HMCS Gaspé (MCB 143)

HMCS Gaspé (hull number MCB 143) was a Bay-class minesweeper that was constructed for the Royal Canadian Navy during the Cold War. The vessel entered service in 1953 and remained with the Royal Canadian Navy until 1958. That year, the ship was transferred to the Turkish Navy and renamed Trabzon. The vessel remained in service until 1991.

History
Canada
Name:	Gaspé
Namesake:	Gaspé Bay
Builder:	Davie Shipbuilding, Lauzon, Quebec
Laid down:	21 March 1951
Launched:	12 November 1951
Commissioned:	26 November 1953
Decommissioned:	22 August 1957
Identification:	MCB 143
Honours and awards:	Atlantic 1939–45[1]
Fate:	Sold in 1957 to Turkey as Trabzon.
Badge:	On a field barry wavy of ten argent and azure, a pile gules, proceeding from the dexter side, upon which a mullet argent pointing to the dexter chief, with "commas" of the same issuing from the points of the mullet, and between them a fleur-de-lis, or[1]
Turkey
Name:	Trabzon
Acquired:	31 March 1958
Commissioned:	19 May 1958
Out of service:	1991
Identification:	M 530
General characteristics
Class and type:	Bay-class minesweeper
Displacement:	390 long tons (400 t) 412 long tons (419 t) (deep load)
Length:	152 ft (46 m)
Beam:	28 ft (8.5 m)
Draught:	8 ft (2.4 m)
Propulsion:	2 shafts, 2 GM 12-cylinder diesels, 2,400 bhp (1,800 kW)
Speed:	16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph)
Range:	3,290 nmi (6,090 km; 3,790 mi) at 12 kn (22 km/h; 14 mph)
Complement:	38
Armament:	1 × 40 mm Bofors gun

Design and description

The Bay class were designed and ordered as replacements for the Second World War-era minesweepers that the Royal Canadian Navy operated at the time. Similar to the Ton-class minesweeper, they were constructed of wood planking and aluminum framing.[2][3]

Displacing 390 long tons (400 t) standard at 412 long tons (419 t) at deep load, the minesweepers were 152 ft (46 m) long with a beam of 28 ft (8.5 m) and a draught of 8 ft (2.4 m).[2][3] They had a complement of 38 officers and ratings.[2][note 1]

The Bay-class minesweepers were powered by two GM 12-cylinder diesel engines driving two shafts creating 2,400 brake horsepower (1,800 kW). This gave the ships a maximum speed of 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph) and a range of 3,290 nautical miles (6,090 km; 3,790 mi) at 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph).[3][4] The ships were armed with one 40 mm Bofors gun and were equipped with minesweeping gear.[2][3]

Operational history

The ship's keel was laid down on 21 March 1951 by Davie Shipbuilding at their yard in Lauzon, Quebec. Named for a bay located in Quebec, Gaspé was launched on 12 November 1951. The ship was commissioned on 26 November 1953.[5] The First Canadian Minesweeping Squadron was constituted in December 1953 with Gaspé an initial unit.[6] The squadron sailed to the Caribbean Sea in April 1955 for a training cruise, making several port visits.[7] In May 1956, the First Canadian Minesweeping Squadron deployed as part of the NATO minesweeping exercise Minex Sweep Clear One in the western Atlantic.[8]

The ship remained in service with the Royal Canadian Navy until being paid off on 22 August 1957. The ship was transferred to the Turkish Navy as part of the NATO Mutual Aid Agreement on 31 March 1958.[9] Commissioned into the Turkish Navy on 19 May 1958 and renamed Trabzon, the ship remained in service until 1991.[10]

References

Notes

1. Gardiner and Chumbley claim the complement was 40.

Citations

1. Arbuckle, p. 42
2. Macpherson and Barrie, p. 271
3. Gardiner and Chumbley, p. 49
4. Moore, p. 82
5. Macpherson and Barrie, p. 274
6. "New Minesweepers Form Squadron". The Crowsnest. Vol. 6 no. 2. Ottawa: Queen's Printer. December 1953. p. 3.
7. "Sweepers on W. Indies Cruise". The Crowsnest. Vol. 7 no. 6. Ottawa: Queen's Printer. April 1955. p. 2.
8. "First Canadian Minesweeper Squadron". The Crowsnest. Vol. 8 no. 10. Ottawa: Queen's Printer. August 1956. p. 18.
9. Milner, p. 220
10. Colledge, p. 256

References

• Arbuckle, J. Graeme (1987). Badges of the Canadian Navy. Halifax, Nova Scotia: Nimbus Publishing. ISBN 0-920852-49-1.
• 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.
• Gardiner, Robert; Chumbley, Stephen; Budzbon, Przemysław, eds. (1995). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1947–1995. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-132-7.
• Macpherson, Ken; Barrie, Ron (2002). The Ships of Canada's Naval Forces 1910–2002 (Third ed.). St. Catharines, Ontario: Vanwell Publishing. ISBN 1-55125-072-1.
• Milner, Marc (2010). Canada's Navy: The First Century (Second ed.). Toronto: University of Toronto Press. ISBN 978-0-8020-9604-3.
• Moore, John, ed. (1981). Jane's Fighting Ships, 1981–1982. New York: Jane's Information Group. ISBN 0-531-03977-3.