HMCS Arvida

Flower-class corvettes such as Arvida serving with the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) in the Second World War were different from earlier and more traditional sail-driven corvettes.[1][2] The Flower-class corvettes originated from a need that arose in 1938 to expand the Royal Navy following the Munich Crisis.[3] A design request went out for a small escort for coastal convoys.[4] Based on a traditional whaler-type design, the initial Canadian ships of the Flower class had a standard displacement of 950 long tons (970 t). They were 205 feet 1 inch (62.51 m) long overall with a beam of 33 feet 1 inch (10.08 m) and a maximum draught of 13 feet 5 inches (4.09 m). The initial 1939–1940 corvettes were powered by a four-cylinder vertical triple expansion engine powered by steam from two Scotch boilers turning one three-bladed propeller rated at 2,800 indicated horsepower (2,100 kW). The Scotch boilers were replaced with water-tube boilers in later 1939–1940 and 1940–1941 Programme ships. The corvettes had a maximum speed of 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph). This gave them a range of 3,450 nautical miles (6,390 km; 3,970 mi) at 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph).[5] The vessels were extremely wet.[6]

The Canadian Flower-class vessels were initially armed with a Mk IX BL 4-inch (102 mm) gun forward on a CP 1 mounting and carried 100 rounds per gun. The corvettes were also armed with a QF Vickers 2-pounder (40 mm, 1.6 in) gun on a bandstand aft, two single-mounted .303 Vickers machine guns or Browning 0.5-calibre machine guns for anti-aircraft defence and two twin-mounted .303 Lewis machine guns, usually sited on bridge wings.[3][5][7] For anti-submarine warfare, they mounted two depth charge throwers and initially carried 25 depth charges. The corvettes were designed with a Type 123 ASDIC sonar set installed. The Flower-class ships had a complement of 47 officers and ratings.[3] The Royal Canadian Navy initially ordered 54 corvettes in 1940 and these were fitted with Mark II Oropesa minesweeping gear used for destroying contact mines.[8] Part of the depth charge rails were made portable so the minesweeping gear could be utilised.[9]

Ordered on 23 January 1940 from Morton Engineering and Dry Dock Co. as part of the 1939–1940 Flower-class building program,[14] Arvida was laid down on 28 February. She was launched on 21 September 1940 and commissioned at Quebec City on 22 May 1941.[15]

After working up Arvida was assigned to Sydney Force, the local escort force for Sydney, Nova Scotia in the Battle of the Atlantic in July 1941 and escorted coastal convoys until September. In September she was reassigned to Newfoundland Command and was used as an ocean escort continuously until the end of 1943. During this time she took in three major convoy battles, ONS 92 in May 1942, ON 127 in September 1942 and SC 107 in November 1942. During ONS 127 she rescued survivors from the sinking Canadian destroyer HMCS Ottawa which had been hit by two torpedoes.[15] Convoy SC 107 was such a disaster that it contributed to Canadian warships being removed from service as ocean escorts for further training.[16] The ship underwent the first of the modifications at Saint John, New Brunswick from January to April 1942 and then the second from December 1942 to March 1943.[15]

In January 1943, the composition of the escort groups changed and Arvida was assigned to escort group C1 of the Mid-Ocean Escort Force.[17] On 15 April 1943, Arvida, temporarily assigned to the American escort group A3 when the convoy they were escorting HX 223 was attacked by German U-boats. Only one cargo ship was lost in the ensuing battle.[18] In late April 1943, Arvida was assigned to the new Canadian escort group C5, which had been created after the final American pullout of convoy escort duties. On its first mission escorting convoy ON 182, the transit was pushed further north to avoid large concentrations of U-boats.[19] While escorting convoy ON 188 in mid-June 1943, Arvida was damaged by her own detonating depth charges. She spent a week repairing in Iceland.[15]

From January to April 1944 Arvida had her forecastle extended at Baltimore, Maryland. Following the ship's reactivation, Arvida was assigned to the Western Local Escort Force as part of escort group W7. In August of that year Arvida was reassigned to group W2. December 1944 saw her transferred to group W8 with whom she would remain until the end of the war.[15] For participation in the Battle of the Atlantic, Arvida was awarded the battle honour "Atlantic 1941–45".[20]

• Fitzsimons, Bernard, ed. (1978). The Illustrated Encyclopedia of 20th Century Weapons & Warfare. Vol. 11. London: Phoebus. OCLC 8842839.
• German, Tony (1990). The Sea is at our Gates : The History of the Canadian Navy. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart Inc. ISBN 0-7710-3269-2.
• Helgason, Guðmundur. "HMCS Arvida (K 113)". German U-boats of WWII – uboat.net. Retrieved 28 August 2023.
• Jane's Fighting Ships of World War II. New Jersey: Random House. 1996. ISBN 0-517-67963-9.
• Lynch, Thomas G (1981). Canada's Flowers, History of the Corvettes of Canada. Halifax, Nova Scotia: Nimbus Publishing. ISBN 0-920852-15-7.
• Macpherson, Ken & Barrie, Ron (2002). The Ships of Canada's Naval Forces 1910–2002 (Third ed.). St. Catharines, Ontario: Vanwell Publishing. ISBN 1-55125-072-1.
• McKay, John & Harland, John (1993). Anatomy of the Ship: The Flower Class Corvette Agassiz. St. Catharines, Ontario: Vanwell Publishing. ISBN 1-55068-084-6.
• Preston, Antony & Raven, Alan (1973). Flower Class Corvettes. Signal. London: Bivouac Books. ISBN 0-85680-004-X.
• Rohwer, Jürgen (2005). Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two (Revised & Expanded ed.). Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-59114-119-2.
• Thomas, David A. (1998). Battles and Honours of the Royal Navy. Barnsley, UK: Leo Cooper. ISBN 085052-623-X.

• Hazegray. "Flower Class". Canadian Navy of Yesterday and Today. Retrieved 3 August 2013.
• "HMCS Arvida". Ready, Aye, Ready. Retrieved 3 August 2013.