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HMS Vengeance (R71)
Encyclopedia
HMS Vengeance (R71) was a Colossus class
Colossus class aircraft carrier
The 1942 Design Light Fleet Carrier, commonly referred to as the British Light Fleet Carrier, was a light aircraft carrier design created by the Royal Navy during World War II, and used by eight naval forces between 1944 and 2001...
light aircraft carrier
Light aircraft carrier
A light aircraft carrier is an aircraft carrier that is smaller than the standard carriers of a navy. The precise definition of the type varies by country; light carriers typically have a complement of aircraft only ½ to ⅔ the size of a full-sized or "fleet" carrier.-History:In World War II, the...
built for the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
during World War II. The carrier served in three navies during her career: the Royal Navy, the Royal Australian Navy
Royal Australian Navy
The Royal Australian Navy is the naval branch of the Australian Defence Force. Following the Federation of Australia in 1901, the ships and resources of the separate colonial navies were integrated into a national force: the Commonwealth Naval Forces...
(as HMAS Vengeance, from 1952 to 1955), and the Brazilian Navy
Brazilian Navy
The Brazilian Navy is a branch of the Brazilian Armed Forces responsible for conducting naval operations. It is the largest navy in Latin America...
(as Minas Gerais (A 11), from 1956 to 2001).
Constructed during World War II, Vengeance was one of the few ships in her class to be completed before the war's end, although she did not see any active service. The ship spent the next few years as an aircraft transport and training carrier before she was sent on an experimental cruise to learn how well ships and personnel could function in extreme Arctic conditions. In late 1952, Vengeance was loaned to the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) as a replacement for the delayed aircraft carrier . She remained in Australian waters, operating as an aircraft carrier and training ship, for the majority of her three-year loan, and was returned to the Royal Navy (RN) in August 1955.
Instead of returning to RN service, the carrier was sold in 1956 to Brazil, and entered service after major upgrades, which allowed the ship to operate jet aircraft. Renamed Minas Gerais, the carrier remained in operation until 2001. Several attempts were made to sell the ship, including a listing on eBay
EBay
eBay Inc. is an American internet consumer-to-consumer corporation that manages eBay.com, an online auction and shopping website in which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services worldwide...
, before she was sold for scrap and taken to Alang for breaking up
Ship breaking
Ship breaking or ship demolition is a type of ship disposal involving the breaking up of ships for scrap recycling. Most ships have a lifespan of a few decades before there is so much wear that refitting and repair becomes uneconomical. Ship breaking allows materials from the ship, especially...
.
Design and construction
Vengeance was constructed by Swan HunterSwan Hunter
Swan Hunter, formerly known as "Swan Hunter & Wigham Richardson", was one of the best known shipbuilding companies in the world. Based in Wallsend, Tyne and Wear, the company was responsible for some of the greatest ships of the early 20th century — most famously, the RMS Mauretania which...
. She was laid down on 16 November 1942, and launched on 23 February 1944. Construction was completed on 15 January 1945, and Vengeance was commissioned into the RN.
The Colossus class carriers were intended to be 'disposable warships': they were to be operated during World War II and scrapped at the end of hostilities or within three years of entering service. Despite this prediction, Vengeance had a service life of over 55 years.
Weapons and systems
Her initial armament consisted of 6 quadruple QF 2 pounder naval gunQF 2 pounder naval gun
The 2-pounder gun, officially designated the QF 2-pounder and universally known as the pom-pom, was a 1.575 inch British autocannon, used famously as an anti-aircraft gun by the Royal Navy. The name came from the sound that the original models make when firing...
s (known as pom-poms) and 19 Oerlikon 20 mm cannon
Oerlikon 20 mm cannon
The Oerlikon 20 mm cannon is a series of autocannons, based on an original design by Reinhold Becker of Germany, very early in World War I, and widely produced by Oerlikon Contraves and others...
