HMS Formidable (R67)

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Career
HMS Formidable, circa 1944
Ordered:
Laid down:	17 June 1937
Launched:	17 August 1939
Commissioned:	24 November 1940
Decommissioned:	1947
Fate:	Scrapped 1956.
Struck:	1953
General Characteristics
Displacement:	28,661 tons full load
Length:	743.75 ft (227 m)
Beam:	95 ft (29 m)
Draught:	28 ft (8.5 m)
Propulsion:	6 Admiralty 3-drum boilers, Pearsons geared turbines producing 110,000 shp (82 MW) driving three shafts
Speed:	30.5 knots (56 km/h)
Range:	11,000 nautical miles (20,000 km) at 14 knots (26 km/h)
Complement:	1200
Armament:	8 × 4.5 inch (114 mm) guns 48 × 2 pdr (1.5 inch) guns
Aircraft:	1940: 36 Fulmar and Swordfish 1945: 54 Corsair and Avenger
Motto:

HMS Formidable was an Illustrious class aircraft carrier of the Royal Navy during World War II. She was constructed by Harland & Wolff, Belfast and commissioned on 24 November 1940.

Formidable took part in the Battle of Cape Matapan on March 27-29, 1941. On May 26, 1941, she received serious damage while transporting aircraft to Malta, being hit by two 1000 kilogram bombs that put her out of action for six months. After repairs at Norfolk Naval Shipyard, in the United States, she re-equipped with Vought Corsair and Hellcat fighters.

In 1942, she travelled across the Pacific and served briefly in the Indian Ocean, returning to the Mediterranean in October. Formidable then provided air support for the North African campaign and Italian campaign (1943), before taking part in an Arctic convoy.

On 17 July 1944, aircraft from Formidable were involved in Operation Mascot, an attack on the Tirpitz in Norway. She took part in further attacks on Tirpitz in August, as part of Operation Goodwood.

During 1945, she saw service against Japanese forces with the British Pacific Fleet, and survived several kamikaze attacks while supporting the landings on Okinawa. On May 4, Just after 11.30 a.m. a Japanese plane made a steep dive from "a great height" at Formidable and was engaged by AA guns. The kamikaze was hit at close range, but crashed into the flight deck, making a massive dent about 10 feet (3 m) long, two feet (0.6 m) wide and two feet deep in the armoured flight deck. A large steel splinter speared down through the hangar deck and the centre boiler-room, where it ruptured a steam line, and came to rest in a fuel tank, starting a major fire in the aircraft park. Eight crew members were killed and 47 were wounded. One Corsair and 10 Grumman Avengers were destroyed. However, the fires were gradually brought under control and the crater in the deck was repaired with concrete and steel plate. By 5 p.m., Corsairs were again able to land on Formidable.

She was scrapped from November 1956.

Battle Honours