HMS Arrow was an A class

A class destroyer

The A class was a flotilla of eight destroyers built for the Royal Navy as part of the 1927 naval programme. A ninth ship, Codrington, was built to an enlarged design to act as the flotilla leader...

 destroyer

Destroyer

In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...

 of 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...

. She served during the Second World War before being damaged while fighting a fire on an ammunition ship and written off in 1943.

Construction and commissioning

Arrow was ordered on 6 March 1928 under the 1927 Naval Estimates. She was laid down on 20 August 1928 at the yards of Vickers-Armstrongs, Barrow-in-Furness

Barrow-in-Furness

Barrow-in-Furness is an industrial town and seaport which forms about half the territory of the wider Borough of Barrow-in-Furness in the county of Cumbria, England. It lies north of Liverpool, northwest of Manchester and southwest from the county town of Carlisle...

, as Yard No 642. She was launched a year later on 22 August 1929 and was commissioned on 14 April 1930. She was adopted by the civil community of the Rural District of Blackwell

Blackwell, Bolsover

Blackwell is a village in Derbyshire, England. It is one of the four villages that make up the civil parish of Blackwell within the District of Bolsover - the other villages being Hilcote, Newton and Westhouses. The Parish Council meets monthly...

, Derbyshire

Derbyshire

Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...

 in February 1942 following a successful Warship Week

Warship Week

Warship Weeks were British National savings campaigns during the Second World War, with the adoption of a Royal Navy warship by a civil community. A level of savings would be set to raise enough money to provide the cost of building a particular naval ship...

 National Savings

National savings

In economics, a country's national savings is the sum of private and public savings. It is generally equal to a nation's income minus consumption and government purchases.- Economic model of national savings :...

 Campaign.

Escort duties

On the outbreak of the Second World War, Arrow was deployed at Portland

Isle of Portland

The Isle of Portland is a limestone tied island, long by wide, in the English Channel. Portland is south of the resort of Weymouth, forming the southernmost point of the county of Dorset, England. A tombolo over which runs the A354 road connects it to Chesil Beach and the mainland. Portland and...

 with the 18th Destroyer Flotilla

Flotilla

A flotilla , or naval flotilla, is a formation of small warships that may be part of a larger fleet. A flotilla is usually composed of a homogeneous group of the same class of warship, such as frigates, destroyers, torpedo boats, submarines, gunboats, or minesweepers...

 for Anti-submarine patrol and convoy defence duties. She carried out these duties into October, and on 24 October put into Devonport Dockyard

HMNB Devonport

Her 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...

 to undergo repairs to fix turbine defects. These repairs lasted until December, and on her return to service in January Arrow was nominated to join the 16th Destroyer Flotilla at Portsmouth

Portsmouth

Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...

. She joined the flotilla on 10 January having completed her post refit trials, and the following day was, with her sisters HMS Achates

HMS Achates (H12)

HMS Achates was an A-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy launched on 4 October 1929 and commissioned on 27 March 1930. She was sunk on 31 December 1942 in the Battle of the Barents Sea.-Battle of the Denmark Strait:...

 and Anthony

HMS Anthony (H40)

HMS Anthony was an A-class destroyer of the Royal Navy. She served during the Second World War.-Construction and commissioning:Anthony was ordered from Scotts Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, Greenock, Scotland on 6 March 1928 under the 1927 Programme...

, detached to escort the 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...

 Royal Sovereign

HMS Royal Sovereign (05)

HMS Royal Sovereign was a Revenge-class battleship of the Royal Navy displacing and armed with eight guns in four twin turrets...

 part of the way on her journey to Halifax

City of Halifax

Halifax is a city in Canada, which was the capital of the province of Nova Scotia and shire town of Halifax County. It was the largest city in Atlantic Canada until it was amalgamated into Halifax Regional Municipality in 1996...

 to cover the Atlantic convoys. Arrow was detached on 30 January and returned to Devonport to undergo repairs to her machinery.

The Norwegian coast

These repairs lasted until March, and on 10 March she resumed her convoy defence duties in the English Channel

English Channel

The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...

 and the Western Approaches

Western Approaches

The Western Approaches is a rectangular area of the Atlantic ocean lying on the western coast of Great Britain. The rectangle is higher than it is wide, the north and south boundaries defined by the north and south ends of the British Isles, the eastern boundary lying on the western coast, and the...

