John A Silkstone

HMS ACoventry Cruiser

1974 HMS COVENTRY. Coventry was one of two Royal Navy air defence destroyers sunk in the Falklands War, and a unit of one of the largest classes of major British warships for many years.

AN ECONOMICAL DESIGN

The cancellation of the aircraft carriers Queen Elizabeth (CVA-O1) and Duke of Edinburgh (CVA-02) in 1966 left the Royal Navy with the prospect of reduced air cover for its task groups and amphibious ships. The Type 82 destroyers intended to escort the new carriers were regarded as too expensive, and a new Type 42 design was prepared. The starting point was a price limit of two-thirds of the Type 82, incorporating as many weapons systems as possible. In practice, the Ministry of Defence designers achieved a lot, retaining the GWS3O Sea Dart missile (with a lighter launcher), dropping the Ikara anti-submarine missile system but adding a hangar for a Lynx helicopter. The drawback was a very cramped design, with tight limits on deck space and top weight, and a designed hull life of only 22 years. Like other Type 42 Batch 1 and 2 destroyers, the Coventry had a standard hull-mounted sonar and a Type 162 for detecting submarines on the bottom.

FOLLOWING A HEROIC TRADITION

HMS Coventry was delivered by Cammell Laird in 1978, inheriting the battle honours of the previous Coventry, a small anti-aircraft cruiser sunk in the Mediterranean by air attack in 1942. Sent south as part of Operation Corporate to recover the Falklands, she performed the dual role of anti aircraft (AAW) destroyer and aircraft-director. On 25 May she and the frigate Broadsword were stationed north of Pebble Island, in the hope of inflicting attrition on Argentine aircraft before they could reach Falkiand Sound. The intention was to set a high-low trap, using the Coventrys Sea Dart missiles to hit medium-altitude targets, while the frigates Sea Wolf missiles dealt with low-fliers. They were attacked by two waves of A-4 Skyhawks, the first of which inflicted slight damage on HMS Broadsword, and the second of which hit HMS Coventry with the loss of 19 men killed.

TECHNICAL DATA
Type: Guided-missile destroyer
Machinery: 2-shaft COGOG, 50,000shp
Displacement 4350t (full load)
Dimensions: Length, 125m (410ft) beam, 14m (46ft)
Draught: 5.8m (19ft)
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NAVAL SHIPS
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