HMS Blake post-conversion
Career
Class and type:	Tiger-class light cruiser
Name:	HMS Blake
Ordered:	1942 Additional Naval Programme
Builder:	Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, Govan
Laid down:	17 August 1942
Launched:	20 December 1945
Commissioned:	18 March 1961
Decommissioned:	December 1979
Fate:	Sold for scrap August 1982
General characteristics
Displacement:	11,560 tons as built 12,080 tons after conversion
Length:	555. Design and commissioning Construction of the three suspended ships resumed in 1954 to a revised design known as the Tiger class as the many World War II-era cruisers were A light cruiser is a Warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light Armoured cruiser " describing a small ship that carried armour in the same way The Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company Limited was a British shipbuilding company in the Govan area on the Clyde in Scotland Govan ( Scottish Gaelic: Baile a' Ghobhainn) is a district and former Burgh in the southwestern part of the City of Glasgow, Events 986 - A Byzantine army was destroyed in the pass of Trajan's Gate by the Bulgarians under the Comitopuli Year 1942 ( MCMXLII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 69 - Vespasian, formerly a general under Nero, enters Rome to claim the title of Emperor. Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar Events 37 - The Roman Senate annuls Tiberius ' will and proclaims Caligula emperor Year 1961 ( MCMLXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. 5 ft (169. 3 m) overall 538 ft (164 m)) between perpendiculars
Beam:	64 ft (20 m)
Draught:	21 ft (6. 4 m)
Propulsion:	Four Admiralty-type three drum boilers (400 psi) Four shaft Parsons steam turbines 80,000 shp
Speed:	31. A steam turbine is a mechanical device that extracts Thermal energy from pressurized Steam, and converts it into useful mechanical work 5 knots
Range:	8,000 nautical miles (15,000 km) at 16 knots
Complement:	716 (885 after conversion)
Armament:	As built: Four × 6 in guns (2 × 2) Six × 3 in (3 × 2) After Conversion: Two × 6 in (1 × 2) Two × 3 in (1 × 2) Two × Seacat quad missile launchers
Aircraft carried:	After conversion: Four helicopters (originally Westland Wessex, then Sea King)

HMS Blake (C99) was a guided missile cruiser of the Tiger class of the Royal Navy, the last of the Royal Navy cruisers. A cruiser is a large type of Warship, which had its prime period from the late 19th century to the end of the Cold War. Design and commissioning Construction of the three suspended ships resumed in 1954 to a revised design known as the Tiger class as the many World War II-era cruisers were She was named after Admiral Robert Blake, a 17th century admiral who was the "Father of the Royal Navy". Robert Blake (1599 — August 17, 1657) was one of the most important military commanders of the Commonwealth of England, and one of the most famous She was ordered in 1942 as one of the Minotaur class of light cruisers. Modifications Swiftsure was completed with sixteen twin and six single 20mm guns but had all the singles and eight of the twin removed in the summer of 1945 when she A light cruiser is a Warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light Armoured cruiser " describing a small ship that carried armour in the same way They had a low construction priority due to more pressing requirements for other ship types during World War II, particularly anti-submarine craft. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Blake was laid down in 1942. In 1944, Blake was renamed Tiger, then Blake again in 1945, the year she was launched partially constructed at the Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company at Govan, by Lady Jean Blake, wife of Vice Admiral Sir Geoffrey Blake. The Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company Limited was a British shipbuilding company in the Govan area on the Clyde in Scotland Govan ( Scottish Gaelic: Baile a' Ghobhainn) is a district and former Burgh in the southwestern part of the City of Glasgow, Vice Admiral is a naval rank equivalent to Lieutenant General in seniority Vice Admiral Sir Geoffrey Blake KCB, DSO ( 16 September 1882 - 18 July 1968) was an officer in the Royal Navy Construction of Blake was suspended in 1946 and she was laid up at Gareloch. The Gare Loch or Gareloch ( Gaelic: An Gearr Loch) is a Sea loch in Argyll and Bute, Scotland

Construction and commissioning

In 1954, construction of Blake resumed, but to a new design. The new design was approved in 1951, but construction did not resume until 1954. She would have fully-automatic 6 inch guns in twin high-angle mounts with each gun capable of shooting 20 rounds per minute, and a secondary battery of fully-automatic 3 inch guns which delivered 90 rounds per minute per gun. She would have no lighter anti-aircraft armament or torpedo tubes. Anti-aircraft warfare, or air defense, is any method of engaging hostile military Aircraft in defence of ground objectives, ground or naval forces A torpedo tube is a device for launching Torpedoes in a horizontal direction Air conditioning was fitted throughout the ship, and a 200-line automatic telephone exchange was installed. The term air conditioning refers to the cooling and dehumidification of indoor air for Thermal comfort. Basic principle A traditional landline telephone system also known as "plain old telephone service" (POTS, commonly handles both signaling and audio information Each 6 inch and 3 inch mounting had its own director, linked to a dedicated radar on the director. On 18 March 1961, Blake finally commissioned into the Royal Navy, the last cruiser to do so. Events 37 - The Roman Senate annuls Tiberius ' will and proclaims Caligula emperor Just two years later, she was placed in reserve.

