HMS Swift was an S-class destroyer built for the Royal Navy in the Second World War.[1] The ship belonged to the January 1941 order of the Royal Navy from the War Emergency program. The destroyer was launched from the shipyard J. Samuel White in Cowes on 15 June 1943 and was put into service on 12 December 1943.
In early 1944 Swift saw service escorting Arctic Convoys to and from the Kola Inlet.[2] The ship participated in the Normandy landings providing fire support. She was sunk off Sword Beach by mine on 24 June 1944 with 53 casualties.[2]
Swift was one of eight S-class destroyers ordered as the 5th Emergency Flotilla on 9 January 1941. The S-class were War Emergency Programme destroyers, intended for general duties, including use as anti-submarine escort, and were to be suitable for mass-production. They were based on the hull and machinery of the pre-war J-class destroyers, but with a lighter armament (effectively whatever armament was available) in order to speed production.
The S-class were 362inchesft9inchesin (ftin) long overall, 348inchesft0inchesin (ftin) at the waterline and 339inchesft6inchesin (ftin) between perpendiculars, with a beam of 35inchesft8inchesin (ftin) and a draught of 10inchesft0inchesin (ftin) mean and 14inchesft3inchesin (ftin) full load. Displacement was 1710LT standard and 2530LT full load. Two Admiralty 3-drum water-tube boilers supplied steam at 300psi and 630F to two sets of Parsons single-reduction geared steam turbines, which drove two propeller shafts. The machinery was rated at 40000shp giving a maximum speed of 36kn and 32kn at full load. 615 tons of oil were carried, giving a range of 4675nmi at 20kn.
The ship had a main gun armament of four 4.7 inch (120 mm) QF Mk. IX guns on single mountings, capable of elevating to an angle of 55 degrees rather than the 40 degree of previous War Emergency destroyers, giving improved anti-aircraft capability. The close-in anti-aircraft armament was one Hazemayer stabilised twin mount for the Bofors 40 mm gun and four twin Oerlikon 20 mm cannons. Two quadruple mounts for 21 inch (533 mm) torpedoes were fitted, while the ship had an depth charge outfit of four depth charge mortars and two racks, with a total of 70 charges carried.
Swift was fitted with a Type 272 surface warning radar and a high-frequency direction finding (HF/DF) aerial on the ship's tripod foremast, with a Type 291 air warning radar on a pole mast aft and Type 285 fire control radar integrated with the ship's high-angle gun director. She had a crew of 170 officers and other ranks.
Swift was laid down at J. Samuel White's Cowes, Isle of Wight shipyard on 12 June 1942 and was launched on 15 June 1943. She was completed on 6 December 1943, and assigned the Pennant number G46.
Following commissioning and workup, Swift, like the other S-class destroyers, joined the 23rd Destroyer Flotilla of the British Home Fleet.