. She was transferred to 12th Destroyer Flotilla with the Home Fleet in April, and tasked with supporting the military operations following on from the landings of allied troops in Norway following the German invasion

Operation Weserübung

Operation Weserübung was the code name for Germany's assault on Denmark and Norway during the Second World War and the opening operation of the Norwegian Campaign...

. She sailed to Rosyth

Rosyth

Rosyth is a town located on the Firth of Forth, three miles south of the centre of Dunfermline. According to an estimate taken in 2008, the town has a population of 12,790....

 and on 16 April she embarked troops and stores for Namsos

Namsos

is a town and municipality in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Namdalen region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Namsos. Other villages in the municipality include Bangsund, Klinga, Ramsvika, Skomsvoll, and Spillum....

, Norway

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

. She sailed with her sister, HMS Acheron

HMS Acheron (H45)

HMS Acheron was an A-class destroyer of the Royal Navy. She served during the Second World War in Home waters and off the Norwegian coast, before becoming an early war loss when she sank after hitting a mine off the Isle of Wight on 17 December 1940...

 on 17 April and on 19 April she landed her troops and stores at Åndalsnes

Åndalsnes

is a town in the municipality of Rauma in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. Åndalsnes is the administrative center of Rauma. The town has a population of 2,207...

, rather than Namsos. Once this had been carried out, she returned to Rosyth. She sailed again on 24 April, in company with the cruisers HMS Birmingham

HMS Birmingham (C19)

HMS Birmingham was a member of the first group of five ships of the "Town" class of light cruisers. She was built at Devonport Dockyard , and launched on 1 September 1936.-Early career:...

 and York

HMS York (90)

HMS York, pennant number 90, was a heavy cruiser of the Royal Navy built in the late 1920s. She mostly served on the North America and West Indies Station before World War II. Early in the war the ship escorted convoys in the Atlantic and participated in the Norwegian Campaign in 1940...

, and the destroyers HMS Acheron and Griffin

HMS Griffin (H31)

HMS Griffin was a G-class destroyer, built for the Royal Navy in the mid-1930s. During World War II, the ship participated in the Norwegian Campaign of April–May 1940 and the Battle of Dakar in September before being transferred to the Mediterranean Fleet in November...

 with more troops and stores for Åndalsnes. They landed the troops and stores on 25 April and on 26 April sailed from Molde

Molde

is a city and municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is part of the Romsdal region. The municipality is located on the Romsdal Peninsula, surrounding the Fannefjord and Moldefjord...

 to engage enemy trawler

Naval trawler

A naval trawler is a vessel built along the lines of a fishing trawler but fitted out for naval purposes. Naval trawlers were widely used during the First and Second world wars. Fishing trawlers were particularly suited for many naval requirements because they were robust boats designed to work...

s, disguised as Dutch

Netherlands

The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

 but believed to be being deployed in advance of transports bringing enemy reinforcements. Arrow engaged the German trawler Schelswig (Schiff 37), but was accidentally rammed by HMS Birmingham during the action. Arrow suffered serious structural damage and had to be withdrawn from operational service. She returned to the UK on 27 April, escorted by HMS Acheron and was taken in hand on 29 April by a commercial shipyard at Middlesbrough

Middlesbrough

Middlesbrough is a large town situated on the south bank of the River Tees in north east England, that sits within the ceremonial county of North Yorkshire...

.

She was back in service by 13 May and rejoined the Norwegian operations on 14 May. She rescued 80 survivors that day from Norwegian ships that had been sunk by German air attacks on ships carrying refugees to the Faroe Islands

Faroe Islands

The Faroe Islands are an island group situated between the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, approximately halfway between Scotland and Iceland. The Faroe Islands are a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, along with Denmark proper and Greenland...

. On 29 April she deployed with the destroyers HMS Echo

HMS Echo (H23)

HMS Echo was an E class destroyer of the British Royal Navy that saw service in the Atlantic, Arctic and Mediterranean theatres during World War II, before being transferred to the Royal Hellenic Navy in 1944, and renamed Navarinon, until scrapped in 1956.-Service history:Echo had a small role in...

