on 7 October 1931. She performed Coast Guard anti-smuggling patrols and more United States Coast Guard AcademyUnited States Coast Guard AcademyFounded in 1876, the United States Coast Guard Academy is the military academy of the United States Coast Guard. Located in New London, Connecticut, it is the smallest of the five federal service academies...
cadet practice cruises than other ships of the class. She became HMS Totland on 12 May 1941, and sailed to England with convoy HX 128. After refit on the River Thames, Totland escorted convoys OS 4, SL 89, OS 12, SL 95, OS 17, SL 100, OS 22, SL 106, OS 28, SL 112, OS 40, and SL 124 with the 42nd Escort Group before being assigned to Operation Torch. After escorting convoys KMF 3, MKF 3, KMF 5, MKF 5, KMF 7 and MKF 7 in support of the North African invasion, Totland sank U-522 on 23 February 1943 while escorting the tanker convoys UC 1 and CU 1CU convoysThe CU convoys were a World War II series of fast trans-Atlantic convoys to the British Isles. The earliest convoys of the series were tankers sailing directly from petroleum refineries at Curaçao to the United Kingdom...
. Totland then escorted convoys between FreetownFreetownFreetown is the capital and largest city of Sierra Leone, a country in West Africa. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean located in the Western Area of the country, and had a city proper population of 772,873 at the 2004 census. The city is the economic, financial, and cultural center of...
and LagosLagosLagos is a port and the most populous conurbation in Nigeria. With a population of 7,937,932, it is currently the third most populous city in Africa after Cairo and Kinshasa, and currently estimated to be the second fastest growing city in Africa...
via Sekondi-TakoradiSekondi-TakoradiSekondi-Takoradi, population 335,000 , comprising the twin cities of Sekondi and Takoradi, is the capital of the Western Region of Ghana. It is Ghana's fourth largest city and an industrial and commercial center. The chief industries are timber, plywood, shipbuilding and railroad repair and...
until transferred to the Kilindidni Escort Force in July 1944. Totland began a prolonged refit in October 1944 until the decision to retire her in May 1945. She was returned to the United States in May 1946, recommissioned as USCGC Mocoma on 20 March 1947, decommissioned on 8 May 1950, and scrapped in 1955.