Sprite-class tanker

The Sprite class were a class of spirit tankers that served with the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, supporting the Royal Navy during the Second World War. They went on to support British and allied fleet units during the Cold War.

Class overview
NameSprite class
BuildersBlythswood Shipbuilding Company Ltd
OperatorsRFA Ensign Royal Fleet Auxiliary
Preceded byDale class
Succeeded byRanger class
Built19401943
In commission19411964
Completed2
Retired2
General characteristics
TypeSpirits tanker
Displacement965 long tons (980 t)
Length204 ft 6 in (62.33 m)
Beam33 ft 3 in (10.13 m)
Draught12 ft 9 in (3.89 m)
PropulsionTriple-expansion engines, 900 ihp (670 kW)
Speed11 knots (13 mph; 20 km/h)

Class overview

Two ships were eventually built by the Blythswood Shipbuilding Company Ltd, Airsprite and Nasprite. They entered service in the during the Second World War and were used to carry aviation fuel and petroleum.[1] Both survived the war, serving mainly in British waters and the Mediterranean Sea, and continued in service until being retired in the early 1960s and scrapped soon afterwards.[2]

Ships

Name Pennant Builder Laid down Launched Completed Fate
Airsprite A115 Blythswood Shipbuilding Company Ltd September 1941 22 December 1942 16 February 1943 Scrapped in 1965
Nasprite A252 Blythswood Shipbuilding Company Ltd April 1940 28 November 1940 11 February 1941 Scrapped in 1964

Notes

  1. Jane's Fighting Ships. p. 82.
  2. Olver. "Sprite Class Tankers". Archived from the original on 6 October 2008. Retrieved 8 March 2009.

References

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