, Firedrake

HMS Firedrake (H79)

HMS Firedrake was an F-class destroyer of the Royal Navy built in 1934. She took part in the Battle of the Atlantic and was torpedoed in 1942.-Construction:...

, Havelock

HMS Havelock (H88)

HMS Havelock was an Havant class destroyer of the Royal Navy.- History :She was originally laid down as Jutahy for the Brazilian Navy by White at Cowes. Jutahy was launched on 7 July 1936, and completed on 18 January 1937. Jutahy was one of six Brazilian destroyers purchased in September 1939,...

 and Vanoc to evacuate troops from Mo

Mo i Rana

Mo i Rana is a town in the municipality of Rana, Nordland, Norway, located just south of the Arctic Circle and in the region Helgeland. The town is called "Mo i Rana" to distinquish it from other places named Mo - most notably the town of Mosjøen, also in Helgeland - though locally the town is...

 and Bodø

Bodø

is a city and a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Salten region.The city of Bodø was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 . Bodin was merged with Bodø on 1 January 1968. Skjerstad was merged with Bodø on 1 January 2005...

. The troops were taken to Harstad

Harstad

is the second largest city and municipality by population, in Troms county, Norway – the city is also the third largest in North Norway. Thus Harstad is the natural centre for its district. Situated approximately north of the Arctic Circle, the city celebrated its 100th anniversary in...

 in preparation for their final evacuation from Norway. Arrow continued to be deployed off Norway throughout June, and on 7 June she escorted a slow convoy of storeships from Harstad, with HMS Stork and ten trawlers, as part of Operation Alphabet

Operation Alphabet

Operation Alphabet was an evacuation, authorized on May 24, 1940, of Allied troops from the harbour of Narvik in northern Norway marking the success of Nazi Germany's Operation Weserübung of April 9 and the end of the Allied campaign in Norway during World War II...

. They returned to the UK where Arrow returned to her flotilla duties. She then sailed to the Nore

Nore

The Nore is a sandbank at the mouth of the Thames Estuary, England. It marks the point where the River Thames meets the North Sea, roughly halfway between Havengore Creek in Essex and Warden Point in Kent....

 and on 26 June she was taken in hand for a refit at Sheerness

Sheerness

Sheerness is a town located beside the mouth of the River Medway on the northwest corner of the Isle of Sheppey in north Kent, England. With a population of 12,000 it is the largest town on the island....

. The work involved improving her Anti-Aircraft defence capabilities.

The Western Approaches

She rejoined the 16th Destroyer Flotilla at Harwich

Harwich

Harwich is a town in Essex, England and one of the Haven ports, located on the coast with the North Sea to the east. It is in the Tendring district. Nearby places include Felixstowe to the northeast, Ipswich to the northwest, Colchester to the southwest and Clacton-on-Sea to the south...

 on 4 July, and was active on anti-invasion patrol and convoy defence duties off the east coast. On 24 July she was transferred to the Western Approaches Defence Force

Western Approaches Command

Commander-in-Chief, Western Approaches was the commander of a major operational command of the Royal Navy during World War II. The admiral commanding, and his forces, sometimes informally known as 'Western Approaches Command,' were responsible for the safety of British shipping in the Western...

, based at Greenock

Greenock

Greenock is a town and administrative centre in the Inverclyde council area in United Kingdom, and a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, located in the west central Lowlands of Scotland...

. She was deployed on convoy defence duties in the North Western Approaches and on 16 August she and HMS Achates attacked a U-boat

U-boat

U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...

 that had been sighted by the armed merchant cruiser Cheshire. On 27 August Arrow rescued survivors from a Greek steamer and on 13 September she rescued survivors from the Greek SS Poseidon. On 8 October she joined the fast military convoy WS-3 in the Clyde

River Clyde

The River Clyde is a major river in Scotland. It is the ninth longest river in the United Kingdom, and the third longest in Scotland. Flowing through the major city of Glasgow, it was an important river for shipbuilding and trade in the British Empire....

 as an escort, along with the cruiser HMS Kenya and the destroyers HMS Achates, Sabre and Vimy, covering the convoy's passage through the North Western Approaches. Arrow and the escorting destroyers were detached on 12 October and returned to the Clyde, where they resumed convoy defence duties for Iceland

Iceland

Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...

 convoys. HMS Kenya remained with the convoy as far as Freetown

Freetown

Freetown 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...

