HMS Abdiel (M39)

HMS "Abdiel" (M39) was an "Abdiel"-class minelayer that served with the Royal Navy during World War II. She served with the Mediterranean Fleet (1941), Eastern Fleet (1942), Home Fleet (1942-43), and the Mediterranean Fleet (1943). "Abdiel" was sunk by mines in Taranto harbour in 1943. Although designed as a fast minelayer her speed and capacity made her suitable for employment as a fast transport.

ervice

Channel

On 22 March 1941 HMS Abdiel (Captain Hon. E. Pleydell-Bouverie) had acceptance trials interrupted and was ordered to lay mines with the objective of preventing the German battlecruisers "Scharnhorst" and "Gneisenau" breaking out from Brest. In operation 'GV, 'GX' and 'GY', Abdiel with HMS "Intrepid", "Impulse", and HMS "Icarus" escorted by HMS "Kipling", HMS "Kelly" and HMS "Jackal" on 23 and 28 March laid mines in the vicinity of Little Sole Bank and 40 miles WSW of Brest.

From 17 to 30 April 1941 HMS "Abdiel" attempted to complete her trials programme but this was again abandoned when the ship was ordered to join the cruiser HMS "Dido" and destroyers HMS "Kelly", HMS "Kipling", HMS "Kelvin", HMS "Jackal" and HMS "Jersey". This group was then transferred from Plymouth to Gibraltar, having loaded military stores destined for Malta. The ships subsequently joined the Mediterranean Fleet.

Mediterranean

On the 24 to 28 April 1941 they formed part of Operation Dunlop, HMS "Dido", "Abdiel" and destroyers HMS "Janus", HMS "Jervis" and HMS "Nubian", having discharged naval stores at Malta proceeded to Alexandria. [Source (i) Tom Brown 'No 38 Profile Warship. Abdiel Class Minelayers(ii) Jurgen Rohwer 'Chronology of the War at Sea 1939-1945≠]

On 21 May 1941 "Abdiel" (Captain Hon. E. Pleydell-Bouverie) laid a field of 150 mines off Akra Dhoukaton (Cape Dukato, southern tip of Lefkada island, Ionian sea). On the field were later the same day lost the Italian destroyer "Carlo Mirabello" (1,840 tons) and the gunboat "Pellegrino Matteucci" and the German transports "Kybfels" (7764 GRT) and "Marburg" (7564 BRT).

On the night of the 26-27 May, "Abdiel", escorted by the destroyer HMS "Hero" (Commander H.W. Biggs, RN) and the Australian destroyer HMAS "Nizam" (Lieutenant Commander M.J. Clark, RAN), landed 800 Commandos at Suda Bay.

On 31 May 1941 "Abdiel" sailed from Alexandria for Sfakia, Crete, with the light cruiser HMS "Phoebe" (Captain G. Grantham) and three destroyers. During the following night these ships removed 4,000 troops from Crete.

Between December 1942 and April 1943 "Abdiel", in cooperation with the minelaying submarine HMS "Rorqual" and "Abdiel's" sistership HMS "Welshman" laid several minefields, totaling some 2,000 mines, in the Strait of Sicily.

On 9 January 1943 after having laid one of the fields mentioned above athwart the Axis evacuation routes from Tunisia, an Italian convoy ran into the minefield and lost the destroyer "Corsaro" (1,645 tons), while the destroyer "Maestrale" (1440 tons) was severely damaged. On 3 February 1943 another Italian convoy fouls one her minefields, this one south of Marettimo island, off the western tip of Sicily, losing the destroyer "Saetta" (1,225 tons) and the torpedo boat "Uragano" (910 tons).

On 8 March 1943 "Abdiel" agaib laid a minefield on the Axis evacuation route, 30 nm north of Cap Bon, Tunisia. On 24 March a convoy enters the field, losing the Italian destroyers "Ascari" (1,645 tons) and "Lanzerotto Malocello" (2,125 tons). On 3 April 1943 "Abdiel" laid a minefield between the Italian fields X-2 and X-3, whose location was known to the Allies through Ultra intercepts and captured documents. On 7 March a convoy fouls the field, losing the Italian torpedo boat "Ciclone" (910 tons).

inking

"Abdiel", commanded by Captain D. Orr-Ewing, DSO, was sunk by mines in Taranto harbour, Italy on 10 September 1943. The mines had been laid just a few hours earlier by two German torpedo boats ("S-54" and "S-61"), as they left the harbour. "Abdiel", carrying troops of the British 1st Airborne Division (6th Royal Welsh battalion), took the berth which had been declined earlier by the captain of USS "Boise". Shortly after midnight, two ground mines detonated beneath "Abdiel" and the minelayer sank in three minutes with great loss of life among both sailors and soldiers. The Airborne Division lost 58 dead and around 150 injured and 48 ship's crew were lost. There is an unconfirmed report that the ship's degaussing equipment had been turned off to reduce noise and to allow troops to sleep better. [cite web | url=http://www.uboat.net/allies/warships/ship/3953.html | work=Uboat.net | title = HMS "Abdiel" (M 39)|accessdate=2007-07-16 ]

Footnotes