. In 1945, after being assigned to the British Pacific Fleet
British Pacific Fleet
The British Pacific Fleet was a British Commonwealth naval force which saw action against Japan during World War II. The fleet was composed of British Commonwealth naval vessels. The BPF formally came into being on 22 November 1944...
, eight of the Oerlikons were replaced with eight single Bofors 40 mm gun
Bofors 40 mm gun
The Bofors 40 mm gun is an anti-aircraft autocannon designed by the Swedish defence firm of Bofors Defence...
s; these guns provided better protection against Japanese kamikaze
Kamikaze
The were suicide attacks by military aviators from the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, designed to destroy as many warships as possible....
aircraft.
When commissioned into the RAN in 1952, the weapons outfit included 12 Bofors 40 mm gun
Bofors 40 mm gun
The Bofors 40 mm gun is an anti-aircraft autocannon designed by the Swedish defence firm of Bofors Defence...
s and 32 Oerlikon 20 mm cannon
Oerlikon 20 mm cannon
The Oerlikon 20 mm cannon is a series of autocannons, based on an original design by Reinhold Becker of Germany, very early in World War I, and widely produced by Oerlikon Contraves and others...
.
Aircraft
During her service in the RAN, Vengeance carried a squadron each of Hawker Sea FuriesHawker Sea Fury
The Hawker Sea Fury was a British fighter aircraft developed for the Royal Navy by Hawker during the Second World War. The last propeller-driven fighter to serve with the Royal Navy, it was also one of the fastest production single piston-engined aircraft ever built.-Origins:The Hawker Fury was an...
and Fairey Fireflies
Fairey Firefly
The Fairey Firefly was a British Second World War-era carrier-borne fighter aircraft and anti-submarine aircraft of the Fleet Air Arm ....
. The carrier's air group included three Bristol Sycamore
Bristol Sycamore
-See also:-External links:* on the Bristol Sycamore* on the Bristol Sycamore*...
, acquired by the RAN after observing the performance of a United States Navy Sycamore operating from during her Korean War deployment. Although not the first helicopters to see military service in Australia (that title belonging to a Sikorsky S-51 of the Royal Australian Air Force
Royal Australian Air Force
The Royal Australian Air Force is the air force branch of the Australian Defence Force. The RAAF was formed in March 1921. It continues the traditions of the Australian Flying Corps , which was formed on 22 October 1912. The RAAF has taken part in many of the 20th century's major conflicts...
), the Sycamores formed the first Australian military helicopter squadron, and led to the establishment of Australia's first helicopter pilot school. All three helicopters were brought out from England aboard Vengeance.
RN service
On 11 March 1945, Vengeance left the River Clyde for working-up trials in Malta. These were completed by 21 May, when she was assigned to the 11th Aircraft Carrier Squadron of the British Pacific FleetBritish Pacific Fleet
The British Pacific Fleet was a British Commonwealth naval force which saw action against Japan during World War II. The fleet was composed of British Commonwealth naval vessels. The BPF formally came into being on 22 November 1944...
. The carrier sailed to Sydney via Alexandria, Port Said, Trincomalee, and Fremantle, arriving on 26 July. While alongside in Sydney, eight Oerlikons were replaced with eight single Bofors 40 mm gun
Bofors 40 mm gun
The Bofors 40 mm gun is an anti-aircraft autocannon designed by the Swedish defence firm of Bofors Defence...
s; these guns provided better protection against Japanese kamikaze
Kamikaze
The were suicide attacks by military aviators from the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, designed to destroy as many warships as possible....
aircraft. Vengeance was assigned to Task Group 111.2 of the British Pacific Fleet, and was to be deployed as part of the force attacking Japanese-held Truk, but did not leave Sydney until the war ended. Following the end of the war Vengeance was ordered to Hong Kong, and on 3 September was used as the venue for the Japanese surrender of the territory.
