HMS Argonaut (61)

Argonaut in her war (dazzle) colours, November 1943 just after repairs at the Philadelphia Navy Yard
History
United Kingdom
NameArgonaut
BuilderCammell Laird Shipyard (Birkenhead, UK)
Laid down21 November 1939
Launched6 September 1941
Commissioned8 August 1942
Out of service6 July 1946
ReclassifiedIn reserve from 1946 to 1955
IdentificationPennant number: 61
FateScrapped, 19 November 1955
General characteristics (as built)
Class and typeDido-class light cruiser
Displacement
  • 5,600 tons standard
  • 6,850 tons full load
Length
  • 485 ft (148 m) pp
  • 512 ft (156 m) oa
Beam50.5 ft (15.4 m)
Draught14 ft (4.3 m)
Propulsion
  • Parsons geared turbines
  • Four shafts
  • Four Admiralty 3-drum boilers
  • 62,000 shp (46 MW)
Speed32.25 knots (59.73 km/h; 37.11 mph)
Range
  • 2,414 km (1,303 nmi; 1,500 mi) (1,500 miles) at 30 knots
  • 6,824 km (4,240 miles) at 16 knots
Complement480
Armament:10 (5×2) 5.25 in (133 mm) dual purpose guns,
4 × 20 mm (0.8 in) single guns,
8 (2×4) 2 pdr (40 mm) pom-poms quad guns,
2 × 21-inch (533 mm) triple Torpedo Tubes.
Armor:Belt: 3 inch,
Deck: 1 inch,
Magazines: 2 inch,
Bulkheads: 1 inch.

HMS Argonaut was a Dido-class cruiser of the British Royal Navy which saw active service during the Second World War. Constructed at the Cammell Laird shipyard, Birkenhead, Argonaut was laid down in 1939, launched in September 1941, and formally commissioned into service on 8 August 1942.[1]

She saw service in the Mediterranean in 1942, and was badly damaged on 14 December. After being repaired she took part in Operation Overlord, the Normandy Landings, and Operation Dragoon, the invasion of Southern France, before serving as an escort carrier group flagship.

After the war she was laid up and scrapped in 1955.

  1. ^ "Dido Class Cruiser". HMS ARGONAUT ASSOCIATION. 9 July 2014. Retrieved 11 November 2017.