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HMS Nairana (D05)
Encyclopedia
HMS Nairana (D05) was the lead ship of the Royal Navy
's s that saw service in the Second World War
. She was built at John Brown & Company
shipyards in Clydebank
, Scotland
. When construction started in 1941 she was intended as a merchant ship, but was completed and launched as an escort carrier, entering service at the end of 1943.
Nairana operated escorting convoys and doing anti-submarine work in the Atlantic and Arctic
theatres. On 26 May 1944, Royal Navy Sea Hurricanes operating from Nairana claimed the destruction of three Junkers Ju 290
s during the defence of a convoy. This represented 10 percent of the total German inventory of the type. She survived the war, and in 1946 was transferred to the Dutch Navy
as the Karel Doorman (QH1), the first Dutch aircraft carrier. In 1948, she was replaced in the Dutch Navy by another vessel of the same name
. Nairana was returned to the Royal Navy, and sold to the Port Line
company, becoming the merchant ship Port Victor.
decided to take over three more merchant ships while they were still under construction and convert them into escort carriers. The three ships chosen were being built at three different shipyards Harland and Wolff
in Northern Ireland
, Swan Hunter
in England
and John Brown & Company
in Scotland
. The prototype was built by John Brown who supplied the other two companies with copies of the plans. The three ships were supposed to be identical but in reality they were all slightly different.
HMS Nairana—built by John Brown was launched on 20 May 1943 and completed on 12 December 1943. She had a complement of 728 men and displaced 14050 LT (14,275.5 t). Her other dimensions were a length of 528 in 6 in (161.09 m), a beam
of 68 in 6 in (20.88 m) and a draught of 21 ft (6.4 m). Her aircraft facilities included a 495 ft (150.9 m) flight deck, a hangar measuring 231 by 61 ft (70.4 by 18.6 m), eight arrestor wires and an aircraft lift measuring 45 by 34 ft (13.7 by 10.4 m).
She had a traditional rivet
ted hull, steel flight decks and a closed hangar. Propulsion was provided by diesel engine
s connected to two shafts giving 11000 hp, which could propel the ship at 17 kn (20.7 mph; 33.3 km/h). Her armaments concentrated on anti-aircraft
(AA) defence and comprised two 4 in (101.6 mm)
dual purpose gun
s on a twin mount, sixteen 20 mm (0.78740157480315 in)
AA autocannon
s on eight twin mounts and sixteen 2-Pounder "Pom Pom" AA gun
s on four quadruple mounts. Aircraft assigned were either anti-submarine
or fighter
aircraft, which could be made up of a mixture of Hawker Sea Hurricanes, Grumman Wildcats or Fairey Swordfish
.
for working up. Nairana with 835 Naval Air Squadron Fleet Air Arm
on board commenced flying exercises with Activity on 27 January 1944. Both carriers left the River Clyde
on 29 January with the 2nd Escort Group under the command of Captain
Frederic John Walker
. They were to form a "hunter killer group" in the waters west of Ireland, providing cover for two southbound convoys OS 66 and KMS 70. Weather conditions had prohibited flying until 31 January. With clearer weather Nairana turned into the wind to send off her first anti-submarine patrol. At the same time, reported contact with a submerged U-boat on her ASDIC. Warning Nairana that she had just turned into danger, the carrier took avoiding action. was sunk by Wild Goose and Walker's own ship , while a Fairey Swordfish from Nairana circled the area.
At the end of May 1944, Nairana sailed with the 15th Escort Group. Her air group was still 835 Naval Air Squadron equipped with nine Swordfish and six Sea Hurricanes. The Swordfish patrolled day and night and some contacts were made on the air to surface vessel radar (ASV). All the contact come to nothing; it is now known the older model ASV in Nairanas Swordfish could be detected by receivers on board U-boats. In May, they escorted convoys SL 157 (Freetown
to Britainm) with MKS 48 (Mediterranean to Britain) and the next group SL 158 with MKS 49. On 25 May, the convoys were located by German Junkers Ju 290
reconnaissance aircraft. From then until the next morning, they were driven off undamaged, but one Sea Hurricane failed to pull out of a dive killing the pilot. On 26 May 1944, shortly after daybreak, a Sea Hurricane piloted by Sub Lieutenant Burgham from Nairana shot down Ju 290 9K+FK of FAGr 5 over the Bay of Biscay. The afternoon of the same day, Sub Lieutenants Mearns and Wallis attacked two more Ju 290s, Mearns shooting down 9V+GK piloted by Kurt Nonneberg, which ditched in the sea. The other Ju 290 disappeared on fire into cloud and was assumed to have crashed.