Conversion

From 1965 to 1969, she underwent a major conversion to become a Helicopter and Commando Cruiser. This reconstruction included replacing the after 6 inch mount and 3 inch mounts with a flight deck and hangar. She also had new radars and taller funnels. Radar is a system that uses electromagnetic waves to identify the range altitude direction or speed of both moving and fixed objects such as Aircraft, ships She had excellent command, control, and communications facilities installed, and found use as a flagship to task groups. C2I stands for Command Control and Intelligence C4I stands for Command Control Communications Computers and (military Intelligence flagship is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels a designation given on account of being either the largest fastest newest most heavily armed or for publicity purposes the most well The refit was very expensive; during the conversion a major fire broke out causing considerable damage and raising the costs still further. There were concerns that the money used to convert Blake, and her sister ship Tiger to helicopter cruisers drained much needed resources better used elsewhere. Construction redesign and commissioning Tiger started out as Bellerophon laid down in 1941 at the John Brown Shipyard as part of the ''Minotaur'' In 1969 Blake deployed to Gibraltar along with other Royal Navy units in order to ‘fly the flag’ in response to Spanish hostility following the closure of the Gibraltar-Spain border by General Franco. Gibraltar (dʒɨˈbrɒltər is a British overseas territory located near the southernmost tip of the Iberian Peninsula overlooking the Strait of Gibraltar Francisco Paulino Hermenegildo Teódulo Franco y Bahamonde (born December 4, 1892 in Ferrol, died November 20, 1975 in Madrid Also in 1969 a Royal Air Force (RAF) Harrier jet landed on Blake. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout In 1971, she was present during the emotional withdrawal from Malta, supporting the commando carrier HMS Bulwark, and in 1977 took part in the Fleet Review of the Royal Navy during the Silver Jubilee celebrations for Queen Elizabeth II, which took place off Spithead, site of many Fleet Reviews. Malta, officially the Republic of Malta (Repubblika ta' Malta is a European Microstate, comprising an Archipelago of three islands History 1950s She was not commissioned until 1954 but once underway demonstrated the ship's and its crew's dedication to duty Fleet Review Royal Navy redirects here This article is on reviews of the Royal Navy A Silver Jubilee is a celebration held to mark a 25th anniversary For the ship see RMS Queen Elizabeth 2 Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Context States headed by Elizabeth II Spithead is an area of the Solent and a roadstead off Gilkicker Point in Hampshire, England.

Decommissioning

The cruiser was host to the Westland Wessex HAS MK3 helicopters of No. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout History Since 400 AD Chinese children have played with bamboo flying toys. 820 Naval Air Squadron from 1969 until Blake was withdrawn from service in 1979, when the ship became the last ship in the Royal Navy to fire a six-inch gun. Her large crew made her an expensive ship to operate and maintain. Blake was refitted in 1980, and due to a defense manpower drawdown that resulted in manpower shortages, became part of the Standby Squadron. She was sold for scrap on 25 August 1982 to Shipbreaking (Queenborough) Ltd for £210,000. Events 1248 - The Dutch city of Ommen receives city rights and fortification rights from Otto III the The ship's bell of the Blake has been preserved and is on display in Saint Mary's Church, Bridgwater. Bridgwater in Somerset, England, is a Market town, the administrative centre of the Sedgemoor district, and the leading industrial She was the last cruiser serving with the Royal Navy upon her decommissioning. On 29 October 1982 she was towed from Chatham for Cairnryan, arriving 7 November 1982. Events 437 - Valentinian III, Western Roman Emperor, marries Licinia Eudoxia, daughter of his cousin Theodosius II Events 1492 - The Ensisheim Meteorite the oldest Meteorite with a known date of impact strikes the Earth around noon in a Wheat

References

• Colledge, J. J. and Warlow, Ben (2006). James Joseph Colledge (born 1908 was a noted naval Historian, author of Ships of the Royal Navy, the standard work on the fighting ships of the British Ships of the Royal Navy: the complete record of all fighting ships of the Royal Navy, Rev. For a list of ships of the Royal Navy, see List of Royal Navy ships. ed. , London: Chatham. ISBN 9781861762818. OCLC 67375475. The OCLC Online Computer Library Center is according to its website a "nonprofit membership computer library service and research organization dedicated to the public purpose  
• Robert Gardiner, ed. , Conway’s All the World’s Fighting Ships 1922 - 1946 (Conway Maritime Press, London, 1980)
• Robert Gardiner, ed. , Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1947 - 1982 (Conway Maritime Press, London, 1983)
• Jane's Fighting Ships 1950-51 (Janes Publishing, London, 1950)
• Alan Raven and John Roberts, British Cruisers of World War II, (Arms and Armour Press, London, 1980)
• M. J. Whitley, Cruisers of World War Two: An Illustrated Encyclopedia (Arms and Armour Press, London, 1995)
• HMS Blake at Uboat.net
• A history of the Tiger class