Computer line drawing made by Novice, with our thanks
British light cruiser HMS Calcutta 1917-1941 in her anti aircraft appearance
A Selection of Ships' Badges of His Majesty's Royal Navies" (Gutta, Percha & Rubber Ltd.). (1942).
Laid down at Vickers Limited on 18 October 1917, launched on 9 July a year later, commissioned on 28 August 1919, in 1939 converted into an anti aircraft cruiser (1) and sunk during a German air attack off Alexandria, Egypt on 1 June 1041. With a a measurement of 4.190 tons burden were her dimensions 137,6 x 13,4 x 4,3 metres of 451.4 x 43.9 x 14 feet. The Parsons geared turbines and Yarrow boilers supplied via two screws 40.000 shp allowing a speed of 29 knots. Fuel oil bunker capacity 300-950 maximum) tons. Her crew numbered between 330 and 350 men. She was armoured: amidships sides 3”, at the bows 1½-2¼”and at the stern 2”while the upper deck amidships and over the rudder had armour of 1”. Her armament consisted of 5-6” guns, 2-3” anti aircraft guns, 4-3pd guns, 4-2pdr pom-poms, 1 machinegun and 8-21” torpedo tubes.
Note
1. The Dutch light cruiser Jacob van Heemskerk, laid down on 31 October 1938 at the Nederlandsche Scheepsbouw Maatschappij, Amsterdam, Netherlands, launched 16 September 1939 managed to escape on 10 May 1940 during the German invasion in the Netherlands towards England. At that moment she was still unarmed and in England converted into an air defence cruisers while there were no other guns available and such ships were badly needed for escorting the convoys. During the war she became famous while not a single convoy ship was lost during her presence. She was somewhat smaller as the Calcutta although with 32,5 knots faster. Her armament consisted of 5x2-10,2cm guns, 4x2-4cm guns, 8-2cm anti aircraft guns and finally 2 depth charge rails.