Russian convoy JW 61—which sailed on 20 October—had three escort carriers, Nairana, and . This was a large convoy of 62 merchant ships with a large escort group. Vice-Admiral Frederick Dalrymple-Hamilton
was in command with Vindex as his flagship
. Nairana had 835 Naval Air Squadron with 14 Swordfish IIIs and six Wildcat VIs on board for what would be their first Arctic convoy. Vindex had the same aircraft types and numbers. The third carrier—Tracker—had 10 Grumman Avengers and six Wildcats. The short Arctic days meant that most flying would be at night. The three carriers worked a system of eight-hour watches; one would be the duty carrier with its aircraft aloft, the second would be on standby with its aircraft arranged on deck ready to scramble
and the third resting. The two Swordfish-equipped squadrons, because of their better night-flying equipment, shared the nighttime hours while Trackers Avengers worked the daylight hours. The strength of the convoy's escort may have deterred the Germans and no U-boats or reconnaissance aircraft were detected until the convoy approached the Kola Inlet; even then the heavy escort prevented any attack and the convoy reached port safely. The return convoy RA 61 was equally as successful with only one frigate damaged by a torpedo just after leaving Kola and Vindex had to take avoiding action after detecting a torpedo coming towards her. Vindexs inexperienced squadron lost a Wildcat pilot when his plane crashed into the sea attempting to land back on board. A Swordfish crashed into the sea following a rocket-assisted take off with the loss of the two man crew. Another Swordfish crashed on landing with the aircraft initially hung over the ship's side from its tail hook. When the hook gave way, it crashed into the sea and only the pilot was rescued. The squadron in total lost or so severely damaged eight Swordfish and two Wildcats that they could not fly again.
On 6 February 1945, Nairana, , the cruiser
, and eight fleet destroyers joined 26 merchant ships in convoy JW64. This time, the squadrons had spare aircrews for their aircraft and Campanias squadron included a Fairey Fulmar
fitted with a Royal Air Force
A1 air-to-air interception radar, for use as a dedicated night fighter. Shortly after the escorts and convoy came together Campanias radar operator reported a target approaching. Both carriers scrambled two Wildcats to intercept the intruder. Campanias Wildcats arrived first and shot down a Junkers Ju 88
; one of the Wildcats was also shot down with the loss of the pilot. The next morning at 07:45, Campanias radar detected aircraft approaching. Two groups of Junkers Ju 88 torpedo bombers appeared and the convoy's escorts opened fire. The ships manoeuvred to avoid the torpedo attack and Nairanas Wildcats were airborne by 08:10. No ships were hit during the attacks and the bombers evaded the fighters in the heavy cloud cover. Campanias Swordfish were flying the daylight anti-submarine patrols, with a mixed armament of four RP-3 rockets and two depth charges.
On 7 November, 835 Squadron claimed a Junkers Ju 88 damaged. The long Arctic night with only four hours of light a day—together with heavy seas and low visibility—hampered any operations by the Wildcats. In the darkness, the ships could hear the engines of the shadowing German aircraft closing in. Campanias night fighting Fulmar took off at 17:30, but its electrics failed as it was approaching the German aircraft and it was forced to return to the carrier. The Fulmar landed off centre and crashed into the safety barrier, putting itself and the carrier out of action. On 10 November, a Swordfish on anti-submarine patrol reported 30 Junkers Ju 88s approaching the convoy. The Wildcats took off to intercept the torpedo bombers and the escorts opened fire on them. The combined fire from the escorts and the Wildcats shot down four Ju 88s, two more were claimed as probably shot down by the Wildcats, and another was severely damaged. Those Ju 88s that did release their torpedoes failed to hit any of the ships and a number of the torpedoes were seen to detonate in the ships' wakes, as they turned away from the attack. Two of the Wildcats were also shot down by the barrage from the escorts. The combined losses had reduced the escort's fighter cover to three aircraft, one on Campania and two on Nairana. At 11:30, another group of Ju 88 torpedo bombers were discovered approaching. Nairanas Wildcats took off and shot one down. The others, under fire from the escorts, dropped their torpedoes too soon and they all missed.
