HMS Gould (K476)

HMS Gould (K476) was a British Captain-class frigate of the Royal Navy in commission during World War II. Originally constructed as the United States Navy Evarts-class destroyer escort USS Lovering (DE-272), she served in the Royal Navy from 1943 until her sinking in 1944.

For other ships with the same name, see USS Lovering.

History
United States
Name: USS Lovering (DE-272)
Namesake: U.S. Navy Ensign William Bacon Lovering (1913-1942), killed in action aboard the destroyer USS Hammann (DD-412) during the Battle of Midway on 6 June 1942
Ordered: 25 January 1942[1]
Builder: Boston Navy Yard, Boston, Massachusetts
Laid down: 23 April 1943
Launched: 4 June 1943
Sponsored by: Mrs. Joseph S. Lovering
Completed: 18 September 1943
Commissioned: never
Fate: Transferred to United Kingdom 18 September 1943
United Kingdom
Class and type: Captain class frigate
Name: HMS Gould (K476)
Namesake: Admiral Sir Davidge Gould (1758-1847), British naval officer who was commanding officer of HMS Audacious at the Battle of the Nile in 1798[2]
Acquired: 18 September 1943
Commissioned: 18 September 1943[1]
Fate: Sunk 1 March 1944
General characteristics
Displacement: 1,140 tons
Length: 289.5 ft (88.2 m)
Beam: 35 ft (11 m)
Draught: 9 ft (2.7 m)
Propulsion:
  • Four General Motors 278A 16-cylinder engines
  • GE 7,040 bhp (5,250 kW) generators (4,800 kW)
  • GE electric motors for 6,000 shp (4,500 kW)
  • Two shafts
Speed: 20 knots (37 km/h)
Range: 5,000 nautical miles (9,260 km) at 15 knots (28 km/h)
Complement: 156
Sensors and
processing systems:
  • SA & SL type radars
  • Type 144 series Asdic
  • MF Direction Finding antenna
  • HF Direction Finding Type FH 4 antenna
Armament:
Notes: Pennant number K476

Construction and transfer

The ship was ordered on 25 January 1942[1] and laid down as the destroyer escort USS Lovering (DE-272), the first ship of the name, by the Boston Navy Yard in Boston, Massachusetts, on 20 May 1943. She was launched on 8 July 1943, sponsored by Mrs. Joseph S. Lovering, sister-in-law of the ship's namesake, the late Ensign William B. Lovering. The United States transferred the ship upon completion to the United Kingdom under Lend-Lease on 18 September 1943.

Service history

The ship was commissioned into service in the Royal Navy as the frigate HMS Gould (K476) on 18 September 1943[1] simultaneously with her transfer. She served on convoy escort duty in the North Atlantic Ocean.

On 26 February 1944, Gould joined the British frigates HMS Affleck and HMS Gore in a depth-charge attack that sank the German submarine U-91 in the North Atlantic at position 49°45′N 26°20′W.[1]

On 29 February 1944, Gould was operating as part of the First Escort Group when she, Affleck, Gore, and the British frigate HMS Garlies detected the German submarine U-358 in the North Atlantic north-northeast of the Azores and began a depth-charge attack which continued through the night and into 1 March 1944, the four frigates dropping a combined 104 depth charges. Gore and Garlies were forced to withdraw to Gibraltar to refuel on 1 March, but Affleck and Gould continued to attack U-358. During the afternoon of 1 March, U-358 succeeded in torpedoing and sinking Gould with a G7es – known to the Allies as "GNAT" – torpedo at position 45°46′N 23°16′W. Ungoed, six other officers, and 116 ratings died in the sinking, and only 14 of Gould's crew survived. U-358 was soon forced to surface after 38 hours submerged and was sunk by gunfire from Affleck at position 45°46′N 23°16′W.[1][3]

References
  1. Helgason, Guðmundur. "HMS Gould (K 476)". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net.
  2. Captain Class Frigate Association HMS Gould (K481)
  3. Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by U-boats: HMS Gould (K476)". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net.
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