.

On 13 November Arrow rescued survivors from the SS Empire Hind, which had been sunk by an air attack in the North Atlantic. On 14 November she stood by the tanker

Tanker (ship)

A tanker is a ship designed to transport liquids in bulk. Major types of tankship include the oil tanker, the chemical tanker, and the liquefied natural gas carrier.-Background:...

 MV San Demetrio off Achill Head and escorted her into the Clyde. The San Demetrio had been attacked by the German cruiser Admiral Hipper

German cruiser Admiral Hipper

Admiral Hipper, the first of five ships of her class, was the lead ship of the Admiral Hipper–class of heavy cruisers which served with the German Kriegsmarine during World War II. The ship was laid down at the Blohm & Voss shipyard in Hamburg in July 1935 and launched February 1937; Admiral Hipper...

 on 5 November, but after initially abandoning the then-burning ship the crew had re-boarded her to ensure the salvage of her valuable cargo. They arrived in the Clyde on 16 October, and Arrow entered repair at the Barclay Curle

Barclay Curle

-History:The company was founded by Robert Barclay at Stobcross in Glasgow, Scotland during 1818. In 1862, the company built a large engineering works at Stobcross in Glasgow. In 1876, the company moved their yard down the river to Whiteinch. It was incorporated in 1884 as Barclay Curle...

 shipyard the following day, to fix her machinery. She was not back in action again until 14 January 1941, when she rejoined the Home Fleet. She joined the 3rd Destroyer Flotilla for anti-submarine defence of convoys the following day. February saw Arrow deployed in the North Western Approaches and the North Sea, escorting Icelandic convoys from Aberdeen

Aberdeen

Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....

, Scapa Flow

Scapa Flow

right|thumb|Scapa Flow viewed from its eastern endScapa Flow is a body of water in the Orkney Islands, Scotland, United Kingdom, sheltered by the islands of Mainland, Graemsay, Burray, South Ronaldsay and Hoy. It is about...

 and the Clyde.

Repairs and mining

She joined the military convoy WS-7 in the Clyde on 24 March, as an escort with the battleship HMS Nelson, during the convoy's Atlantic passage to Freetown. She and Nelson were detached on 4 April and returned to Scapa Flow. During this time, she developed problems with her boilers that required attention. She put into Chatham

Chatham, Medway

Chatham is one of the Medway towns located within the Medway unitary authority, in North Kent, in South East England.Although the dockyard has long been closed and is now being redeveloped into a business and residential community as well as a museum featuring the famous submarine, HMS Ocelot,...

 for a refit on 2 May and was withdrawn from operational service whilst her boilers were re-tubed. The work was completed by June and she sailed to rejoin the Fleet. On 21 June, whilst on passage to Scapa Flow she detonated a mine

Naval mine

A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, an enemy vessel...

 off Flamborough Head

Flamborough Head

Flamborough Head is a promontory of on the Yorkshire coast of England, between the Filey and Bridlington bays of the North Sea. It is a chalk headland, and the resistance it offers to coastal erosion may be contrasted with the low coast of Holderness to the south...

 and had to put into Middlesbrough

Middlesbrough

Middlesbrough is a large town situated on the south bank of the River Tees in north east England, that sits within the ceremonial county of North Yorkshire...

 on one boiler. She was taken in hand by Smiths Dock on 22 June for repairs that lasted until October and involved repairing her repair machinery mountings and replacing bulkheads. During this time she was nominated for foreign service, and after carrying out post repair trials she was prepared for service in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Transfer to the Mediterranean

On 18 November, Arrow and the destroyers HMS Gurkha

HMS Gurkha (G63)

HMS Gurkha was an L class destroyer in Britain's Royal Navy during World War II. She was originally to be named Larne in line with her class letter...

, Zulu

HMS Zulu (F18)

The second HMS Zulu was a Tribal-class destroyer of the Royal Navy. She was built in Glasgow by Alexander Stephen and Sons. Her keel was laid down on 10 August 1936. She was launched on 23 September 1937 and commissioned on 7 September 1938...