The return convoy RA 64 left Kola Inlet on the morning of 17 February. One of the escorts and a merchant ship were torpedoed almost immediately. Another merchant ship was torpedoed that afternoon. Terrible weather conditions kept all aircraft grounded until 20 February. When it began to clear, the Luftwaffe also appeared and the Wildcats were scrambled to intercept them. Two Ju 88s were shot down by the fighters, another two by the escorts, and three were damaged. The convoys had lost to enemy action two fighters, two escorts and two merchant ships. In return, they claimed 15 aircraft destroyed, seven aircraft probably destroyed and one U-boat sunk. Campania did one more Russian convoy JW 65 in March 1945, which had two merchant ships torpedoed and sunk on their approach to Kola Inlet. These were the last losses on a Russian convoy.
With the war over there was no further need for escort carriers. Nairana was transferred to the Royal Netherlands Navy
in 1946. In Dutch service, she was renamed HNLMS Karel Doorman until 1948, when she was converted into a merchantman named the Port Victor. Until March 1968, Port Victor was owned by the Cunard Line
but managed by the Blue Star Port Lines. She eventually became owned by Port Line in 1971; on July 21, she was sent to Faslane to be scrapped.
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...
's s that saw service in the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. She was built at John Brown & Company
John Brown & Company
John Brown and Company of Clydebank was a pre-eminent Scottish marine engineering and shipbuilding firm, responsible for building many notable and world-famous ships, such as the , the , the , the , the , and the...
shipyards in Clydebank
Clydebank
Clydebank is a town in West Dunbartonshire, in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. Situated on the north bank of the River Clyde, Clydebank borders Dumbarton, the town with which it was combined to form West Dunbartonshire, as well as the town of Milngavie in East Dunbartonshire, and the Yoker and...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. When construction started in 1941 she was intended as a merchant ship, but was completed and launched as an escort carrier, entering service at the end of 1943.
Nairana operated escorting convoys and doing anti-submarine work in the Atlantic and Arctic
Arctic convoys of World War II
The Arctic convoys of World War II travelled from the United Kingdom and North America to the northern ports of the Soviet Union—Arkhangelsk and Murmansk. There were 78 convoys between August 1941 and May 1945...
theatres. On 26 May 1944, Royal Navy Sea Hurricanes operating from Nairana claimed the destruction of three Junkers Ju 290
Junkers Ju 290
The Junkers Ju 290 was a long-range transport, maritime patrol aircraft and heavy bomber used by the Luftwaffe late in World War II.-Design and development:...
s during the defence of a convoy. This represented 10 percent of the total German inventory of the type. She survived the war, and in 1946 was transferred to the Dutch Navy
Royal Netherlands Navy
The Koninklijke Marine is the navy of the Netherlands. In the mid-17th century the Dutch Navy was the most powerful navy in the world and it played an active role in the wars of the Dutch Republic and later those of the Batavian Republic and the Kingdom of the Netherlands...
as the Karel Doorman (QH1), the first Dutch aircraft carrier. In 1948, she was replaced in the Dutch Navy by another vessel of the same name
HNLMS Karel Doorman (R81)
HNLMS Karel Doorman was a Colossus-class aircraft carrier of the Royal Netherlands Navy. The ship was the British HMS Venerable before she was sold in 1948 to the Netherlands as a light attack carrier. In 1960 she was involved in the decolonization conflict in Western New Guinea with Indonesia...
. Nairana was returned to the Royal Navy, and sold to the Port Line
Port Line
Port Line may refer to:*Port Line - a British Merchant Navy company*SR Merchant Navy Class 35027 Port Line - a preserved British steam locomotive...
company, becoming the merchant ship Port Victor.
Design and description
The Nairanas were a class of three escort carriers built for the Royal Navy during the Second World War. Escort carriers were designed to protect convoys of merchant ships from U-boat and aircraft attack. Following the successful conversion and operation of , the AdmiraltyAdmiralty
The Admiralty was formerly the authority in the Kingdom of England, and later in the United Kingdom, responsible for the command of the Royal Navy...
decided to take over three more merchant ships while they were still under construction and convert them into escort carriers. The three ships chosen were being built at three different shipyards Harland and Wolff
Harland and Wolff
Harland and Wolff Heavy Industries is a Northern Irish heavy industrial company, specialising in shipbuilding and offshore construction, located in Belfast, Northern Ireland....
in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
, Swan Hunter
Swan Hunter
Swan Hunter, formerly known as "Swan Hunter & Wigham Richardson", was one of the best known shipbuilding companies in the world. Based in Wallsend, Tyne and Wear, the company was responsible for some of the greatest ships of the early 20th century — most famously, the RMS Mauretania which...
in 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 John Brown & Company
John Brown & Company
John Brown and Company of Clydebank was a pre-eminent Scottish marine engineering and shipbuilding firm, responsible for building many notable and world-famous ships, such as the , the , the , the , the , and the...
in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. The prototype was built by John Brown who supplied the other two companies with copies of the plans. The three ships were supposed to be identical but in reality they were all slightly different.
