HMS Dido (37)

This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (April 2009) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

Dido at anchor
History
United Kingdom
Name	Dido
Namesake	Dido
Builder	Cammell Laird Shipyard (Birkenhead, UK)
Laid down	26 October 1937
Launched	18 July 1939
Commissioned	30 September 1940
Out of service	October 1947
Reclassified	In reserve at Gareloch (between 1947 and 1951) and at Portsmouth between 1951 and 1958
Identification	Pennant number 37
Fate	Scrapped, 18 July 1957
General characteristics (as built)
Class and type	Dido-class anti-aircraft cruiser
Displacement	5,600 long tons (5,700 t) (standard) 6,850 long tons (6,960 t) (full load)
Length	485 ft (148 m) p.p. 512 ft (156 m) o/a
Beam	50 ft 6 in (15.39 m)
Draught	14 ft (4.3 m)
Installed power	62,000 shp (46,000 kW)
Propulsion	4 × geared steam turbines 4 × Admiralty 3-drum boilers 4 × shafts
Speed	32.25 knots (59.73 km/h; 37.11 mph)
Range	1,500 nmi (2,800 km; 1,700 mi) at 30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph) 4,240 nmi (7,850 km; 4,880 mi) at 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph)
Complement	480
Sensors and processing systems	Type 281 RADAR from September 1940[1]
Armament	8 × 5.25 in (133 mm) dual purpose guns (4 × 2) 1 × 4 in (100 mm) anti-aircraft gun 12 × 2-pounder pom-pom guns (3 × 4) 8 × .50 cal machine guns (2 × 4) 6 × 21 inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes (2 × 3)
Armour	Belt: 3 in (7.6 cm) Deck: 1 in (2.5 cm) Magazines: 2 in (5.1 cm) Bulkheads: 1 in (2.5 cm)

HMS Dido was the name ship of her class of light cruisers for the Royal Navy. Constructed by Cammell Laird Shipyard of Birkenhead, United Kingdom, she entered service in 1940 during World War II. The cruiser took part in several battles in the Mediterranean and Arctic theatres of war. Following the war, the ship performed ceremonial functions before being sold for scrapping in 1957.