Ship No 311
Bangor Class Twin Screw Minesweeper.
With reciprocating engine, along with being rather slow, they were not really known for there good sea keeping abilities and were more like a cork in a bath tube, which makes the story of the men who served on them through all kinds of rough weather all the more remarkable.
She was laid down on 17th July 1940 and launched on the 10th June 1941, after sea trials she was commissioned into the Royal Navy on 17th November 1941 as a Minesweeper.
She was 171 feet and 6 inches length overall, with a beam of 28 feet and 6 inches, she drew a draught of 15 feet and 6 inches.
“Stornoway” became one of the famous 13th Minesweeping Flotilla and steamed over 60,000 miles and swept up over 2,000 mines; did duty off the Irish coast, English Channel, and attended at Dieppe raid, and survived countless air and E-boat attacks; transferred operations to North African coast and took part in Pantellaria and Sicilian landings; swept channel in front of King’s visit to Malta in July 1943; present at all operations on Italian coast and survived attacks from R-boats, bombers, and coastal batteries; visited Capri where inhabitants organised and held first dance since Italy entered the war. (For more of her story visit Leith Built Ships on War Service)
H.M.S. Stornoway was also involved in the Allied invasion of Southern France in 1944. Her many adventures would require a better platform to tell, so it will also go onto the new website, when it is ready.
H.M.S. Stornoway survived the war and was sold on by the Navy in September 1946.
4 comments:
My Father, Eric Selby was on Minesweeper Stornoway in the war and has left me some information about taking the surrender of the German garrison on Zante, Greece in November 1944.
we would be happy to use/see this info both on the internet or in the new books on the ships built at Leith, the story of all the HMS ships will be told in the new book still under work, to be named as LeithShipyards at War.
You can send any info to Ron@theloftsman.com
or to theloftsman@gmail.com
Thanks
For the attention of Ken Harrow,
You may be interested to know that a book is underway about all the ships built at the Leith Shipyards during WW2.
Your info on HMS Stornoway would be a very welcome addition should you wish to contact the author at theloftsman@gmail.com
Thanks
Hello Mr Selby.
I have just read your question on the Leith Built Ships blog dated 23rd December 2020 about your father’s time on HMS Stornaway, and I think I have some information that would interest you regarding the taking of the German garrison on Zante, Greece in November 1944.
My father was also on the minesweeper Stornaway, from June 1942 to June 1945. His name was Robert Woolnough. He was taken on as a Sub-Lieutenant and later served as a Lieutenant. I do have a fair amount of information from him covering those years, including of the taking of an island off the west coast of Greece, which he did talk about from time to time, particularly in his later years. (He died in 2011).
He didn’t say it was Zante (which is a large island) but it was a strange story about landing on an island which they had assumed had already been liberated but in fact was still firmly in Germans hands. They were the only allied ship there and he talked about how they took the surrender. The story ends with the Stornaway taking 60 prisoners to Italy, all being locked up and crammed together in the depth charge hold!
I have quite a lot of notes from those years, based on things jotted down by my mother, things jotted down by me, some information which he wrote down himself etc, but it all needs sorting and compiling properly and is a project I have been meaning to finish off for several years. Perhaps we can help each other fill in the gaps?
The Stornaway took part in a lot of action, such as Operation Torch, the invasion of North Africa, first focussed on Algeria (Oran, then Algiers) and clearance of mines all along the coast to Bizerte in Tunisia. The ship also worked out of Bonifacio for a time before retuning to the coast between Tunis and Tripoli. They then helped lead the way for the second invasion of the war at Pantelleria, were involved with the 1943 invasion at Salerno, Sicily, and also at Anzio in 1944. And more...
I would be very interested in getting in touch with you, and am hoping you will look at this page again and respond to my note.
Many thanks. J Woolnough 25/05/2022
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