History
United Kingdom
NameHMS Tern (T64)[1]
Ordered14 January 1926[1]
BuilderYarrow & Co., Glasgow[2]
Launched29 August 1927[2]
CommissionedNovember 1927[1]
FateScuttled 19 December 1941[2]
General characteristics [2][3]
TypeRiver gunboat
Displacement262 long tons (266 t)
Length168 ft (51 m)o/a
Beam27 ft (8.2 m)
Draught4 ft 3 in (1.30 m)
Installed power
Propulsion2-shaft geared turbines
Speed14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph)
Complement55
Armament

HMS Tern was a river gunboat built for the Royal Navy by Yarrow in 1927.

Design

Tern and her sister ship HMS Seamew were river gunboats ordered under the Royal Navy 1926 Estimates,[4] and were sometimes referred to as Tern-class river gunboats.[2] They sported two masts[2] and was propelled by twin-screw propellers with geared steam turbines, giving them a top speed of 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph). The ships were protected by bulletproof plating to the bridges along with gun shields.[4] They were introduced with HMS Peterel and HMS Gannet as modern vessels for use in China. The four vessels were sometimes grouped in the same class, despite Tern and Seamew having a smaller and shorter design than the latter two vessels.[5]

Service

Tern was constructed by Yarrow in Scotstoun in 1927, with the yard number 1528.[2][3] After her construction, she was broken down into sections and transported to Hong Kong, where she was reassembled and launched.[3] After her reconstruction she served in the Yangtze.[4]

In 1941, she was transferred back to Hong Kong.[4] In December, she took part in the Battle of Hong Kong. On 11 December, she assisted in the evacuation of British forces from Kowloon to Hong Kong Island.[6] On 12 or 13 December, she shot down a Japanese aircraft.[3][7] She was scuttled in Deep Water Bay on 19 December, to prevent capture by the Japanese.[2]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "HMS Tern (T 64)". uboat.net. Guðmundur Helgason. Archived from the original on 29 September 2020. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Steam Turbine TERN built by Yarrow & Co. Ltd. in 1928 for Admiralty, Naval". Scottish Built Ships. Caledonian Maritime Research Trust. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Tern 1927 HMS - River Gunboat". ClydeMaritime. 29 August 2012. Archived from the original on 25 February 2021. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Branfill-Cook, Roger (30 August 2016). "HMS Tern and Seamew". River Gunboats: An Illustrated Encyclopaedia. Pen & Sword Books. ISBN 978-1-84832-380-3.
  5. ↑ "River Gunboats: China". Naval technology and life on board. Archived from the original on 25 February 2021. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
  6. ↑ Banham, Tony (2003). Not the Slightest Chance: The Defence of Hong Kong, 1941. UBC Press. p. 53. ISBN 978-0-7748-1045-6.
  7. ↑ Banham, Tony (2003). Not the Slightest Chance: The Defence of Hong Kong, 1941. UBC Press. p. 70. ISBN 978-0-7748-1045-6.
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