Wild Beast class destroyer

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Wild Beast class destroyer

Class Overview
Type:	destroyer
Name:	Wild Beast
Number of ships:	four commissioned
General characteristics
Displacement:	880 tonnes
Length:	89.4 m
Beam:	8.3 m
Draught:	3 m
Speed:	31 knots
Protection:	unknown
Complement:	58
Armament:	(1912) 4 Bethlehem 10.2 cm guns, one 75 mm A/A gun, six 21 inch T/T and 3 electric search lights.In 1925 the 75 mm gun was removed and a 37 mm A/A gun was installed, along with a four barrel 40 mm gun and 2 mortars.She was modified for laying 40 mines.In 1942 the 3rd and 4th guns of the stern torpedo tubes were removed and one 3-inch A/A gun, one 20 mm Oerlikon gun and an A/S type 123A detection device were added.
Ships of the class
Aetos, Ierax, Leon and Panthir.

The Wild Beast class of destroyers were ordered by the Royal Hellenic Navy before World War I when the Greek government embarked on a naval buildup after losing the Greco-Turkish War of 1897 and in anticipation of the Balkan Wars. These four ships were ordered from the English shipyards Camell Laird in Liverpool. These ships had originally been ordered by Argentina.

During World War I, these ships were seized by the French Navy when Greece did not enter the war on the side of the allies, and were returned to the Hellenic Royal Navy in 1917 when Greece declared war.

The class consisted of four destoyers: Aetos, Ierax, Panthir and Leon.