HMS Orchis (K76)

Underway in the River Clyde, December 1942
History
United Kingdom
Name: HMS Orchis
Builder: Harland and Wolff[1]
Yard number: 1075[1]
Laid down: 18 June 1940
Launched: 15 October 1940
Completed: 29 November 1940[1]
Commissioned: 29 November 1940
Identification: Pennant number: K76
Fate: Mined off Juno Beach 21 August 1944
General characteristics
Class and type: Flower-class corvette
Displacement: 925 long tons[2]
Length: 205 ft (62 m) o/a[2]
Beam: 33 ft (10 m)[2]
Draught: 11 ft 6 in (3.51 m)
Propulsion:
  • 1 × 4-cycle triple-expansion reciprocating steam engine
  • 2 × fire tube Scotch boilers
  • Single shaft
  • 2,750 ihp (2,050 kW)[2]
Speed: 16 kn (30 km/h)[2]
Range: 3,500 nmi (6,500 km) at 12 kn (22 km/h)
Complement: 90[2]
Sensors and
processing systems:
  • 1 × Type 271 radar from March 1941[3]
  • 1 × Type 123A or Type 127DV sonar
Armament:
Service record
Operations: Battle of the Atlantic

HMS Orchis was a Flower-class corvette that served in the Royal Navy during World War II.

North Atlantic Trade Convoy Escort

In March 1941, Orchis was the first ship fitted with the very successful 10-cm wavelength Type 271 radar enabling detection of a surfaced submarine at 5000 yards or a submarine periscope at 1300 yards.[3] Orchis was assigned first to the 4th Escort Group based at Greenock[4] and then to Escort Group B3 of the Mid-Ocean Escort Force through early 1944.[5] Orchis escorted convoy ONS-18 during the battle of Convoys ONS-18/ON-202.[6]

English Channel

Orchis was then assigned to patrol the English Channel, and sank German submarine U-741 on 15 August 1944.[7] U-741 torpedoed LST-404 of convoy FTM-69 while Orchis was escorting nearby convoy FTC-68. Orchis gained and held sonar contact on U-741 and flooded the forward part of the U-boat with two Hedgehog attacks and two depth charge attacks. Leo Leuwer escaped from the aft torpedo-room hatch of the sunken U-boat, and was rescued by Orchis.[8]

On 21 August 1944, Orchis struck a mine that destroyed the bow back to the 4-inch gun. The damaged ship was beached on Juno Beach and declared a total loss.[9][10]

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 McCluskie, Tom (2013). The Rise and Fall of Harland and Wolff. Stroud: The History Press. p. 148. ISBN 9780752488615.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Brown(1995)p.178
  3. 1 2 Macintyre, Donald, CAPT RN "Shipborne Radar" United States Naval Institute Proceedings September 1967 p.80
  4. ↑ Rohwer&Hummelchen(1992)p.89
  5. ↑ Rohwer&Hummelchen(1992)pp.170,185,188,198,212,227,228,234,235,239,241&259
  6. ↑ Rohwer&Hummelchen(1992)pp.235-236
  7. ↑ Rohwer&Hummelchen(1992)p.291
  8. ↑ Blair(1998)p.613
  9. ↑ Brown(1995)p.119
  10. ↑ Rohwer&Hummelchen(1992)p.299

References

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