Shipbucket

Thanks very much Rowdy36 for doing the FD scale Hawker Sea Fury. I have added it to my fictional RN aircraft aboard HMS Implacable late 1944-45.

I really like the Apollo. Looks a good all-round carrier design for the 1930s.
It also avoids all those bumps and humps favoured by NPL wind tunnel tests as seen on the Weird Sisters too.

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Hood's Worklist
English Electric Canberra FD
Interwar RN Capital Ships
Super-Darings
Never-Were British Aircraft

HMS Apollo with refits and additions through to 1940.



As can be seen when comparing the two versions, the later Apollo had the twin funnels trunked together in 1937, in the same refit, the 5.5" guns were removed and the single 4" guns fitted in their place. In 1938 the 2pd weapons were greatly increased, the HACS units fitted to control the 4", the elevators enlarged to take the Sea Battle torpedo bombers. 1939 the first RADAR outfit was installed and more electronics were added to the ship as refits came due. This takes the ship through to April 1940.

The Norwegian Campaign:

HMS Apollo was added to Admiral Whitworths squadron containing HMS Majestic and HMS Warspite (BB's), HMS Hawkins, HMS Kent, HMS Surrey (CA's), with a dozen destroyers. Their brief was to intercept German shipping in the Trondheim and Narvik areas. The weather was appalling. The latest search radar on Majestic was a godsend. Not only did it manage to spot enemy forces it allowed the Admiral to 'see' were his own ships were and keep some cohesive control over their dispositions. Majestic 'saw' two large blips moving North at high speed, the 'chase' order was given but only Majestic and Apollo were able to match the speed of the enemy ships and even they started dropping behind. Admiral Whitworth called off the chase and the Scharnhorst and Gneisenau sailed off into the Atlantic unaware of how close to being caught they had been.

While recalling his ships together a distress call was heard from HMS Gloworm that had encountered the Hipper and its destroyer escorts. Kent, Surrey and four destroyers were sent to intercept the Hipper and search for survivors. The Hipper made it to Trondheim and secured the port and by the next morning had secured the airfield which was then used by the Germans for air support missions against the British ships. It was now that the Apollo came into its own. In a dawn raid, the Apollo's aircraft caught the Hipper in harbour, putting a torpedo into it and the Skuas hitting it twice with bombs. More Skuas and Griffons attacked the airfield and caught the Germans on the ground, destroying the aircraft and facilities with guns and bombs.

Kent, Surrey and the destroyers having missed the Hipper are ordered to sweep north through the Inner leads up to Narvik. Admiral Whitworth and the main body stay outside the Leeds and head north on a parallel course. The conditions have not improved much outside in the Norwegian Sea and the weather has kept a lot of the air superiority, gained by having the Apollo, is grounded aboard ship. The Inner Leads Squadron (ILS) runs into a group of four German destroyers which turn tail and dive back into Narvik fjord. Admiral Whitworth orders the ILS in after them. The line is led by HMS Hardy (Captain Warburton-Lee), Hereward, Surrey (Commodore Smith). Kent, Hero, Hotspur. (Anybody who has read the 'Smith' series by Alan Evans will recognise my Commodore).

Unknown to the ILS there is actually now ten destroyers stuck in Narvik due to lack of fuel. Conditions of low cloud and mist also hamper the squadrons activities. The squadron went down the fjord at 15-20 knots per the Commodores instructions. Passing one of the numerous cross fjords, the yell of torpedoes is heard from the lookouts, what looked like a veritable shoal of eight torpedoes burst out and onto the line of ships. Hardy and Hereward both received a torpedo hit each. Hardy, hit in the stern uses its momentum to run ashore, the crew flooding over the bow to the safety of dry land, then having to fight the German lookout position that had signalled when to fire the torpedoes to the hidden destroyer. That destroyer did not have much longer to live as in a brisk 5 minute action both Surrey and Kent hit the destroyer with multiple strikes that ignited magazines and literally blew it out of the water. The Hereward with its bows blown off managed to limp backwards out to where the bulk of the squadron waited. It would be many months before Hereward would again be available for service.

At the rate of loss of two to one the squadron would not last long even against the three destroyers that the Commodore thought were left. The Commodore called up the two pilots and asked for a volunteer for what could be a suicide mission, launching a Walrus into the murk of that day. Both men stepped forward and the Commodore selected the more experienced pilot. The Walrus is launched and trundles down the fjord acting as the eyes of the fleet. This pays almost immediate dividends with another ambush point being spotted. The lookout point being blasted, the Hero went past the mouth of the fjord at 30 knots firing two torpedoes, both of which hit the anchored German destroyer, turning it into a sunken wreck. The Walrus had continued down the fjord while the squadron had dealt with the ambush, but found no more ambushes. Reaching Narvik harbour itself the observer sent warning that there were six more destroyers in harbour. It was now that the two heavy cruisers proved their worth being able to use standoff fire outside the range of the German destroyers 5" and using the Walrus to spot for the shoot. The German destroyers made smoke to try to conceal themselves but this was blown away in the windy conditions. Three more German destroyers became total wrecks under the withering fire of the cruisers 7.5" guns. The other three having varying degrees of damage. It was at this point that the missing two German destroyers made an appearance firing torpedoes and guns at the cruisers. A lucky torpedo hit on the Kent forced the remains of the ILS squadron to withdraw. While damaged the Kent was still able to make 15 knots. So ended the First Battle of Narvik.

