History
India
NameRohilkhand
Ordered20 December 1939
BuilderWilliam Hamilton and Company
Laid down29 August 1941
Launched29 October 1942
Commissioned5 February 1943
Decommissioned1963
FateScrapped 1961
General characteristics
Class and typeBangor-class minesweeper
Displacement
  • 656 long tons (667 t) standard
  • 820 long tons (833 t) full
Length174 ft (53 m) o/a
Beam28 ft 6 in (8.69 m)
Draught10 ft 3 in (3.12 m)
Installed power
Propulsion
Speed16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph)
Range2,800 nmi (5,200 km; 3,200 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)
Complement60
Armament

HMIS Rohilkhand (J180) was a Bangor-class minesweeper built for the Royal Navy, but transferred to the Royal Indian Navy during the Second World War.

Design and description

The Bangor class was designed as a small minesweeper that could be easily built in large numbers by civilian shipyards; as steam turbines were difficult to manufacture, the ships were designed to accept a wide variety of engines. Rohilkhand displaced 656 long tons (667 t) at standard load and 820 long tons (830 t) at deep load. The ship had an overall length of 174 feet (53.0 m), a beam of 28 feet 6 inches (8.7 m) and a draught of 10 feet 3 inches (3.1 m).[1] The ship's complement consisted of 60 officers and ratings.[2]

She was powered by two Parsons geared steam turbines, each driving one shaft, using steam provided by two Admiralty three-drum boilers. The engines produced a total of 2,000 shaft horsepower (1,500 kW) and gave a maximum speed of 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph). Rohilkhand carried a maximum of 160 long tons (163 t) of fuel oil that gave her a range of 2,800 nautical miles (5,200 km; 3,200 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph).[3]

The turbine-powered Bangors were armed with a 12-pounder 3-inch (76 mm) anti-aircraft gun and a single QF 2-pounder (4 cm) AA gun. In some ships the 2-pounder was replaced a single or twin 20 mm Oerlikon AA gun, while most ships were fitted with four additional single Oerlikon mounts over the course of the war.[3] For escort work, her minesweeping gear could be exchanged for around 40 depth charges.[2]

Construction and career

HMIS Rohilkhand was ordered from the William Hamilton and Company originally for the Royal Navy as HMS Padstow in 1939. However, before she was launched, she was transferred to the Royal Indian Navy and eventually commissioned as Rohilkhand.[4] She was a part of the Eastern Fleet, and escorted numerous convoys between Africa, British India and Australia in 1943–45.

References

  1. ↑ Lenton, pp. 253–54
  2. 1 2 Chesneau, p. 64
  3. 1 2 Lenton, p. 254
  4. ↑ "HMS Padstow (J 180) of the Royal Navy - British Minesweeper of the Bangor class - Allied Warships of WWII". uboat.net. Retrieved 25 August 2015.

Bibliography

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