History
United Kingdom
NameHMT Vizalma
BuilderCook, Welton & Gemmell, Beverley
Launched11 April 1940
Requisitioned: 15 June 1940[1]
Completed12 August 1940
Decommissioned23 December 1945
FateReturned to original owners and eventually scrapped from 4 November 1964
General characteristics [2][3]
Displacement608 tons
Length
  • 178.1 ft (54.3 m) LPP
  • 190 ft (58 m) LOA
Beam30.8 ft 8 in (9.59 m)
PropulsionTriple expansion steam reciprocating engines by C. D. Holmes, 165 NHP
Speed12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph)
Complement5 officers and 55 crew[4]

HMT Vizalma was an anti-submarine warfare naval trawler of the Royal Navy during the Second World War.[2] She spent the war escorting convoys in the Atlantic and Arctic, including the famous convoy JW 51B.

Service history

Vizalma was ordered from Cook, Welton & Gemmell of Beverley by the Atlas Steam Fishing Company of Grimsby and launched on 11 April 1940.[3] However, before she was completed, on 15 June 1940, she was requisitioned by the Admiralty and completed as an anti-submarine trawler on 12 August 1940. She was assigned to the Royal Naval Patrol Service and employed as a convoy escort.

Initially Vizalma was assigned to the Londonderry Escort Groups based in Derry, Northern Ireland, providing local escorts for Atlantic convoys entering and leaving the Western Approaches interspersed with trips to Gibraltar and Iceland.[4][5] She was later transferred to the Iceland Command for duties on the Russian convoys escorting merchant ships from Scotland to the Kola Inlet via Iceland.[1][3] She made two return trips to Murmansk.

The second outgoing convoy, in December 1942, was JW 51B, which was involved in the engagement that became known as the Battle of the Barents Sea. However, Vizalma had become separated from the convoy during a gale and was escorting merchantman Chester Valley away from the main group when the battle erupted. They went north to avoid the action and rejoined the convoy two days later.[4] However, not directly involved in the battle she played a role in it : when the covering cruiser force of the convoy was racing towards the convoy in response to reports of an attacking German force, the force detected the 2 ships Vizalma and Chester Valley on their radar. They had to investigate and lost precious time whilst the German force was attacking the convoy escorts.[6]

After returning from Russia, Vizalma resumed Atlantic convoy escort duties and, from September to November 1943, guard ship duties in the Faroes and Azores.[4][7] On 23 December 1945 she was sold back to her original owners[1] and converted into a deep-sea trawler.[3] She was scrapped at Dunston from 4 November 1964.[8]

