USS Auk (1941-45+)
In 1940, under the auspices of Lend/Lease, the Royal Navy went shopping for
all of the ships it could get. They were shown plans for Destroyer Escorts and
Frigates, the answer was 'Yes, we will have some of those'. They were shown over
the Raven type minesweeper/escorts. 'Yes, we will have some of those, please'.
The British at this stage of the war were desperate for everything they could
get to keep them in the war. 50 old destroyers? Yes please. Whatever they were
offered they took. The US was gearing up for what it could see was another war,
possibly on two fronts. Large numbers of all types of ships would be needed and
if a few went to the Royal Navy and other Allied Navies that could only be good
for the war effort. This class of minesweeper/escorts were known as the Auk
Class in the US Navy and the Catherine Class in the Royal Navy. Nearly two
hundred were built over the course of the war.
While the US Navy built their Auk class as minesweepers, the Royal Navy needed escorts and that is what they converted their members of the class into. The other major difference was the US ships had a main armament of two 5"/25cal dual purpose guns, while the UK versions were fitted with two 4" HA/LA of their standard type.
| Displacement | 1,250 tons std 1,700 tons full load | |
| Length | 262 ft | |
| Breadth | 34 ft | |
| Draught | 10 ft | |
| Machinery | 2 shaft diesel electric, 10,000shp | |
| Speed | 24 knots | |
| Range | 6500 miles at 12 knots (1200 nm at 24 knots) | |
| Armament | (USN) 2 x 5"/25 (2x1) 4 x 40mm (2x2) 7 x 20mm (7x1) |
(RN) 2 x 4" (2x1) 4 x 40mm (2x2) 9 x 20mm (5x1) |
| Complement | 120 | |
| Notes | Auk 130 Catherine 60 Polish 3 |
|
Depot-Mothership for minesweepers, with 5 Auk class vessels on left of photo.