HMS Nairana—built by John Brown was launched on 20 May 1943 and completed on 12 December 1943. She had a complement of 728 men and displaced 14050 LT (14,275.5 t). Her other dimensions were a length of 528 in 6 in (161.09 m), a beam
Beam (nautical)
The beam of a ship is its width at the widest point. Generally speaking, the wider the beam of a ship , the more initial stability it has, at expense of reserve stability in the event of a capsize, where more energy is required to right the vessel from its inverted position...
of 68 in 6 in (20.88 m) and a draught of 21 ft (6.4 m). Her aircraft facilities included a 495 ft (150.9 m) flight deck, a hangar measuring 231 by 61 ft (70.4 by 18.6 m), eight arrestor wires and an aircraft lift measuring 45 by 34 ft (13.7 by 10.4 m).
She had a traditional rivet
Rivet
A rivet is a permanent mechanical fastener. Before being installed a rivet consists of a smooth cylindrical shaft with a head on one end. The end opposite the head is called the buck-tail. On installation the rivet is placed in a punched or pre-drilled hole, and the tail is upset, or bucked A rivet...
ted hull, steel flight decks and a closed hangar. Propulsion was provided by diesel engine
Diesel engine
A diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...
s connected to two shafts giving 11000 hp, which could propel the ship at 17 kn (20.7 mph; 33.3 km/h). Her armaments concentrated on anti-aircraft
Anti-aircraft warfare
NATO defines air defence as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action." They include ground and air based weapon systems, associated sensor systems, command and control arrangements and passive measures. It may be to protect naval, ground and air forces...
(AA) defence and comprised two 4 in (101.6 mm)
QF 4 inch Mk V naval gun
The QF 4 inch Mk V gun was a Royal Navy gun of World War I which was adapted on HA mountings to the heavy anti-aircraft role both at sea and on land, and was also used as a coast defence gun.-Naval service:...
dual purpose gun
Dual purpose gun
A dual purpose gun is a naval artillery mounting designed to engage both surface and air targets.-Description:Second World War-era capital ships had four classes of artillery: the heavy main battery, intended to engage opposing battleships and cruisers ; a secondary battery for use against enemy...
s on a twin mount, sixteen 20 mm (0.78740157480315 in)
Oerlikon 20 mm cannon
The Oerlikon 20 mm cannon is a series of autocannons, based on an original design by Reinhold Becker of Germany, very early in World War I, and widely produced by Oerlikon Contraves and others...
AA autocannon
Autocannon
An autocannon or automatic cannon is a rapid-fire projectile weapon firing a shell as opposed to the bullet fired by a machine gun. Autocannons often have a larger caliber than a machine gun . Usually, autocannons are smaller than a field gun or other artillery, and are mechanically loaded for a...
s on eight twin mounts and sixteen 2-Pounder "Pom Pom" AA gun
QF 2 pounder naval gun
The 2-pounder gun, officially designated the QF 2-pounder and universally known as the pom-pom, was a 1.575 inch British autocannon, used famously as an anti-aircraft gun by the Royal Navy. The name came from the sound that the original models make when firing...
s on four quadruple mounts. Aircraft assigned were either anti-submarine
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....
or fighter
Fighter aircraft
A fighter aircraft is a military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat with other aircraft, as opposed to a bomber, which is designed primarily to attack ground targets...
aircraft, which could be made up of a mixture of Hawker Sea Hurricanes, Grumman Wildcats or Fairey Swordfish
Fairey Swordfish
The Fairey Swordfish was a torpedo bomber built by the Fairey Aviation Company and used by the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy during the Second World War...
.
Service history
Nairana was commissioned in December 1943, and moved to GourockGourock
Gourock is a town falling within the Inverclyde council area and formerly forming a burgh of the historic county of Renfrewshire in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. It has in the past functioned as a seaside resort on the Firth of Clyde...
for working up. Nairana with 835 Naval Air Squadron Fleet Air Arm
Fleet Air Arm
The Fleet Air Arm is the branch of the British Royal Navy responsible for the operation of naval aircraft. The Fleet Air Arm currently operates the AgustaWestland Merlin, Westland Sea King and Westland Lynx helicopters...
on board commenced flying exercises with Activity on 27 January 1944. Both carriers left the River 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....
on 29 January with the 2nd Escort Group under the command of Captain
Captain (naval)
Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The NATO rank code is OF-5, equivalent to an army full colonel....
