HMS Balfour (K464)
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| Career |   |
|---|---|
| Laid down: | April 19, 1943 |
| Launched: | July 10, 1943 |
| Commissioned: | October 17, 1943 |
| Decommissioned: | Returned to US Navy on October 25, 1945 |
| Fate: | Sold for scrap October 28, 1946 |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 1,800 tons (fully loaded) |
| Length: | 306 ft (93 m) overall |
| Beam: | 36.5 ft (11.1 m) |
| Draught: | 11 ft (3.4 m) fully loaded |
| Speed: | 24 knots (44 km/h) |
| Endurance: | 5,500 nautical miles (10,190 km) at 15 knots (28 km/h) |
| Complement: | Typically between 170 & 180 |
HMS Balfour was a Buckley class Captains class frigate during World War II. Named after George Balfour commander of HMS Conqueror at the Battle of the Saintes during the American Revolutionary War.
Originally destined for the US Navy HMS Balfour was provisionally given the name USS McAnn (later this name was reassigned to DE 179) however the delivery was diverted to the Royal Navy before the launch. Commanding Officers were Lt Cdr C D B Coventry RN on commissioning with Cdr C Gwinner RN (Senior Officer 1st Escort Group) taking over after the loss of HMS Affleck on December 26, 1944 when HMS Balfour became the lead ship for the 1st Escort Group.
Contents |
[edit] Actions
HMS Balfour served with both the 1st Escort Group and 18th Escort Group earning battle honours for service in the North Atlantic, off Normandy and in the English Channel.
On June 25, 1944 HMS Balfour with HMS Affleck attacked a submarine believed to be U-1191 by the use of depth charges, this resulted in the sinking of the submarine with the loss all hands. This action took place 25 nautical miles (46 km) south of Start Point at position . It should be noted that the Kriegsmarine had U-1191 listed as missing (no radio contact) since 12 June 1944.
On July 18, 1944 HMS Balfour attacked the submarine U-672 by the use of depth charges, damaging U-672 so badly that it was forced to surface and the crew to abandon ship. Unfortunately for the crew of HMS Balfour U-672 sank before a sea boat (for the boarding party) could be launched. All hands (52 crew and officers) were rescued and spent the rest of the war as prisoners of war. This action took place in the English Channel north of Guernsey at position .
[edit] General Information
- Pennant (UK): K 464
- Pennant (US): DE 73
- Built by: Bethlehem-Hingham Shipyard Inc. (Hingham, Massachusetts, U.S.A.)
[edit] External links
- Balfour - Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships
- Uboat.net page for HMS Balfour
- Uboat.net page for U-672
- Uboat.net page for U-1191
- captainclassfrigates.co.uk
[edit] References
- The Captain Class Frigates in the Second World War by Donald Collingwood. published by Leo Cooper (1998), ISBN 085052 615 9.
- The Buckley-Class Destroyer Escorts by Bruce Hampton Franklin, published by Chatham Publishing (1999), ISBN 086176118X.
- German U-Boat Losses During World War II by Axel Niestle, published by United States Naval Inst (1998), ISBN 1557506418.
This article includes text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entries can be found here and here.
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