Laid down by William Beardmore, Dalmuir, Scotland as the Conte Rosso with yard number 519 as a merchant ship in 1914, purchased by the Royal British Navy in September 1918, launched on 2 December 1917, commissioned on 16 September 1918, modified under the 1925-1926 Naval Programme included girdling, decommissioned around second half 1928-1929, laid up at Plymouth, England in a14-days available status, considered to be an experimental carrier under the Washington Naval Treaty regulations, 4 months available status since September 1932, modified to be used as a tender for the Qyeen Bee target drones, reclassified as an naval auxiliary, recommissioned on 30 July 1938, became a training carrier, plans to convert her into an aircraft freighter cancelled in 1944, accommodation ship at Chatham, England, since December 1944, sale to be broken up approved on 6 May 1946 and finally sold to Thos. W. Ward Limited on 5 December 1946 and arrived for this purpose the same month at Inverkeithing, Scotland. Pennant number 149. Nicknames Hat Box and Flatiron.
Displacement 14.680 (standard)-16.028 (deep load)-17.020 (after girdling) tons and as dimensions 172, (over all0 x 20,7-22,6 (after girdling) x 7,0 (after girdling)-7,1 (deep load) metres or 565 x 68-74 x 22.10”-23.3 feet. Flight deck had a length of 167,3 metres/548” and the hangar had s dimensions 100,6 x 14,6-20,7 x 4,9 (height) metres or 330 x 48-68 x 16 feet. The 4 Parsons steam turbines and 12 cylindrical Scotch boilers supplied via 4 shafts 20.000 shp allowing a speed of 20 knots and a range of 3.600 nautical miles with a speed of 10 knots. Her crew numbered 495 men. The original armament consisted of 4x1-10,2cm/4” anti aircraft guns and 2-10,2cm/4” low angle guns and could carried 15-18 aircraft with her. The armour consisted of 5,1cm/2” protected ion of the rear magazine and the torpedo warhead storage room at all sides, Strangely the protected ion of the forward magazine and bomb storage rooms consisted just of a 5,1cm/2” thick deck.