 Nestor

HMAS Nestor (G02)

HMAS Nestor was an N class destroyer of the Royal Australian Navy . Built in Scotland, Nestor was commissioned in February 1941; although manned by Australians and commissioned as an Australian warship, she remained the property of the Royal Navy.Entering service in 1941, Nestor spent most of her...

 and Foxhound

HMS Foxhound (H69)

HMS Foxhound was an Interwar standard that served the Royal Navy from 1935 to 1944.She was laid down on 21 August 1933 at John Brown Shipbuilding & Engineering Company Ltd. Clydebank and launched on 12 October 1934...

 screened the cruiser HMS Dido

HMS Dido (37)

HMS Dido was the name ship of her class of light cruisers for the Royal Navy. She was built by Cammell Laird Shipyard , with the keel being laid down on 26 October 1937. She was launched on 18 July 1939 and commissioned on 30 September 1940.-Mediterranean:On 18 August 1942 Captain H. W. U...

 on passage to Gibraltar

Gibraltar

Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...

, where they arrived on 21 November. The same ships left the next day for Malta

Malta

Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...

, where they arrived on 24 November. On 26 November they joined the cruiser HMS Ajax

HMS Ajax (22)

HMS Ajax was a Leander class light cruiser which served with the British Royal Navy during World War II. She became famous for her part in the Battle of the River Plate, the Battle of Crete, the Battle of Malta and as a supply escort in the Siege of Tobruk. This ship was the eighth in the Royal...

 and the destroyers HMS Lance

HMS Lance (G87)

HMS Lance was an L-class destroyer of the Royal Navy. She entered service during World War II, and had a short but eventful career, serving in Home waters and the Mediterranean Sea. She was damaged in two consecutive air attacks at Malta in 1942. She was towed back to Britain, declared a...

 and HMS Lively

HMS Lively (G40)

HMS Lively was an L-class destroyer of the Royal Navy.She served during the Second World War, and was sunk in the Mediterranean in an air attack on 11 May 1942....

 as an escort for convoy ME-8 to Alexandria

Alexandria

Alexandria is the second-largest city of Egypt, with a population of 4.1 million, extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country; it is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. It is Egypt's largest seaport, serving...

. The ships arrived at Alexandria on 29 November, where Arrow and the other escorts joined the Mediterranean Fleet.

January 1942 saw her deploying out of Alexandria, where on 12 January she was the target of a failed attack by an enemy submarine. Arrow then carried out an unsuccessful search for her attacker with HMS Hero

HMS Hero (H99)

HMS Hero was an H-class destroyer built for the Royal Navy in the mid-1930s. During the Spanish Civil War of 1936–1939 the ship enforced the arms blockade imposed by Britain and France on both sides as part of the Mediterranean Fleet...

. On 24 January she formed part of the escort for the Malta convoy

Malta Convoys

The Malta Convoys were a series of Allied supply convoys that sustained the besieged island of Malta during the Mediterranean Theatre of the Second World War...

 MF-4. She sailed for Alexandria on 26 January after the escorting of HMS Breconshire was transferred to the cruiser HMS Penelope

HMS Penelope (97)

HMS Penelope was an Arethusa-class light cruiser of the Royal Navy. She was built by Harland & Wolff , with the keel being laid down on 30 May 1934...

 and the destroyers HMS Lively, Legion, Maori

HMS Maori (F24)

HMS Maori was a Tribal-class destroyer laid down by the Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, Limited, at Govan in Scotland on 6 June 1936, launched on 2 September 1937 by Mrs. W. J. Jordan and commissioned on 2 January 1939...

 and Zulu of Force K

Force K

Force K was the designation for three British Royal Navy task forces during World War II. The first Force K operated from West Africa in 1939. The second and third Force Ks operated from Malta in 1941-1943.-First Force K:...

. Arrow made her return passage on 27 January with Force B, which was escorting Convoy ME-9, which had come from Malta with Force K. Arrow and the convoy arrived at Alexandria on 28 January.

On 12 February she joined the screen for the cruisers HMS Naiad

HMS Naiad (93)

HMS Naiad was a Dido-class light cruiser of the Royal Navy. She was built by Hawthorn Leslie and Company , with the keel being laid down on 26 August 1937. She was launched on 3 February 1939, and commissioned 24 July 1940....