She remained in the area until the end of 1945, sailed to Australia for a refit, then returned to Hong Kong. In April 1946, Vengeance delivered No. 11 and No. 17 Squadrons of the Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
to Miho, Ibaraki
Miho, Ibaraki
is a village located in Inashiki District, Ibaraki, Japan.As of 2003, the village has an estimated population of 18,328 and a density of 538.58 persons per km². The total area is 34.03 km².-External links:* *...
in Japan, where they were assigned as part of British Commonwealth Occupation Force
British Commonwealth Occupation Force
The British Commonwealth Occupation Force , was the name of the joint Australian, Canadian, British, Indian and New Zealand military forces in occupied Japan, from 21 February 1946 until the end of occupation in 1952...
. Vengeance remained in Eastern waters until 20 July 1946, when she departed for England. The ship arrived at Devonport on 13 August after visiting Trincomalee, and at the end of the year was reassigned as a Scotland-based training carrier.
Vengeance visited Oslo and Trondheim in June 1947, with First Sea Lord
First Sea Lord
The First Sea Lord is the professional head of the Royal Navy and the whole Naval Service; it was formerly known as First Naval Lord. He also holds the title of Chief of Naval Staff, and is known by the abbreviations 1SL/CNS...
Sir John Cunningham aboard. During early 1948, the carrier was attached to the 3rd Aircraft Carrier Squadron, part of the British Home Fleet. She visited St Helena in October, and cruised with the Squadron in South African waters until mid-November. On her return to the UK, Vengeance was converted for Arctic conditions, and from 5 February 1949 to 8 March 1949 operated in Arctic waters as part of Operation Rusty: an experimental cruise to determine how well ships, aircraft, and personnel functioned in extreme cold.
Loan to Australia
In June 1951, following the receipt of advice that the Australian aircraft carrier would not be completed until at least March 1954, the Australian Defence Committee recommended that Australia request that the RN loan a carrier to the RAN. The new predicted date of completion for Melbourne was 21 months later than previous predictions, on which the establishment of two-carrier naval aviation in the RAN had been dependant. The Navy sought a four-year loan of an aircraft carrier from late 1952 to late 1956, to cover both the delays with Melbourne and the planned upgrading of once Melbourne was in service. The Australian government proposed that the loaned carrier be modified to operate both Sea Venom and GannetFairey Gannet
The Fairey Gannet was a British carrier-borne anti-submarine warfare and airborne early warning aircraft of the post-Second World War era developed for the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm by the Fairey Aviation Company...
aircraft, so that Melbourne and the loaned carrier could both see active service while Sydney was upgraded, but withdrew the suggestion when informed by the Admiralty that providing such capability would require the installation of a new arrestor cable system, prevent the loaned carrier from entering service until at least March 1954, and would be paid for entirely by Australia. Several smaller modifications were approved and paid for by Australia, including the installation of additional aircrew accommodation.
Vengeance was the carrier selected for the loan, and modifications for Australian service were completed in January 1952. In order to provide personnel for the loaned carrier, the RAN had to place the light cruiser into reserve. The loan was approved, with the British government choosing not to charge Australia for the loan, but stating that all operational costs would be met by the RAN, including the initial outfit of stores. In mid-1952, the liner Asturias was chartered by the RAN to transport a commissioning crew to England.
RAN service
Vengeance was transferred to the Royal Australian Navy on 13 November 1952. She was recommissioned as an Australian ship on this date, and received the prefix HMAS. Departing from Devonport at the end of 1952, the carrier sailed to Australia via the Mediterranean, and arrived in Fremantle on 26 February 1953. She reached Sydney in March, and was marked as fully operational in June. In late 1953, Vengeance was prepared for a deployment to Korea, to support the United Nations enforcement of the July 1953 armistice. The deployment did not go ahead: HMAS Sydney was sent instead.From February until April 1954, Vengeance was tasked with escorting the Royal Yacht Gothic through Australian waters during the Royal Visit of Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
to Australia. On 9 March 1954, while in Port Philip Bay, a whaler transporting 30 sailors to the carrier hit a series of freak waves and capsized. Two sailors were killed. Navy divers were involved in rescuing the survivors, with one earning the British Empire Medal
British Empire Medal
The Medal of the Order of the British Empire for Meritorious Service, usually known as the British Empire Medal , is a British medal awarded for meritorious civil or military service worthy of recognition by the Crown...
