HMS Battler (D18)
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| Career (US) |  |
|---|---|
| Class and type: | Bogue-class escort carrier |
| Name: | USS Altamaha |
| Builder: | Ingalls Shipbuilding |
| Laid down: | 15 April 1941 |
| Launched: | 4 April 1942 |
| Acquired: | 31 October 1942 |
| Decommissioned: | 1946? |
| Career (UK) |  |
| Name: | HMS Battler |
| Acquired: | 31 October 1942 |
| Commissioned: | 15 November 1942 |
| Decommissioned: | 12 February 1946 |
| Struck: | 28 March 1946 |
| Fate: | Scrapped |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 9,800 tons (standard) |
| Length: | 496 ft (151 m) |
| Beam: | 105 ft (32 m) |
| Draught: | 26 ft (7.9 m) |
| Propulsion: | Steam turbines, 1 shaft, 8,500 shp (6.3 MW) |
| Speed: | 18 knots (33 km/h) |
| Complement: | 646, excluding air group |
| Armament: | 2 × 4 in (102 mm) (1x2) 8 × 40 mm (4x2) 20 × 20 mm guns |
| Aircraft carried: | 20 |
| Honours and awards: | Atlantic 1942-1945, Salerno 1943, Indian Ocean. |
The USS Altamaha (CVE-6) (originally AVG-6) was a Bogue-class escort aircraft carrier that served during World War II as HMS Battler (D18) in the Royal Navy.
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[edit] Pre-commission
She was laid down on 15 April 1941 as a C3-S-A1, a 2nd replacement freighter, Mormacmail for Moore-McCormack Lines, Inc.. Under Maritime Commission contract at Pascagoula, Mississippi, by Ingalls Shipbuilding, Hull 293. She also was purchased and converted prior delivery and on 7 January 1942 she was named Altamaha but the name was cancelled on 17 March 1942. She was launched on 4 April 1942; sponsored by Mrs. Phillip Seymour, wife of Captain Seymour. She was redesignated ACV on 20 August 1942. Acquired by the United States Navy on 31 October 1942, she was simultaneously transferred (via the Lend-Lease programme) to the United Kingdom and the same day. She was renamed HMS Battler and commissioned into the Royal Navy on 15 November 1942.
[edit] Service
Battler served in the Royal Navy from November 1942 until the end of World War II, serving for the most part as convoy escort in the North Atlantic and Indian Oceans. She travelled the globe extensively - USA, UK, Gibraltar, Malta, Salerno, Palermo, Suez, Aden, Cochin (India), Bombay, Sri Lanka, Mauritius, Madagascar, Seychelles, Maldives, Sydney and the Panama Canal.
In September 1943, Battler supported the allied invasion of Italy at Salerno. In March 1944, as part of force CS4, she helped to disrupt u-boat operations in the Indian Ocean when her aircraft guided destroyers onto the German supply ship Brake and two u-boats. The Brake was destroyed by gunfire from HMS Roebuck and one of the u-boats was damaged by Battler's aircraft[1].
Battler was returned to the United States on 12 February 1946 and struck from the Navy list on 28 March 1946. She was sold on 14 May 1946 to the Patapsco Steel Scrap Co., Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and was subsequently scrapped.
[edit] FAA squadrons
| Squadron | Dates | Aircraft type |
| 840 | Dec 1942 | Swordfish I/II |
| 835 | April-July 1943 | Swordfish II |
| 808 | April-Sept 1943 | Seafire L.IIc |
| 807 | Aug-Oct 1943 | Seafire L.IIc |
| 834 | Sept 1943-Oct 1944 | Seafire L.IIc/Wildcat V |
[edit] References
- This article includes text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.
- ^ Jackson, Ashley (2006). The British Empire and the Second World War. London: Hambledon Continuum, p.285. ISBN 1 85285 417 0.
HMS Battler. Fleet Air Arm Archive. Fleet Air Arm Archive (2000-2001).
[edit] External links
Complete set of photos + 'HMS Battler Diary of Flying Operations' logged at http://www.hmsbattler.com
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