, Dido and Euryalus

HMS Euryalus (42)

HMS Euryalus was a Dido-class cruiser of the Royal Navy. She was built at Chatham Dockyard UK), with the keel being laid down on 21 October 1937. She was launched on 6 June 1939, and commissioned 30 June 1941. Euryalus was the last cruiser that Chatham Dockyard built.-Mediterranean Service:-Second...

 with the destroyers HMS Griffin, Hasty

HMS Hasty (H24)

HMS Hasty was an H-class destroyer built for the Royal Navy during the mid-1930s. She was assigned to the Mediterranean Fleet until the beginning of World War II. The ship transferred to Freetown, Sierra Leone, in October 1939 to hunt for German commerce raiders in the South Atlantic with Force K...

, Havock

HMS Havock (H43)

HMS Havock was an H-class destroyer built for the British Royal Navy in the mid-1930s. During the Spanish Civil War of 1936–1939, the ship enforced the arms blockade imposed by Britain and France on both sides as part of the Mediterranean Fleet...

, Jaguar

HMS Jaguar (F34)

HMS Jaguar was a J class destroyer of the Royal Navy laid down by William Denny, Brothers and Company, Limited, of Dumbarton in Scotland on 25 November 1937, launched on 22 November 1938 and commissioned on 12 September 1939...

, Jervis

HMS Jervis (F00)

HMS Jervis was a J-class destroyer of the Royal Navy named after Admiral John Jervis . Jervis was laid down by R. and W. Hawthorn, Leslie and Company, Limited, at Hebburn-on-Tyne on 26 August 1937...

, Kelvin

HMS Kelvin (F37)

HMS Kelvin was a K-class destroyer of the Royal Navy laid down by the Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, Limited, at Govan in Scotland on 5 October 1937, launched on 19 January 1939 and commissioned on 27 November 1939....

 and Kipling

HMS Kipling (F91)

HMS Kipling was a K-class destroyer of the Royal Navy laid down by Yarrow, Scotstoun on 20 October 1937, launched on 19 January 1939, by the daughter of the poet Rudyard Kipling, and commissioned on 12 December 1939. On 28 December 1941 Kipling sank the German submarine U-75...

, providing cover for the passage of the convoys MW-9 and MW-9A through the Eastern Mediterranean. They came under heavy and sustained air attacks on 13 February, during which SS Clan Campbell was badly damaged and had to be under escort to Tobruk

Tobruk

Tobruk or Tubruq is a city, seaport, and peninsula on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near the border with Egypt. It is the capital of the Butnan District and has a population of 120,000 ....

. The attacks continued throughout 14 February and the SS Clan Chattan had to be abandoned after she caught fire. The escorting force then turned over the escort of MW-9 to Force K, which took the merchants on to Malta, whilst they took over the escort of HMS Breconshire and three merchants of convoy ME-10 from Force K and escorted them into Alexandria. They arrived in port on 15 February. In March Arrow was transferred to 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...

 to reinforce the Eastern Fleet.

With the Eastern Fleet

She joined the Eastern Fleet at Gan

Gan (Seenu Atoll)

Gan is the southernmost island of Addu Atoll, as well as the southernmost island of the Maldives. It is relatively large by Maldive standards....

 on 4 April, where she was deployed as a screen for the battleships HMS Ramillies

HMS Ramillies (07)

HMS Ramillies was a Revenge-class battleship of the Royal Navy, named after the Battle of Ramillies. The ship is notable for having served in both the First and Second World Wars...

, Royal Sovereign, Resolution and Revenge

HMS Revenge (06)

HMS Revenge was the lead ship of the Revenge class of battleships of the Royal Navy, the ninth to bear the name. She was launched during World War I in 1915. Though the class is often referred to as the Royal Sovereign class, official documents of 1914–1918 refer to the class as the Revenge class...

, the aircraft carrier

Aircraft carrier

An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...

 HMS Hermes

HMS Hermes (95)

HMS Hermes was an aircraft carrier built for the Royal Navy. The ship was begun during World War I and finished after the war ended. She was the world's first ship to be designed and built as an aircraft carrier, although the Imperial Japanese Navy's was the first to be commissioned...