for his efforts. On 3 April, while escorting Gothic to the Cocos Islands with the destroyers and accompanying, Vengeances ship's company assembled on the flight deck and positioned themselves to form the Queen's signature. Upon seeing this, Queen Elizabeth had a message sent to the carrier, saying "Thank you for the original forgery." On 5 April, after arriving at the Cocos Islands, Vengeance was involved in a collision with Bataan while the destroyer attempted to refuel from the carrier. The Bataans bow made contact with Venegances side, but the damage was minor, and both ships returned to Sydney in May without assistance, after visiting Manus Island and Rabaul.
In June 1954, Vengeance was removed from active service and reclassified as the RAN's primary training ship. The previous training ship, the cruiser , had been earmarked in mid-1953 to be decommissioned and scrapped, as modernising her would have been uneconomical. At the same time, the RAN was exploring avenues to reduce operating costs: the reduction of naval aviation from two active carriers to one would provide significant savings. The removal of Vengeance from active service, combined with the need to find a replacement training ship for Australia which was large enough to accommodate the large number of National Service trainees, saw the carrier placed in the training role. On 31 August, Vengenace accompanied Australia during the latter's final voyage before decommissioning. The carrier sailed to Japan in late October; her first departure from Australian waters while in RAN service. Vengeance returned to Australia in November, after collecting No. 77 Squadron RAAF
No. 77 Squadron RAAF
No. 77 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force fighter squadron. The Squadron was formed in 1942 and currently operates F/A-18 Hornet aircraft from RAAF Base Williamtown.-History:...
.
Return to Britain and sale to Brazil
In May 1955, Sydney assumed Vengeances training carrier duties as well as her own flagship and operation duties, while the latter carrier was prepared for the return to England. Vengeance left for the UK in June, stopping in Singapore to collect a squadron of RN helicopters. Arriving on 13 August, her RAN crew prepared the carrier for reserve, and Vengeance was decommissioned on 25 October. The personnel were used as the first ship's company of , which was commissioned on 28 October 1955.Vengeance was not reactivated for RN use, and on 14 December 1956, the carrier was sold by the Admiralty
Admiralty
The Admiralty was formerly the authority in the Kingdom of England, and later in the United Kingdom, responsible for the command of the Royal Navy...
to Brazil for US$9 million. From mid-1957 until December 1960, the carrier underwent a massive refit and reconstruction at Verlome Dock in Rotterdam, which cost US$27 million. Modifications included the installation of an 8.5-degree angled flight deck, a more powerful steam catapult, stronger arresting gear
Arresting gear
Arresting gear, or arrestor gear, is the name used for mechanical systems designed to rapidly decelerate an aircraft as it lands. Arresting gear on aircraft carriers is an essential component of naval aviation, and it is most commonly used on CATOBAR and STOBAR aircraft carriers. Similar systems...
, reinforced hangar elevators, and a mirror landing aid. This was to allow the operation of jet aircraft, which were larger, faster, and heavier than the propeller aircraft previously operated by the carrier. A new superstructure was fitted, including a large lattice mast to support a new radar suite and fire control system. Boiler capacity was increased, and the internal electrics were converted to AC power. The length of the modernisation refit meant that while the carrier was the first purchased by a Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
n nation, she was the second to enter service; another Colossus class carrier entered service with the Argentine Navy as ARA Independencia in July 1959.
The carrier was commissioned into the Marinha do Brasil (MB, Brazilian Navy) as NAeL Minas Gerais on 6 December 1960. She departed Rotterdam for Rio de Janerio on 13 January 1961.