Frederic John Walker
Frederic John Walker
Captain Frederic John Walker, CB, DSO and three Bars, RN was a British Royal Navy officer noted for his exploits during World War II...
. They were to form a "hunter killer group" in the waters west of Ireland, providing cover for two southbound convoys OS 66 and KMS 70. Weather conditions had prohibited flying until 31 January. With clearer weather Nairana turned into the wind to send off her first anti-submarine patrol. At the same time, reported contact with a submerged U-boat on her ASDIC. Warning Nairana that she had just turned into danger, the carrier took avoiding action. was sunk by Wild Goose and Walker's own ship , while a Fairey Swordfish from Nairana circled the area.
At the end of May 1944, Nairana sailed with the 15th Escort Group. Her air group was still 835 Naval Air Squadron equipped with nine Swordfish and six Sea Hurricanes. The Swordfish patrolled day and night and some contacts were made on the air to surface vessel radar (ASV). All the contact come to nothing; it is now known the older model ASV in Nairanas Swordfish could be detected by receivers on board U-boats. In May, they escorted convoys SL 157 (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...
to Britainm) with MKS 48 (Mediterranean to Britain) and the next group SL 158 with MKS 49. On 25 May, the convoys were located by German Junkers Ju 290
Junkers Ju 290
The Junkers Ju 290 was a long-range transport, maritime patrol aircraft and heavy bomber used by the Luftwaffe late in World War II.-Design and development:...
reconnaissance aircraft. From then until the next morning, they were driven off undamaged, but one Sea Hurricane failed to pull out of a dive killing the pilot. On 26 May 1944, shortly after daybreak, a Sea Hurricane piloted by Sub Lieutenant Burgham from Nairana shot down Ju 290 9K+FK of FAGr 5 over the Bay of Biscay. The afternoon of the same day, Sub Lieutenants Mearns and Wallis attacked two more Ju 290s, Mearns shooting down 9V+GK piloted by Kurt Nonneberg, which ditched in the sea. The other Ju 290 disappeared on fire into cloud and was assumed to have crashed.
Russian convoy JW 61—which sailed on 20 October—had three escort carriers, Nairana, and . This was a large convoy of 62 merchant ships with a large escort group. Vice-Admiral Frederick Dalrymple-Hamilton
Frederick Dalrymple-Hamilton
Admiral Sir Frederick Hew George Dalrymple-Hamilton KCB was a British naval officer who served in World War I and World War II.-Naval career:...
was in command with Vindex as his flagship
Flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...
. Nairana had 835 Naval Air Squadron with 14 Swordfish IIIs and six Wildcat VIs on board for what would be their first Arctic convoy. Vindex had the same aircraft types and numbers. The third carrier—Tracker—had 10 Grumman Avengers and six Wildcats. The short Arctic days meant that most flying would be at night. The three carriers worked a system of eight-hour watches; one would be the duty carrier with its aircraft aloft, the second would be on standby with its aircraft arranged on deck ready to scramble
Scrambling (military)
In military aviation scrambling or a scramble is the act of quickly getting fighter aircraft airborne to intercept hostile aircraft.-Historical use:...
and the third resting. The two Swordfish-equipped squadrons, because of their better night-flying equipment, shared the nighttime hours while Trackers Avengers worked the daylight hours. The strength of the convoy's escort may have deterred the Germans and no U-boats or reconnaissance aircraft were detected until the convoy approached the Kola Inlet; even then the heavy escort prevented any attack and the convoy reached port safely. The return convoy RA 61 was equally as successful with only one frigate damaged by a torpedo just after leaving Kola and Vindex had to take avoiding action after detecting a torpedo coming towards her. Vindexs inexperienced squadron lost a Wildcat pilot when his plane crashed into the sea attempting to land back on board. A Swordfish crashed into the sea following a rocket-assisted take off with the loss of the two man crew. Another Swordfish crashed on landing with the aircraft initially hung over the ship's side from its tail hook. When the hook gave way, it crashed into the sea and only the pilot was rescued. The squadron in total lost or so severely damaged eight Swordfish and two Wildcats that they could not fly again.
On 6 February 1945, Nairana, , the cruiser
Cruiser
A cruiser is a type of warship. The term has been in use for several hundreds of years, and has had different meanings throughout this period...