, the cruisers HMS Caledon

HMS Caledon (D53)

HMS Caledon was a C-class light cruiser of the British Royal Navy. She was the nameship of the Caledon group of the C-class of cruisers....

, Dragon

HMS Dragon (D46)

HMS Dragon, also known in Polish service as ORP Dragon , was a D- or Danae-class cruiser built for the Royal Navy. She was launched in Glasgow, in December 1917, and scuttled in July 1944 off the Normandy beaches as part of the Arromanches Breakwater.-Pre World War II:One of the fastest-built ships...

 and HNLMS Jacob van Heemskerk

HNLMS Jacob van Heemskerk

HNLMS Jacob van Heemskerck was a Tromp-class light cruiser of the Royal Netherlands Navy, named after Admiral Jacob van Heemskerk ....

 and the destroyers HMS Fortune

HMS Fortune (H70)

HMS Fortune was an F class destroyer of the Royal Navy. She sank a U boat in 1939 and was transferred to Canada in 1943, becoming ....

, Griffin, Norman

HMAS Norman (G49)

HMAS Norman was an N class operated by the Royal Australian Navy during World War II. Entering service in 1941, the ship was on loan from the Royal Navy....

, Vampire

HMAS Vampire (D68)

HMAS Vampire was a V class destroyer of the Royal Navy and Royal Australian Navy . Launched in 1917 as HMS Wallace, the ship was renamed and commissioned into the RN later that year. Vampire was loaned to the RAN in 1933, and operated as a depot tender until just before World War II...

, Decoy

HMS Decoy (H75)

HMS Decoy was a D-class destroyer of the Royal Navy. Ordered in 1931, the ship was constructed by Palmers Shipbuilding and Iron Company, and entered naval service in 1933. Decoy was initially assigned to the Mediterranean Fleet before she was transferred to the China Station in early 1935...

, Scout and HNLMS Isaac Sweers

Gerard Callenburgh class destroyer

The Gerard Callenburgh class were a group of four destroyers ordered for the Royal Netherlands Navy just before World War II. Two ships were completed - the Gerard Callenburgh by the Germans after being captured and the Isaac Sweers in Britain after being evacuated as the Netherlands fell to the...

 as Force B. Arrow was transferred on 6 April with Force B to Kilindini, after the loss of HMS Hermes, and the Japanese air attacks on Ceylon. Arrow deployed on 15 April, providing anti-submarine protection for convoys sailing between Madagascar

Madagascar

The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...

 and the Cape of Good Hope

Cape of Good Hope

The Cape of Good Hope is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa.There is a misconception that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Africa, because it was once believed to be the dividing point between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. In fact, the...

. She was withdrawn from active service on 20 May after suffering a series of defects, and was taken in hand at Durban

Durban

Durban 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...

 on 21 May for a refit.

She resumed her duties on 2 July, and spent August escorting convoys between the Cape of Good Hope and Madagascar. In September she was nominated to support the final occupation of Madagascar. She joined HMS Active

HMS Active (H14)

HMS Active, the tenth Active , launched in 1929, was an A class destroyer. She served in World War II, taking part in the sinking of four submarines. She was broken up in 1947....

, Blackmore

HMS Blackmore (L43)

HMS Blackmore was an escort destroyer of the Hunt Type II class. The Royal Navy ordered Blackmores construction three months after the outbreak of the Second World War. A. Stephen & Sons laid down her keel at their Glasgow yard on 10 February 1941, as Admiralty Job Number J1479...

 and Inconstant

HMS Inconstant (H49)

HMS Inconstant was an I-class destroyer laid down as TCG Muavenet for the Turkish Navy by Vickers Armstrong Naval Construction Works at Barrow-in-Furness on 24 May 1939, purchased in September 1939 by the Royal Navy, launched on 24 February 1941 and commissioned on 24 January 1942.Inconstant...

 in the 3rd Destroyer Division of Force M. On 9 September they provided the escort for the ships of Force M, and covered the landings at Majunga. She was released from the operation on 30 September and was transferred to Freetown, West Africa for convoy defence duties in the South Atlantic. She took up her position there in October, and on 8 October she deployed off Cape Town

