Cape-class maintenance ship

For other ships of the same name, see Cape class.
Class overview
Name: Cape class
Builders: Burrard Dry Dock, Vancouver
Operators:
In commission: 1944–1975
Completed: 2
Retired: 2
General characteristics [1]
Displacement:
  • 8,580 long tons (8,718 t) standard
  • 11,270 long tons (11,451 t) full load
Length: 441 ft 6 in (134.57 m)
Beam: 57 ft (17 m)
Draught: 20 ft (6.1 m)
Propulsion: Oil-fired triple expansion steam engines, 2 boilers, 1 shaft, 2,500 ihp (1,864 kW)
Speed: 11 knots (20 km/h; 13 mph)
Complement: 270 (Cape Scott)
Armament: None
Aviation facilities: Helicopter landing deck

The Cape class consists of two escort maintenance ships of the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN). The ships were built in Canada as Beachy Head-class maintenance ships for the Royal Navy, but were acquired by Canada in 1952. They were commissioned into the RCN in 1959 as HMCS Cape Breton and HMCS Cape Scott.

Acquisition

HMS Beachy Head and HMS Flamborough Head were both constructed by Burrard Dry Dock in Vancouver, British Columbia for the Royal Navy during the Second World War as part of the Beachy Head class.[2] The war ended before all the ships in the class were completed and those that were not finished were completed as merchant ships.[3][4] Both ships continued in service with the Royal Navy after the war until 1947, when Beachy Head was loaned to the Royal Netherlands Navy in 1947 and renamed HNLMS Vulkaan. She served with the Netherlands navy until 1952 when she was returned to the Royal Navy and resumed her old name. In 1953, both Beachy Head and Flamborough Head were sold to the Royal Canadian Navy and renamed Cape Scott and Cape Breton respectively.[5] However, Cape Scott was not commissioned until 1959, after Cape Breton departed for the west coast.

Canadian service

Cape Breton was officially commissioned into the RCN 31 January 1953. She served at Halifax, Nova Scotia, with Cape Scott alongside providing repair services and classroom facilities. In 1958, Cape Breton was transferred to the west coast. Cape Scott was refitted in 1958 and officially commissioned into the RCN in 1959 and was stationed in Halifax until paid off into the reserve on 1 July 1970. In 1972 Cape Scott was re-designated Fleet Maintenance Group (Atlantic), but was sold soon after in 1975 as the group was moved ashore.[5]

Cape Breton upon arrival at CFB Esquimalt, was refitted as an escort maintenance ship and re-commissioned 16 November 1959. On 10 February 1964, Cape Breton was paid off into the reserve, but served as a towed mobile support and accommodation vessel until 1993 as part of Fleet Maintenance Group (Pacific).[5]

Fate

Cape Scott was sold in 1975. She was towed to Texas to be broken up in 1978.[4] Cape Breton was sunk in the waters near Nanaimo, British Columbia and is one of the largest purpose-sunk reefs in the world.[6] She is now a popular dive site.[7]

Ships

Cape class
Name Builder Laid down Launched Commissioned Paid off Fate
HMCS Cape Breton Burrard Dry Dock 5 July 1944 7 October 1944 16 November 1959 10 February 1964 Sunk as artificial reef 20 October 2001
HMCS Cape Scott Burrard Dry Dock 8 June 1944 27 November 1944 28 January 1959 1 July 1970 Scrapped Texas 1978

Notes

  1. ↑ Blackman 1971, p.46.
  2. ↑ "Beachy Head class". uboat.net. Retrieved 16 March 2014.
  3. ↑ "Beachy Head Class". worldnavalships.com. Retrieved 16 March 2014.
  4. 1 2 Colledge, J. J.; Warlow, Ben (2006) [1969]. Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy (Rev. ed.). London: Chatham Publishing. ISBN 978-1-86176-281-8. OCLC 67375475.
  5. 1 2 3 Macpherson, Ken; Burgess, John (1981). The ships of Canada's naval forces 1910-1981 : a complete pictorial history of Canadian warships. Toronto: Collins. ISBN 0-00216-856-1.
  6. ↑ "Cape class escort maintenance ship". hazegray.org. Retrieved 16 March 2014.
  7. ↑ "HMCS Cape Breton (2nd)". ReadyAyeReady.com. Retrieved 16 March 2014.

References

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