Convoys escorted by Vizalma

Convoy Escorted by Vizalma
Number Departed Destination From To
OA 206 Methil Dispersed 29 August 1940 3 September 1940
WN 19 Clyde Methil 29 September 1940 3 October 1940
OB 232 Liverpool Dispersed at 56°30′N 26°50′W / 56.500°N 26.833°W / 56.500; -26.833 21 October 1940 26 October 1940
SC 8 Sydney, Cape Breton Liverpool 26 October 1940 31 October 1940
OB 245 Liverpool Dispersed at 56°35′N 17°38′W / 56.583°N 17.633°W / 56.583; -17.633 18 November 1940 22 November 1940
HX 85/1 Sydney, Cape Breton Liverpool 22 November 1940 22 November 1940
OB 256 Liverpool Dispersed at 59°04′N 15°30′W / 59.067°N 15.500°W / 59.067; -15.500 8 December 1940 12 December 1940
OB 269 Liverpool Dispersed 4 January 1941 6 January 1941
OB 283 Liverpool Dispersed 8 February 1941 12 February 1941
HX 106 Halifax Liverpool 15 February 1941 18 February 1941
HG 54 Gibraltar Liverpool 20 February 1941 12 March 1941
HG 57 Gibraltar Liverpool 6 April 1941 9 April 1941
OB 314 Liverpool Dispersed at 61°05′N 35°25′W / 61.083°N 35.417°W / 61.083; -35.417 24 April 1941 28 April 1941
HX 121 Halifax Liverpool 28 April 1941 30 April 1941
OB 319 Liverpool Dispersed at 61°N 35°W / 61°N 35°W / 61; -35 9 May 1941 13 May 1941
SC 30 Halifax Liverpool 12 May 1941 20 May 1941
HX 124 Halifax Liverpool 14 May 1941 14 May 1941
SL 75 Freetown Liverpool 12 June 1941 13 June 1941
N|8 Liverpool Dispersed at 56°09′N 44°32′W / 56.150°N 44.533°W / 56.150; -44.533 18 August 1941 21 August 1941
N|13 Liverpool Dispersed at 53°32′N 26°16′W / 53.533°N 26.267°W / 53.533; -26.267 6 September 1941 8 September 1941
N|18 Liverpool Dispersed at 45°25′N 50°25′W / 45.417°N 50.417°W / 45.417; -50.417 21 September 1941 24 September 1941
SC 45 Sydney, Cape Breton Liverpool 1 October 1941 1 October 1941
N|25 Liverpool Dispersed 11 October 1941 13 October 1941
N|32 Liverpool Halifax 3 November 1941 6 November 1941
N|39 Liverpool Dispersed at 53°34′N 39°30′W / 53.567°N 39.500°W / 53.567; -39.500 22 November 1941 29 November 1941
UR 7 Loch Ewe Reykjavik 12 January 1942 17 January 1942
UR 14 Loch Ewe Reykjavik 28 February 1942 4 March 1942
RU 14 Reykjavik Loch Ewe 7 March 1942 11 March 1942
PQ 15 Oban Murmansk 26 April 1942 5 May 1942
QP 12 Kola Inlet Reykjavik 21 May 1942 29 May 1942
JW 51B Loch Ewe Kola Inlet 22 December 1942 3 January 1943
RA 52 Kola Inlet Loch Ewe 29 January 1943 8 February 1943
ONS 4 Liverpool Halifax
ONS 9 Liverpool Halifax 29 May 1943 7 June 1943
SC 134 Halifax Liverpool 20 June 1943 1 July 1943
OS 64/KMS 38 Liverpool Convoy Split 3 January 1944 9 January 1944
RU 107 Reykjavik Loch Ewe 3 February 1944 7 February 1944
RU 109 Reykjavik Loch Ewe 21 February 1944 24 February 1944
RU 112 Reykjavik Loch Ewe 18 March 1944 21 March 1944
OS 73/KMS 47 Liverpool Convoy Split 4 April 1944 16 April 1944
KMS 47G Liverpool Gibraltar 16 April 1944 17 April 1944
MKS 46G Gibraltar Liverpool 22 April 1944 23 April 1944
SL 155/MKS 46 Freetown/Port Said Liverpool 23 April 1944 3 May 1944
HX 304 New York Liverpool 23 August 1944 1 September 1944
RU 127 Reykjavik Loch Ewe 17 July 1944 18 July 1944

Notes and references

  1. 1 2 3 "HMS Vizalma". World Naval Ship Forums. Retrieved 30 November 2017.
  2. 1 2 Helgason, Guðmundur. "HMS Vizalma (FY 286)". Allied Warships - uboat.net. Retrieved 30 November 2017.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Vizalma". Ships Nostalgia. Retrieved 30 November 2017.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Angelbeck, John Reginald (Oral history)". Imperial War Museums. Retrieved 1 December 2017.
  5. ↑ Bertke, Donald A; Smith, Gordon; Kindell, Don (2012). World War II Sea War, Volume 3: The Royal Navy is Bloodied in the Mediterranean. Dayton, Ohio: Bertke Publications. p. 190. ISBN 9781937470012.
  6. ↑ Kemp, p.119
  7. ↑ "Private Papers of E J Marshall". Imperial War Museums. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  8. ↑ Lenton, H.T.and Colledge, J.J. (1964). British and Dominion Warships of World War II. Doubleday., London.

Sources

  • "Convoy Web". Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  • Lawson, Siri. "Ships in Atlantic Convoys". Warsailors.com. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  • Lawson, Siri. "Ships in Arctic Convoys". Warsailors.com. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  • "Naval-History.net". Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  • Bertke, Donald A; Smith, Gordon; Kindell, Don (2012). World War II Sea War, Volume 3: The Royal Navy is Bloodied in the Mediterranean. Dayton, Ohio: Bertke Publications. ISBN 9781937470012.
  • Bertke, Donald A; Smith, Gordon; Kindell, Don (2012). World War II Sea War, Volume 4: Germany Sends Russia to the Allies. Dayton, Ohio: Bertke Publications. ISBN 9781937470036.
  • Bertke, Donald A; Smith, Gordon; Kindell, Don (2014). World War II Sea War, Volume 6: The Allies Halt the Axis Advance. Dayton, Ohio: Bertke Publications. ISBN 9781937470098.
  • Kemp, Paul (1993). Convoy!. Casell. ISBN 0-304-35451-1.
  • Bertke, Donald A; Smith, Gordon; Kindell, Don (2015). World War II Sea War, Volume 8: Guadalcanal Secured. Dayton, Ohio: Bertke Publications. ISBN 9781937470135.
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