HMS Cooke (K471)

HMS Cooke (K471) was a British Captain-class frigate of the Royal Navy in commission during World War II. Originally constructed as the United States Navy Evarts-class destroyer escort USS Dempsey (DE-267), she served in the Royal Navy from 1943 to 1946.

For other ships with the same name, see USS Dempsey.
History
United States
Name: USS Dempsey (DE-267)
Namesake: U.S. Navy Lieutenant, junior grade Richard John Dempsey (1919-1942), killed in action aboard the heavy cruiser USS Vincennes (CA-44) when she was sunk in the Battle of Savo Island
Ordered: 25 January 1942[1]
Builder: Boston Navy Yard, Boston, Massachusetts
Laid down: 11 March 1943[2]
Launched: 22 April 1943
Sponsored by: Mrs. J. A. Dempsey
Commissioned: never
Fate: Transferred to United Kingdom 23 August 1943
Acquired: Returned by United Kingdom 5 March 1946
Fate: Sold 3[1][3] or 10[2][4] June 1947 for scrapping
United Kingdom
Class and type: Captain class frigate
Name: HMS Cooke
Namesake: Captain John Cooke (c. 1762-1805), British naval officer killed in action as commanding officer of HMS Bellerophon at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805[4]
Acquired: 23 August 1943
Commissioned: 23 August 1943[1]
Fate: Returned to United States 5 March 1946[2]
General characteristics
Displacement: 1,140 tons
Length: 289.5 ft (88.2 m)
Beam: 35 ft (11 m)
Draught: 9 ft (2.7 m)
Propulsion:
  • Four General Motors 278A 16-cylinder engines
  • GE 7,040 bhp (5,250 kW) generators (4,800 kW)
  • GE electric motors for 6,000 shp (4,500 kW)
  • Two shafts
Speed: 20 knots (37 km/h)
Range: 5,000 nautical miles (9,260 km) at 15 knots (28 km/h)
Complement: 156
Sensors and
processing systems:
  • SA & SL type radars
  • Type 144 series Asdic
  • MF Direction Finding antenna
  • HF Direction Finding Type FH 4 antenna
Armament:
Notes: Pennant number K471

Construction and transfer

The ship was laid down as the U.S. Navy destroyer escort USS Dempsey (DE-267), the first ship of the name, by the Boston Navy Yard in Boston, Massachusetts, on 11 March 1943[2] and launched on 22 April 1943, sponsored by Mrs. J. A. Dempsey, mother of the late Lieutenant, junior grade Richard John Dempsey (1919-1942), for whom the ship was named. Dempsey was transferred to the United Kingdom under Lend-Lease upon completion on 23 August 1943.

Service history

Commissioned into service in the Royal Navy as HMS Cooke (K471) under the command of Lieutenant Commander Leonard Charles Hill, OBE, RNR, on 23 August 1943[1] simultaneously with her transfer, the ship served on patrol and escort duty. On 29 June 1944 she joined the British frigates Domett, Duckworth, and Essington and a Royal Air Force Liberator aircraft of No. 244 Squadron in a depth charge attack that sank the German submarine U-988 in the English Channel west of Guernsey at 49°37′00″N 003°41′00″W. On 26 July 1944, she sank the German submarine U-214 with depth charges in the English Channel southeast of the Eddystone Rocks in position 49°58′00″N 003°30′00″W.[1]

The Royal Navy returned Cooke to the U.S. Navy on 5 March 1946.

Disposal

The United States sold Cooke on 3[1][3] or 10[2][4] June 1947 (sources vary) for scrapping.

References
  1. uboat.net HMS Cooke (K 471)
  2. Navsource Online: Destroyer Escort Photo Archive DE 267 Dempsey HMS Cooke (K-471)
  3. Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships: Dempsey
  4. Captain Class Frigate Association HMS Cooke K471 (DE 267)


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