Offshore the weather started abating in the afternoon allowing the Apollo to launch reconnaissance aircraft. These aircraft surveyed the Narvik fjord system and noted the survivors of the Hardy. The remaining 5 damaged German destroyers were all in Narvik Harbour. The aircraft sent to the north spotted the Scharnhorst and Gneisenau returning from destroying the weather station on Spitzbergen to support the destroyers in Narvik. Having seen they were spotted and having lost the advantage of surprise and not knowing what was facing them, the S&G followed their main orders and reversed course heading for the passes out into the Atlantic. A strike force was sent out after S&G but was unable to locate them before dusk. This left the dive bombers and a few fighters to attack Narvik. The Hero was sent in to retrieve the Hardys survivors. The Narvik air strike force met with heavy covering fire from the destroyers and the troops the destroyers had landed. Despite this two more destroyers were sunk and two more heavily damaged. Of the original ten German destroyers, only one effective unit remained. An eventual decisive victory to the British forces.

At this point having spent almost two weeks at sea the ships of Admiral Whitworths fleet were withdrawn to the Faeroes where replenishment ships were waiting for them. During this passage the Apollo was torpedoed by a U-Boat. Heavy damage and listing was not aided by a crew that had only been together for six weeks. The ship was righted and being down by the stern was taken in tow by the Surrey and with three destroyer escorts, headed for Rosyth and the safety of a dockyard. This first service period of the Apollo had netted the damage to the Hipper, the sinking of the destroyers in Narvik, and while the ship is in for repair, the ships Skua dive-bombers finish off the damaged Hipper, sinking it with a further 5 bomb hits.



More instalments to come on the service life of the Apollo.

Apollo would have been an impressive Carrier in that era. Great work!

The four Indefatigable class were completed in two pairs. Implacable and Indefatigable were completed in late 1944, early 1945. The Eagle and Ark Royal (named for vessels lost in WW2) were originally to be completed in 1946, but due to the steel shortage of 1941 and revisions of the plans to add in all the latest features it was not until 1948-49 that they began their trials, finally being commissioned into the Royal Navy in 1949-50. The two pairs were hardly ever in commission at the same time. Lengthy refits to update electronics, angled decks, strengthen ship fittings to take ever larger and heavier aircraft. All took time and money. Some of the refits were shortened and the incremental list of things to do would have to wait till next time. Eagle and Ark Royal fought in the Korean war while the double 'I's were in having their angle decks fitted. The double 'I's were eventually decommissioned in 1975-77, the E & AR lasting till 1990, supposedly till the completion of the CVA01 type.

The drawing below pictures Eagle (and Ark Royal) after its 1970-74 refit to be able to operate the Phantom II aircraft. The main armament is four of the new Super-Cat (Supersonic Sea Cat) launchers and control systems. Legacy equipment in the shape of one twin 3"/70 and twin mkV 40mm mountings. This equipment was left as it would have been just as expensive to remove it as it was to leave it in place. It also came in handy for training purposes. With such a large crew, these ships rarely sailed fully manned and were used regularly to train cadets.





With these two ships in commission through the 1980's, were the Argentinians likely to attack the Falkands?

That looks really good!
I'd be tempted to ditch the twin Bofors and maybe use a couple of 20mm for deterring smaller objects.

_________________
Hood's Worklist
English Electric Canberra FD
Interwar RN Capital Ships
Super-Darings
Never-Were British Aircraft

Love it! Great looking carrier.

As to whether the Falklands War would've taken place, hard to say. Bigger carriers would've been a better deterrent but the Junta were desperate for something to unify and pacify the population so still might've taken the risk.

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Hey, it's gotta be 5 o'clock somewhere...

Currently working on:
The October War, 27-10-1962 (apparently forever);
"Saxonverse" alt-UK;
Federation of the Channel Islands AU;
Republic of Yopur & Andaman;
some sort of overarching AU;
Regaining my sanity.

Like it, but I to would ditch the 40mm (what's it for that a 3'/70 cant ?) and I might try to get another 3'/70 on the other side (say just behind the landing wires, or angle the deck more to put them more inside ?)

The 3"/70 and 40mm mk5 are where they are after previous refits. Eagle and Ark Royal are refitted during the 60's, removing the 4.5" and replacing them with 3"/70's. The original 40mm mk5's were replaced with Sea Cat installations.

The fitting of the full 8.5/9 degree angle deck takes out the port/aft 3"/70 that had been there. The replacement of the forward 3"/70 mountings with Super-Cat mountings. That leaves just the starboard aft 3"/70 in place.

What can the 40mm mounting do that a twin 3"/70 cant do? The 40mm mounting can fit on the bridge superstructure, the 3"/70 cant do that.

Superb drawings!

On the Falklands issue, it depends on a whole lot of factors but if Argentina ends up with a dictatorship facing an economic crisis then it's a possibility. Britain having CTOL carriers might mean that Argentina would need a strategy for resisting a British counter attack from day one, perhaps they leave the invasion until May/early June so there's no time to do it before the Southern Winter makes operations impossible giving Argentina time to upgrade Stanley airport for Mirage III's and SuE's? While Britain would have had more capability the logistic requirements would have been far greater than those of Hermes and Invincible in 1982, if more ships are sunk like the Atlantic Conveyor was it could have badly hampered the RN.. I think it could have been another close run affair.