MB service
In 1965, President Humberto de Alencar Castello Branco outlawed the operation of fixed-wing aircraft by the MB; this remained the responsibility of the Força Aérea Brasileira (FAB, Brazilian Air Force). As a result, Minas Gerais was required to embark two air groups: the Navy operated helicopters while the Air Force operated S-2 TrackerS-2 Tracker
The Grumman S-2 Tracker was the first purpose-built, single airframe anti-submarine warfare aircraft to enter service with the US Navy. The Tracker was of conventional design with twin engines, a high wing and tricycle undercarriage. The type was exported to a number of navies around the world...
aircraft. Consequently, the ship spent most of her Brazilian career operating as an anti-submarine warfare carrier.
ARA Veinticinco de Mayo (V-2)
The ARA Veinticinco de Mayo was an aircraft carrier in the Argentine Navy from 1969 to 1997. The English translation of the name is the Twenty-fifth of May, which is the date of Argentina's May Revolution in 1810....
confined to port, making Minas Gerais the only operating carrier in the South American region.
From July 1991 to October 1993, the carrier underwent another modernisation refit; the work included refurbishment of her propulsion system, upgrades to the command and control system and radars, and replacement of the ship's Bofors with Mistral surface-to-air
Mistral missile
Mistral is an infrared homing surface-to-air missile manufactured by the European multinational company MBDA missile systems . Based on the French SATCP , the portable missile later to become the Mistral began development in 1974...
missiles. In 1999, the MB acquired 20 A-4KU Skyhawk
A-4 Skyhawk
The Douglas A-4 Skyhawk is a carrier-capable ground-attack aircraft designed for the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps. The delta winged, single-engined Skyhawk was designed and produced by Douglas Aircraft Company, and later McDonnell Douglas. It was originally designated the A4D...
s and 3 TA-4KU trainer aircraft from the Kuwait Air Force
Kuwait Air Force
The Kuwait Air Force is the air arm of the State of Kuwait. The Air Force headquarters is located at Al Mubarak Air Base, with the remaining forces stationed at Air Defence Brigade, Ali Al Salem Air Base and Ahmed Al Jaber Air Base...
; the first time since the carrier's commissioning that Forca Aeronaval da Marinha (Brazilian Navy Aviation) had been permitted to own and operate fixed-wing aircraft.
Decommissioning and fate
Minas Gerais was decommissioned on 16 October 2001: the last of the World War II-era light aircraft carriers to leave service. At the time of her decommissioning, she was the oldest active aircraft carrier in the world (a title passed on to the 1961-commissioned ). The carrier was marked for sale in 2002, and was actively sought after by British naval associations for return to England and preservation as a museum shipMuseum ship
A museum ship, or sometimes memorial ship, is a ship that has been preserved and converted into a museum open to the public, for educational or memorial purposes...
, although they were unable to raise the required money.
Just before Christmas 2003, the carrier was listed for sale on auction website eBay
EBay
eBay Inc. is an American internet consumer-to-consumer corporation that manages eBay.com, an online auction and shopping website in which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services worldwide...
by a user claiming to be a shipbroker representing the owner. Bidding reached £4 million before the auction was removed from the website under rules preventing the sale of military ordnance. An auction in Rio de Janeiro in February 2004 also failed to sell the ship. Sometime between February and July 2004, the carrier was towed to the ship breaking
Ship breaking
Ship breaking or ship demolition is a type of ship disposal involving the breaking up of ships for scrap recycling. Most ships have a lifespan of a few decades before there is so much wear that refitting and repair becomes uneconomical. Ship breaking allows materials from the ship, especially...
yards at Alang, India for dismantling.
External links and further reading
- an autobiography by James LovelockJames Lovelock
James Lovelock, CH, CBE, FRS is an independent scientist, environmentalist and futurologist who lives in Devon, England. He is best known for proposing the Gaia hypothesis, which postulates that the biosphere is a self-regulating entity with the capacity to keep our planet healthy by controlling...
. The first part of chapter 4 (pp. 91-99) contains Lovelock's recount of the 1949 Vengeance voyage into Arctic waters.
- Friends of the Vengeance - the proposal to convert Vengeance/Minas Gerais into a museum ship.