Cape Town

Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...

 with HMS Active and Foxhound on anti-submarine search operations, and rescuing survivors from sunken mercantiles. She was again withdrawn from service in November owing to a recurrence of machinery defects. She returned to the UK and was under repair in a commercial shipyard at Middlesbrough from 18 November. These repairs lasted until March 1943, and she returned to Scapa Flow on 26 March for working up. She struck the boom defences on 10 April whilst working up and had to head for London

London

London 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...

 on 11 April for repairs. She was taken in hand on 13 March by Green and Silley Weir at Blackwall

Blackwall Yard

Blackwall Yard was a shipyard on the Thames at Blackwall, London, engaged in ship building and later ship repairs for over 350 years. The yard closed in 1987...

. She was under repair until May, when she returned to Scapa Flow on 30 May for working up.

Gibraltar and Sicily

Having started working up on 3 June, she was assigned to serve with the 13th Destroyer Flotilla at Gibraltar. The working up was completed by 14 June and on 21 June she joined the destroyers HMS Blankney, Blencathra, Brecon, Brissenden, Hambledon, Ledbury

HMS Ledbury (L90)

HMS Ledbury was an escort destroyer of the Hunt Type II class. The Royal Navy ordered Ledbury's construction two days after the outbreak of the Second World War and J. I. Thornycroft Ltd laid down her keel at their Southampton yard on 24 January 1940. Air raid damage to the yard delayed her...

, Mendip

HMS Mendip (L60)

HMS Mendip was a Hunt class destroyer of the Royal Navy. She was a member of the first subgroup of the class. The ship is notable for seeing service in the navies of three other nations after her use by the Royal Navy. She saw service in the Second World War and later as an Egyptian Navy ship in...

, Viscount, Wallace, Witherington and Woolston

HMS Woolston (1918)

HMS Woolston was a W Class destroyer of the Royal Navy. She served through two World Wars, surviving both of them.-Construction, commissioning and early career:...

 in the Clyde as the escort for the joint convoys KMF-17 to Gibraltar and the military convoy WS-31 to the Middle East

Middle East

The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...

 and India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

. Arrow was detached with the ships of KMF-17 on 26 June when the destroyer escort for WS-31 to Freetown arrived from Gibraltar. She then escorted the ships of KMF-17 to Gibraltar with the same destroyers and then joined the Flotilla on arrival. In July she was nominated for duty with Support Force East during the planned landings in Sicily

Allied invasion of Sicily

The Allied invasion of Sicily, codenamed Operation Husky, was a major World War II campaign, in which the Allies took Sicily from the Axis . It was a large scale amphibious and airborne operation, followed by six weeks of land combat. It launched the Italian Campaign.Husky began on the night of...

. She took part in the landings on 10 July with the support force, and was then deployed to escort the follow-up convoys.

Damage and scrapping

Whilst in harbour at Algiers

Algiers

' is the capital and largest city of Algeria. According to the 1998 census, the population of the city proper was 1,519,570 and that of the urban agglomeration was 2,135,630. In 2009, the population was about 3,500,000...

 on 4 August Arrow was set on fire by the explosion of the merchant ship SS Fort La Montee. She sustained heavy damage, suffered many casualties and ended up disabled. She was towed to Gibraltar, arriving there on 18 September to undergo repairs. Temporary repairs were carried out throughout October, before she was towed to Taranto

Taranto

Taranto is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Taranto and is an important commercial port as well as the main Italian naval base....

 for permanent repairs. She left Gibraltar on 19 November, arriving at Taranto on 27 November. A survey was carried out in December to assess the extent of work required, and January to September 1944 was spent under repair. As the repairs continued, the state of the ship was found to be increasingly unsatisfactory, and her future use was now under consideration. On 17 October it was decided that repair work was to be suspended and the ship was to be de-equipped. This was carried out by December, and by January 1945 the ship was a hulk

Hulk (ship)

A hulk is a ship that is afloat, but incapable of going to sea. Although sometimes used to describe a ship that has been launched but not completed, the term most often refers to an old ship that has had its rigging or internal equipment removed, retaining only its flotational qualities...

at Taranto. She remained there until May 1949, when she was broken up.