Heavy Cruiser Prinz Eugen and its surrender - Early Tests of Jets landing on Carriers.

 

This Gallery has been kindly supplied by Eric Trevorrow and his nephew Chris Jennings, webmaster is attributing the copyright to Eric Trevorrow, if anybody disagrees please:

 

Extra information supplied by Roger Dunne (RAF) and Dennis Alderson (RN retired - served on HMS Glory).

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The Heavy Cruiser Prinz Eugen.

The Prinz Eugen (fourth warship to wear that name) was the third and last heavy cruiser commissioned by the Kriegsmarine. She became famous on her first war mission in May 1941, during the Atlantic sortie with the Bismarck in which the Hood was sunk and the Prince of Wales damaged. In February 1942, after a period spent in Brest, the Prinz Eugen together with the battleships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau, successfully passed through the English Channel on her way back to Germany. Shortly afterwards, while en route to Norway she was torpedoed and damaged by a British submarine off Trondheim. The ship was not ready for service until the beginning of 1943, and then used for training purposes in the Baltic. In 1944-1945, the Prinz Eugen was used for shore bombardment off the Baltic coast against the advancing Soviet troops to cover the evacuation of refugees. The ship surrendered to the British at Copenhagen in May 1945, and was handed over to the Americans. In July 1946, she survived two nuclear tests in Bikini Atoll. Towed later to Kwajalein Atoll, the Prinz capsized on 22 December 1946.

 

Prinz Eugen - Heavy Cruiser
Displacement: standard 14,240 mt, full load 19,042 mt. Dimensions: overall length 212.5 m, beam 21.7 m, maximum draft 7.2 m, height 12.45 m. Armour: belt 80 mm, turrets 70-160 mm, upper deck 30 mm, armour deck 30 mm, conning tower 150 mm, torpedo bulkhead 20 mm. Armament: 8 x 20.3cm/L60, 12 x 10.5cm/L65, 12 x 3.7cm/L83, 28 x 2cm, 12 x 53.3cm torpedoes. Aircraft: 3 x Arado ar 196. Propulsion plant: 12 boilers, three Germania turbine sets, 132,000 hp. Speed: 32.5 knots. Crew: 1,600.

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Surrender of the German Fleet on board Prinz Eugen at Copenhagen to Captain Elkins of HMS Dido - 12th May 1945
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HMS Dido (Light Cruiser) - Displacement: 5,450 tons Speed: 33kts Complement: 530 (556 as a Flagship)
Armament: Ten 5.25 inch de-perming guns in pairs. Eight 2pdr anti-aircraft guns in fours as well as eight 0.5 inch machine guns in fours. Six 21 inch torpedo tubes in threes.

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Another view of HMS Dido at Liverpool Docks - prior to taking King George V1 and Queen Elizabeth to the Isle of Man.

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King George V1 and Queen Elizabeth aboard HMS Dido enroute to Isle of Man.

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HMS Ocean at Malta - The fifth HMS Ocean was a Royal Navy Colossus-class light fleet aircraft carrier of 13,190 tons built in Glasgow. On December 3, 1945 the first landing by a jet aircraft on an aircraft carrier took place. A Sea Vampire landed on Ocean. Ocean also held the honour of hosting the last Fairey Swordfish to make an official flight from a Royal Navy aircraft carrier earlier in October 1945 did so from the deck of Ocean.

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The first jet aircraft to land on a carrier (Sea Vampire) this was in the English Channel on 3rd December 1945. Lieutenant Commander Eric Melrose (Winkle) Brown landed a Vampire jet aircraft on the flight deck. Four landings and take-offs were made that day, followed by a further eight on December 6th.

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The first jet aircraft to take off from a carrier (Sea Vampire (LZ551) .

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Sea Vampire on the Hangar lift.

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Fairey Firefly taking off

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First two engined plane to land on a carrier - it is a Hornet.

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First two engined plane to take off from a carrier - it is a Hornet.

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Lots of trials using different types of aircraft- probably Fairey Fireflys.

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Hornet coming in to land, arrester hook extended

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Trials over, flight deck clear, history has been made - HMS Ocean heads back to Portsmouth.