HMS Termagant (R89)

After the end of the Second World War and as the Cold War started, the Royal Navy found itself with a shortage of fast anti-submarine escorts capable of dealing with modern Soviet diesel-electric submarines, with existing sloops and frigates too slow. At the same time, the relatively recent War Emergency destroyers, with their low-angle guns and basic fire control systems, were considered unsuitable for modern warfare, so it was decided to convert these obsolete destroyers into fast escorts, acting as a stop-gap solution until new-build ships, such as the Type 12 frigates could be built in sufficient numbers. The Type 16 frigate was a simple "second-rate" conversion, less capable than the "first-rate" Type 15, but cheaper and quicker to convert.[12][13]

The Type 16 conversion involved removing most of the ship's armament and sensors, while retaining the ship's superstructure. Gun armament consisted of a twin 4-inch (102 mm) mount forward of the bridge, with a close-in anti-aircraft armament of seven 40-mm Bofors guns (1 twin and 5 single mounts). Two Squid anti-submarine mortars provided the ship's primary anti-submarine armament, while one quadruple torpedo-tube mount was retained to give a limited anti-surface capability (or to launch homing anti-submarine torpedoes if available). Type 293Q surface/air-search radar was fitted on the mainmast, with Type 274 navigation radar fitted below. Sonar consisted of Type 146B search sonar, Type 147P depth-finding sonar, together with Type 162 sonar for detecting targets on the sea bottom and Type 174 for control of the Squid mortars.[14][15][16]

Termagant was converted by Grayson Rollo at Birkenhead from August 1951 to April 1953.[17]

After working up at Scapa Flow, Termagant formed part of the local escort for the Arctic convoy JW54A for the initial leg of the convoy from 15 to 18 November 1943, when it was relieved by the convoy's Ocean escort.[17][18] She was then sent to join the Mediterranean Fleet, arriving at Alexandria on 14 January 1944 to join the 24th Destroyer Flotilla, having escorted the battleships Queen Elizabeth, Valiant and the battlecruiser Renown on her passage to the Mediterranean, as the capital ships made their way to the Eastern Fleet.[17]

On the night of 12/13 February 1944, Termagant and sister ship Troubridge shelled Vela Luka in Croatia and on 6/7 April bombarded Bar, Montenegro.[17] On 19 May, the German submarine U-453 attacked a convoy off the heel of Italy, sinking the merchant ship Fort Missanabie. Termagant and the destroyers Tenacious and Liddesdale were ordered to hunt the U-boat, making contact on 20 May and carrying out a series of depth charge attacks until U-453 was forced to the surface early in the morning on 21 May, and was sunk by gunfire from the three destroyers.[19][20][21] On 15 August 1944, Termagant took part in Operation Dragoon, the Allied invasion of Southern France, providing fire support for the landings.[22][23] She remained on duty off the South of France until 28 August.[17]

In September 1944, Germany started to evacuate its troops from islands in the Aegean and from southern Greece, and in response, the British launched an offensive to disrupt the evacuation, with the Royal Navy deploying a task force consisting of seven escort carriers, supported by cruisers and destroyers, with the force including Termagant.[24][17] On 7 October 1944 she and Tuscan intercepted a German convoy in the Gulf of Salonica, with the two destroyers sinking the German torpedo boat TA37, the subchaser UJ210 and the harbour patrol boat GK32.[25][26] On 19 October Termagant and Tuscan intercepted and sank the German torpedo boat TA18 (formerly the Italian Solferino) off Volos.[25][27]

On 1 November 1944, with major operations in the Aegean ended, Termagant set out for Britain, arriving at Portsmouth on 11 November, and was refitted in preparation for operations in the Pacific. The refit was completed at the end of January 1945, and after working up in Malta, sailed via Trincomalee in Ceylon to join the British Pacific Fleet at its base in Australia,[17] receiving the new pennant number D47 for operations in the Pacific.[4] In May 1945, Termagant operated in support of the British Pacific Fleets carriers during operations in support of the Okinawa campaign.[28] On 14–15 June, Termagant formed part of the escort for the aircraft carrier Implacable for Operation Inmate, an attack on the Japanese base at Truk Atoll intended to provide combat experience for Implacable's crew ahead of operations off Japan.[29][30] Termagant again supported the British carrier fleet during operations against Japan in July 1945, and remained on station into August that year, and was present at the signing of the Surrender of Japan in Tokyo Bay on 2 September.[17][31]

Between 1946 and 1951 Termagant was held in reserve at Portsmouth. In August 1951, she was towed to Grayson & Rollo's Birkenhead yard from conversion to a Type 16 fast anti-submarine frigate.[17][32] On 4 March 1953, an oil fire broke out in the ship's engine room, causing paintwork damage,[33] and on 12 March a pipe failure caused the ship's engine room to be flooded to a depth of 5 ft (1.5 m), it taking over three hours for the ship's crew and firefighters to empty the flooded compartment.[34] Despite these incidents, Termagant recommissioned on 28 April 1953 with the new pennant number F189.[17] After commissioning she joined the 3rd Submarine Flotilla at Rothesay as a target ship.[17] In the same year she took part in the Fleet Review to celebrate the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.[35]

On 26 September 1957 Termagant returned to the reserve at Devonport, being replaced by the Type 14 frigate Blackwood in the 3rd Submarine Flotilla. She re-commissioning briefly in 1958 for trials.[36]