HMS Indefatigable (R10)

HMS Indefatigable (R10)

HMS Indefatigable was an Implacable-class aircraft carrier built for the Royal Navy during World War II. She was completed in 1944, and her aircraft made several attacks against the German battleship Tirpitz, inflicting only light damage. The ship was transferred to the British Pacific Fleet at the end of the year and attacked Japanese-controlled oil refineries in Sumatra in January 1945. She joined the American forces in March as they prepared to invade the island of Okinawa in Operation Iceberg. After returning to the UK in early 1946, she was modified for transport duties, and ferried troops and civilians for the rest of that year. In 1950 she was recommissioned as a training ship for service with the

About HMS Indefatigable (R10) in brief

Summary HMS Indefatigable (R10)HMS Indefatigable was an Implacable-class aircraft carrier built for the Royal Navy during World War II. She was completed in 1944, and her aircraft made several attacks against the German battleship Tirpitz, inflicting only light damage. The ship was transferred to the British Pacific Fleet at the end of the year and attacked Japanese-controlled oil refineries in Sumatra in January 1945. She joined the American forces in March as they prepared to invade the island of Okinawa in Operation Iceberg. After returning to the UK in early 1946, she was modified for transport duties, and ferried troops and civilians for the rest of that year before she was reduced to reserve. In 1950 she was recommissioned as a training ship for service with the Home Fleet Training Squadron, participating in exercises and making several port visits overseas. The Board of Admiralty decided that she was redundant in early 1954 and decommissioned her later that year. In 1966 she was sold for scrap and she was scrapped the following year. She is now listed as a museum ship in the National Museum of Naval History and Heritage, Greenwich, London. She has been preserved in the Museum’s collection of World War Two memorabilia, along with other ships of the British Royal Navy, including HMS Indef atigable and HMS Independence. She also has a commemorative plaque on the side of her hull. The Implacables class were ordered under the 1938 Naval Programme by the Chamberlain government as part of the general rearmament begun in response to the rise of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy.

The design originated as an improved version of the Illustrious- class aircraft carriers and was intended to be 2 knots faster and carry an additional dozen aircraft over the 30-knot speed and 36 aircraft of the earlier ships. The ships had four Parsons geared steam turbines, each driving one shaft, using steam supplied by eight Admiralty 3-drum boilers. The turbines were designed to produce a total of 148,000 shp, enough to give the IndefAtigable- class ships a maximum speed of 32. 5 knots. The 760-foot armoured flight deck had a maximum width of 102 feet. A single hydraulic aircraft catapult was fitted on the forward part of the flight deck. The aircraft carriers were significantly overweight and displaced 32,110 long tons at deep load. They had metacentric heights of 4. 06 feet at light load and 6. 91 feet at deep load as completed. Each hangar had a height of only 14 feet which precluded storage of Lend-Lease Vought F4U Corsair fighters as well as many post-war aircraft and helicopters. The ships were provided with 94,650 imperial gallons of aviation gasoline. The main armament consisted of sixteen quick-firing 4.5-inch twin-gun turrets, four in each side of the hull and two on the port side. The QF 2-pounder anti-aircraft anti-craft gun was also fitted.