In December 1941, after the US entry into World War II, the USN had a large building programme for anti-submarine warfare (ASW) ships, but none nearing completion. To overcome this shortfall, the Royal Navy agreed to transfer a number of ASW ships to the USN, including ten s. These ships had already been in commission and had seen action during the Battle of the Atlantic.[1]
These ships were classified as Patrol Gunboats, and numbered PG 62 to 71, and were referred to as the Temptress class, after the first ship to be recommissioned.
The USN also placed orders for 15 more Flowers from Canadian shipyards. This was met by transferring a number of vessels on order for the RN to USN. These ships were of the Modified Flower type, a design which consolidated the various modifications developed in the course of building the original Flowers.
In the event the USN only took charge of eight of these ships; the other seven were transferred back to the RN under Lend-Lease arrangements.
The US ships were numbered PG 86 to 100 and were referred to as the Action class.
The Temptress class were armed with a 4-inch gun forward, a 3inches/50 dual-purpose (DP) gun aft, two 20 mm anti-aircraft guns, two depth charge racks, and four depth charge throwers. The Action class replaced the 4-inch gun with another 3-inch/50 cal. DP gun, and added a Hedgehog anti-submarine mortar.[2]
The ten ships of the Temptress class were originally built for the Royal Navy and saw service there before transfer to the USN.[3]
| USN name | Number | RN name | Pennant | Builder | Completed | Transferred | Fate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USS Temptress | PG-62 | K37 | Smiths Dock Co., South Bank-on-Tees | 18 Feb 1941 | 16 Feb 1942 | Returned to RN 26 Aug 1945 | ||
| USS Surprise | PG-63 | K03 | John Crown & Sons Ltd, Sunderland | 12 Sept 1940 | 24 Mar 1942 | Returned to RN 26 Aug 1945 | ||
| USS Spry | PG-64 | K24 | Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast | 21 May 1940 | 2 May 1942 | Returned to RN 26 Aug 1945 | ||
| USS Saucy | PG-65 | K73 | Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast | 5 Apr 1940 | 30 Apr 1942 | Returned to RN 26 Aug 1945 and recommissioned as Snapdragon | ||
| USS Restless | PG-66 | K55 | Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast | 8 Apr 1940 | 15 Mar 1942 | Returned to RN 26 Aug 1945 | ||
| USS Ready | PG-67 | K28 | Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast | 6 May 1940 | 12 Mar 1942 | Returned to RN 23 Aug 1945 | ||
| USS Impulse | PG-68 | K66 | Cook, Welton & Gemmell, Beverley | 8 Mar 1941 | 10 Mar 1942 | Returned to RN 22 Aug 1945 | ||
| USS Fury | PG-69 | K82 | Fleming & Ferguson Ltd., Paisley | 4 Jan 1941 | 17 Mar 1942 | Returned to RN 22 Aug 1945 | ||
| USS Courage | PG-70 | K15 | Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast | 4 Jun 1940 | 3 Apr 1942 | Returned to RN 23 Aug 1945 | ||
| USS Tenacity | PG-71 | K09 | Grangemouth Dry Dock Co., Grangemouth | 16 Oct 1940 | 4 Mar 1942 | Returned to RN 26 Aug 1945 |
The fifteen ships of the Action class were originally ordered for the Royal Navy but transferred before completion to the United States Navy. On completion eight entered service with the USN while the other seven were transferred back to the RN under Lend-lease.[6]
| USN name | Number | RN name | Pennant | Builder | Completed | To USN | Fate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PG-86 | HMS Comfrey | K277 | Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood | 22 Nov 1942 | 22 Nov 1942 | Sold 6 Feb 1946 | ||
| PG-87 | HMS Cornel | K278 | Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood | 10 Dec 1942 | 10 Dec 1942 | Sold 22 Sept 1945 | ||
| PG-89 | HMS Flax | K284 | Kingston Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Kingston | 6 Dec 1942 | 6 Dec 1942 | Sold 18 Oct 1946 | ||
| PG-92 | HMS Mandrake | K287 | Midland Shipyards Ltd., Midland | 6 Apr 1943 | 6 Apr 1943 | Sold 1949 | ||
| PG-93 | HMS Milfoil | K288 | Midland Shipyards Ltd., Midland | 31 Mar 1943 | 31 Mar 1943 | Sold | ||
| PG-94 | HMS Musk | K289 | Midland Shipyards Ltd., Midland | 22 Dec 1942 | 22 Dec 1942 | Sold | ||
| PG-95 | HMS Nepeta | K290 | Midland Shipyards Ltd., Midland | 22 Dec 1942 | 22 Dec 1942 | Sold 18 Oct 1946 | ||
| PG-96 | HMS Privet | K291 | Midland Shipyards Ltd., Midland | 16 Aug 1943 | 16 Aug 1943 | Sold 1949 |
| USN name | Number | RN name | Pennant | Builder | Completed | To RN | Fate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USS Beacon | PG-88 | K279 | Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood | 31 May 1943 | same day | Returned to USN 20 Jun 1946 | ||
| USS Caprice | PG-90 | K285 | Kingston Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., Kingston | 28 Mar 1943 | 28 Mar 1943 | Returned to USN 20 Jun 1946 | ||
| USS Clash | PG-91 | K282 | Midland Shipyards Ltd., Midland | 19 Jun 1943 | 19 Jun 1943 | Returned to USN 27 Jul 1946 | ||
| USS Splendor | PG-97 | K286 | Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood | Returned to USN 20 Mar 1946 | ||||
| USS Tact | PG-98 | K280 | Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood | 21 Jun 1943 | 21 Jun 1943 | Returned to USN 5 Jan 1946 | ||
| USS Vim | PG-99 | K281 | Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood | 20 Sep 1943 | 20 Sep 1943 | Returned to USN 21 Jun 1946 | ||
| USS Vitality | PG-100 | K283 | Midland Shipyards Ltd., Midland | 30 Aug 1943 | 30 Aug 1943 | Returned to USN 11 Jun 1946 |