The Fly class were built as a 16-gun class of brig-sloops for 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...

, although an extra two carronade

Carronade

The carronade was a short smoothbore, cast iron cannon, developed for the Royal Navy by the Carron Company, an ironworks in Falkirk, Scotland, UK. It was used from the 1770s to the 1850s. Its main function was to serve as a powerful, short-range anti-ship and anti-crew weapon...

s were added soon after completion. The class was designed by one of the Surveyors of the Navy - Sir John Henslow - and approved in 1805. Five vessels to this design were ordered in January 1805; two more were ordered in the summer, although this final pair were planked with hulls of pitch pine ("fir") rather than the normal oak used in the first five.

Vessels

In the following table, the Fly class brig-sloops are listed in the order in which they were instructed to be built (i.e. order dates).

Name	Launched
HMS Kite	13 July 1805
HMS Sparrow	29 July 1805
HMS Fly	24 October 1805
HMS Raven	12 August 1805
HMS Wizard	November 1805
HMS Goshawk	17 July 1806
HMS Challenger	30 July 1806