, and eight fleet destroyers joined 26 merchant ships in convoy JW64. This time, the squadrons had spare aircrews for their aircraft and Campanias squadron included a Fairey Fulmar
Fairey Fulmar
The Fairey Fulmar was a British carrier-borne fighter aircraft that served with the Fleet Air Arm during the Second World War. A total of 600 were built by Fairey Aviation at its Stockport factory between January 1940 and December 1942...
fitted with a Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
A1 air-to-air interception radar, for use as a dedicated night fighter. Shortly after the escorts and convoy came together Campanias radar operator reported a target approaching. Both carriers scrambled two Wildcats to intercept the intruder. Campanias Wildcats arrived first and shot down a Junkers Ju 88
Junkers Ju 88
The Junkers Ju 88 was a World War II German Luftwaffe twin-engine, multi-role aircraft. Designed by Hugo Junkers' company through the services of two American aviation engineers in the mid-1930s, it suffered from a number of technical problems during the later stages of its development and early...
; one of the Wildcats was also shot down with the loss of the pilot. The next morning at 07:45, Campanias radar detected aircraft approaching. Two groups of Junkers Ju 88 torpedo bombers appeared and the convoy's escorts opened fire. The ships manoeuvred to avoid the torpedo attack and Nairanas Wildcats were airborne by 08:10. No ships were hit during the attacks and the bombers evaded the fighters in the heavy cloud cover. Campanias Swordfish were flying the daylight anti-submarine patrols, with a mixed armament of four RP-3 rockets and two depth charges.
On 7 November, 835 Squadron claimed a Junkers Ju 88 damaged. The long Arctic night with only four hours of light a day—together with heavy seas and low visibility—hampered any operations by the Wildcats. In the darkness, the ships could hear the engines of the shadowing German aircraft closing in. Campanias night fighting Fulmar took off at 17:30, but its electrics failed as it was approaching the German aircraft and it was forced to return to the carrier. The Fulmar landed off centre and crashed into the safety barrier, putting itself and the carrier out of action. On 10 November, a Swordfish on anti-submarine patrol reported 30 Junkers Ju 88s approaching the convoy. The Wildcats took off to intercept the torpedo bombers and the escorts opened fire on them. The combined fire from the escorts and the Wildcats shot down four Ju 88s, two more were claimed as probably shot down by the Wildcats, and another was severely damaged. Those Ju 88s that did release their torpedoes failed to hit any of the ships and a number of the torpedoes were seen to detonate in the ships' wakes, as they turned away from the attack. Two of the Wildcats were also shot down by the barrage from the escorts. The combined losses had reduced the escort's fighter cover to three aircraft, one on Campania and two on Nairana. At 11:30, another group of Ju 88 torpedo bombers were discovered approaching. Nairanas Wildcats took off and shot one down. The others, under fire from the escorts, dropped their torpedoes too soon and they all missed.
The return convoy RA 64 left Kola Inlet on the morning of 17 February. One of the escorts and a merchant ship were torpedoed almost immediately. Another merchant ship was torpedoed that afternoon. Terrible weather conditions kept all aircraft grounded until 20 February. When it began to clear, the Luftwaffe also appeared and the Wildcats were scrambled to intercept them. Two Ju 88s were shot down by the fighters, another two by the escorts, and three were damaged. The convoys had lost to enemy action two fighters, two escorts and two merchant ships. In return, they claimed 15 aircraft destroyed, seven aircraft probably destroyed and one U-boat sunk. Campania did one more Russian convoy JW 65 in March 1945, which had two merchant ships torpedoed and sunk on their approach to Kola Inlet. These were the last losses on a Russian convoy.
With the war over there was no further need for escort carriers. Nairana was transferred to the Royal Netherlands Navy
Royal Netherlands Navy
The Koninklijke Marine is the navy of the Netherlands. In the mid-17th century the Dutch Navy was the most powerful navy in the world and it played an active role in the wars of the Dutch Republic and later those of the Batavian Republic and the Kingdom of the Netherlands...
in 1946. In Dutch service, she was renamed HNLMS Karel Doorman until 1948, when she was converted into a merchantman named the Port Victor. Until March 1968, Port Victor was owned by the Cunard Line
Cunard Line
Cunard Line is a British-American owned shipping company based at Carnival House in Southampton, England and operated by Carnival UK. It has been a leading operator of passenger ships on the North Atlantic for over a century...
but managed by the Blue Star Port Lines. She eventually became owned by Port Line in 1971; on July 21, she was sent to Faslane to be scrapped.