ROYAL NAVY

Greymouth Evening Star, 28 February 1935, Page 3

ROYAL NAVY

NEW WARSHIPS COMPLETING

During 1935 about 27 vessels of all classes should be completed and passed into service for the Royal Nayy. Most of them belong to the programme authorised in the spring of 1932, but these cruisers remain over from the programme of 1’931. These cruisers were not laid down until between January and June, 1933, or some two years after authorisation, owing to the economies which had to be affected about the time they were due to be begun. Good progress has since been made with them, however, and they should enter service in about 21 years from the laying of their keels, its compared with the 21 years taken by earlier vessels.

The total includes six cruisers, the Ajax, Amphidn, and Arethusa of 1931, and the Anollo, Galatea and Sydney of 1932. They are all intended , for service overseas. This total of six compares with two cruisers (the Orion and Neptune) completed during 1934, and two (the Leander and Achilles) completed during 1933. None were completed, however, in 1932. and only one (the Exeter) in 1931, so that the* total of 11 completed within five years gives an average of only a fraction over two ships a year, which by itself is insufficient to maintain tire treaty standard in cruisers. Ono flotilla of destroyers, the leader Faulkner and eight destroyers of the Fearless type, should join the Fleet. H.M.S. Fearless, the first of this group, has in fact been already delivered, and was commissioned at Plymouth on December 22 to replace tho Valentine. This class will join the 6th Flotilla, Home Fleet, replacing war-built craft. 'Hie destroyer depotship Woolwich, fitting-out on the Clyde, is expected to be ready for service in July, and should i eplace the Sandhurst in the Mediterranean. Three submarines should be ready, all authorised in 1932. The Clyde, completing at Barrow. is the , thiid ocean-going vessel of the Thames class; the Salmon, at Birkenhead, and t the Snapper, at Chatham, are further [ coastal submarines of the Swordfish class. Finally, there are eight sloops, including one for the new Indian Navy, the Indus,, fitting out on tho Tyne. Two belong to the 1932 programme, the Wellington and Ilussat, and five of that of the 1933, the Deptford and Londonderry (foreign service sloops*, the Speedwell i minesweeper). the Enchantress (convoy sloop), and the Kingfisher (eoaM:'. • sloop). The Enchantress and Kingfisher are the first, of new types, am! the former in addition Io her ordinary duties will be used occasionally as an Admiralty yacht. Orders have been Issued tor tll-a cruiser Brisbane. Royal Australian Naw, to commission on April 2. 193;>,| for passage to England to be prepared for sale. The Brisbane has been p”. d off in the reserve at Sydney since 1926, and has been in the lowe. t grade of reserve ((’lass h» without i crew since 1930. Her place will eventually be taken by the new cruiser Sydney, launched on the Tyne in September. and due for completion about next September. It was on October 31, 1916, that the Brisbane was first commissioned, and . under tho age limit adopted in the . London Treaty (16 years from date ; I of completion) she should have been replaced by October. 1932. But an overriding clause in the treaty (20 (a)

which limited the amount of new tonnage of cruisers which could be completed up to December 31, 1936, to 91.000, has prevented, and will prevent for some time yet. several cruisers from being' replaced by new ones when they fall <!uo. At present 16 out of the 50 completed British < rinsers have passed th<-

age limit of 16 years. During 19J5 six more will attain the age limit, the Cairo. Colombo, and Calcutta, Delhi and Dunedin, and Hawkins. Six new cruisers are due to enter service, the Amphion. Ajax. Arrthusa. Apollo, Galatea, and Sydney, so that the proportion of over-age cruisers will remain the same.