Dictionary of Meaning
<<Back
Please select a letter:
A |
B |
C |
D |
E |
F |
G |
H |
I |
J |
K |
L |
M |
N |
O |
P |
Q |
R |
S |
T |
U |
V |
W |
X |
Y |
Z |
0-9
Click here for Shopping
HMS Furious (47)
*** Shopping-Tip: HMS Furious (47)
:''See
HMS Furious HMS ''Furious'' for other
Royal Navy ships of this name.''
'''HMS ''Furious''''' was a modified
Glorious class aircraft carrier ''Courageous'' class "large light cruiser" (an extreme form of
battlecruiser) converted into an early
aircraft carrier of the
Royal Navy.
She was designed as one of
John Fisher, 1st Baron Fisher Jackie Fisher's "large light cruisers" to participate in an amphibious landing on the
Baltic Sea Baltic coast of
Germany during the
World War I First World War. As initially designed, she would have been a lightly-armored cruiser mounting two
18 inch /40 Mark 1 naval gun 18-inch (457 mm) guns in two single mount
turrets, one forward and one aft. The intention was for a heavily armed ship able to navigate the
Baltic Sea Baltic narrows alongside smaller warships. However, while under construction, it was realized that she would be of more use in a totally different role. Only one of the two big guns was installed, her forward turret was removed before she was launched, and was replaced with a 160-foot (49 m) open deck for the flying off of
aircraft, with a hangar underneath. The aft gun was left in place and the 18 inch gun trialled during July 1917. The results showed that the hull could not handle the effects of the gun firing and it was decided to remove it. On
3 August 1917, while performing trials,
Squadron Leader Edwin Dunning landed a
Sopwith Pup successfully on board ''Furious'', becoming the first person to land an aircraft on a moving ship. However, on his second attempt, a tire burst as he attempted to land, causing the aircraft to go over the side, killing Dunning. The deck arrangement was unsatisfactory: in order to land, aircraft had to maneouvre around the superstructure. She returned to the dockyard in 1917 to have the aft turret removed and replaced by another, 300 foot (91 m) deck for landing and a second hangar, giving her both a launching and a recovery deck. Two lifts serving the hangars were also installed.
After being recommissioned on
15 March 1918, ''Furious'' and her embarked aircraft served in a number of important battles in
World War I, notably the
Tondern raid of July
1918 when
Sopwith Camels flew off against the
Zeppelin sheds
After the end of the war, ''Furious'' was sent to reserve, where she remained while the Navy decided what to do with her. In
1922, the
Washington Naval Treaty was signed, and the British had to do something with her or scrap her. As a result of the experience with other aircraft carrying ships, ''Furious'' returned to the dockyard once again in 1922 to have her superstructure removed and a full length
flight deck fitted, with a smaller launching deck beneath it at the bow. This got rid of the continuing problem of turbulence across the aft landing deck and established a pattern for aircraft carriers in the 1920s. Since there was no superstructure now, as on later aircraft carriers, ''Furious'' was conned by a navigating bridge on the starboard side of the forward end of the upper flight deck, and had a flying control position on the port side next to it. The ship was used extensively throughout the 1920s and 1930s as a platform to develop various techniques and tactics for the employment of carriers and carrier-based aircraft in the Royal Navy. In the 1930s, she was reconstructed again, with her launch deck converted to a gun platform with several
anti-aircraft guns, and a small island superstructure added. It was in this configuration that the ship served in
World War II.
When World War II started, ''Furious'' was attached to the
British Home Fleet Home Fleet, mostly hunting
U-boats in the Atlantic, and carrying
bullion to
Canada. She took part in
Operation Pedestal, carrying aircraft to
Malta. After refitting in the
United States, ''Furious'' took part in
Operation Torch, the landings in
North Africa, in November
1942. In
1943, she took part in strikes against
Germany German shipping, and attacked the
German Battleship Tirpitz in
Altafjord Norway. However, as the war progressed, the ship's age and limitations became increasingly apparent, and she was replaced by more modern vessels. ''Furious'' was placed in reserve in September
1944, and sold in 1948. She was scrapped starting on
15 March 1948, and the hull was scrapped at Troon in July.
References
*Roger Chesneau, ''Aircraft Carriers of the World, 1914 to the Present; An Illustrated Encyclopedia'' (Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, 1984)
*Siegfried Breyer, ''Battleships and Battlecruisers 1905-1970'' (Doubleday and Company; Garden City, New York, 1973) (originally published in German as ''Schlachtschiffe und Schlachtkreuzer 1905-1970'', J.F. Lehmanns, Verlag, Munchen, 1970). Contains various line drawings of the ship as designed and as built.
External links
{{Commons|HMS Furious}}
-
Royal Navy page on ''Furious''
-
FleetAirArmArchive.net on Furious
-
US Navy photos of ''Furious''
-
Maritimequest HMS Furious photo gallery
Category:Royal Navy aircraft carriers Furious
Category:World War II aircraft carriers of the United Kingdom Furious
it:HMS Furious (47)
*** Shopping-Tip: HMS Furious (47)
