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May 29 • 4 tweets • 4 min read
The paddle steamer Gracie Fields had been taken up into @RoyalNavy service at the start of #WW2 as a minesweeper & was bombed off La Panne on this day 1940, sinking the following morning. She became synonymous with the #Dunkirk evacuation thanks to JB Priestly's BBC broadcast.
"the glittering queen of our local line" Gracie Fields was one of "the little holiday steamers [that] made an excursion to hell and came back glorious" bbc.co.uk/archive/postsc…
HMS Pangbourne, commanded by Lt/Cdr Francis Douglas-Watson, was one of the @RoyalNavy's purpose-built Hunt Class minesweepers, built in #WW1, she survived #WW2 & along with others helped clear mines, as well as rescue troops from #Dunkirk
For more stories of ships like HMS Gracie Fields & HMS Pangbourne, plus an overview of the German invasion of France & the Low Countries & the subsequent Allied evacuations (multiple) from the continent, check out #DunkirkAndTheLittleShips #WW2 amazon.co.uk/Dunkirk-Little…

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More from @navalhistorian

Dr Phil Weir Profile picture
May 30
1) Useful #new article by @NavyLookout on the state of play with the @RFAHeadquarters, going through issues such as crewing difficulties, @RFAFortVictoria & the lack of the Fleet Solid Support replacement, the mothballing of the Wave Class & consequent strain on the Tide Class.
2) There does, however, seem to be a rather concerning issue highlighted in the passage on the Bay Class amphibious landing ships, relating to the date at which the conversion work to @RFALymeBay for her to operate at the heart of Littoral Response Group (South) will be completed Image
3) Littoral Response Group (South), centred on what is now known to be @RFALymeBay & @40commando, to be based at Duqm, Oman, is *the* big ticket, permanently deployed naval presence in Britain's Indo-Pacific tilt & is supposed to deploy in 2023 according to the Integrated Review. Image
Read 6 tweets
Dr Phil Weir Profile picture
May 28
The @RFAHeadquarters is absolutely vital for the @RoyalNavy's carrier strike group, allowing it to operate for long periods at sea, not only supplying it with fuel from Tide Class tankers like @RFATidespring, but also ammunition & other solid stores from @RFAFortVictoria. ImageImage
With @RFAFortVictoria now a unique vessel after the scrapping of her sister ship RFA Fort George, back in 2011-2013 it is, of course, vital that the much delayed Fleet Solid Support ship replacements are constructed A.S.A.P. in order to keep this going.
It's not just carrier strike, either. The @RFAHeadquarters is also vital to the amphibious Littoral Response Groups that help deliver the @RoyalMarines around the world, not only supplying fuel, but also crewing the Bay Class landing ships that will be at the heart of the force. Image
Read 6 tweets
Dr Phil Weir Profile picture
May 25
1) @Reuters report that Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko has apparently suggested Russia is ready to provide a humanitarian corridor for vessels carrying food to leave Ukrainian ports, in return for the lifting of some sanctions #blockade #UkraineWar reuters.com/world/europe/r…
2) This is not the first such offer made by Russia. @SamChambers of @splash_247 reported another in March, which resulted in no ships sailing, & a different result this time would be a considerable surprise. splash247.com/no-sign-shippi…
3) Perhaps the key difference, however, is the apparent linkage of shipping movements to sanctions relief, tacitly admitting, perhaps for the 1st time, that there is actually a #blockade in place, & it may take more than raising the issue of Ukrainian mining to spin that away.
Read 9 tweets
Dr Phil Weir Profile picture
Apr 30
1) Excellent #UkraineWar #thread🧵 by @DAlperovitch on Russia's de facto maritime blockade of Ukraine's southern coast & some of the difficulties involved in lifting it.
2) For more on Russia's de facto maritime blockade of Ukraine's southern coast & the naval situation from the start of the war, significant elements of which still hold, do check out this #thread🧵 from March
3) And more recently this @defaeroreport #Podcast🎧🗣️ with @CavasShips & @CSSProvision, talking #Moskva, blockade & trade protection in the #BlackSea, & Russia's apparent inability to otherwise exploit their #maritime superiority in the #UkraineWar defaeroreport.com/2022/04/15/cav…
Read 6 tweets
Dr Phil Weir Profile picture
Apr 24
Interesting @ForeignPolicy piece by Emily Ferris of @ISS_RUSI looking at Russia's reliance on & troubles with rail transport in its #UkraineWar
However, it's worth bearing in mind, particularly amid further talk about Odesa & Mykolaiv, that Russia also has a port opening problem.
Probably the first port Russian forces took in the first days of the #UkraineWar was Berdyansk. The first ships to enter arrived in the middle of March & around ten days later they appeared to have cleared just two berths, whereupon the Saratov was sunk.
It would appear that since the loss of the Saratov, Berdyansk has either not, or been little used. Whether this is due to the sunken hulk of the Saratov & other damage, or ongoing issues with the port's security from further attack, or both, is unclear.
Read 8 tweets
Dr Phil Weir Profile picture
Apr 23
The @USNavy aircraft carrier @USSHARRYSTRUMAN pulling into Trieste in Italy marks something of a lull what has been a huge amount of naval activity to reinforce & reassure @NATO allies since the start of the #UkraineWar
After her 65 day #Clemenceau22 deployment (much of which was spent in company with @USSHARRYSTRUMAN & the @ItalianNavy aircraft carrier Cavour), @MarineNationale's @French_CSG returned to Toulon on 7th April 2022
While the @RoyalNavy's @HMSPWLS returned to @HMNBPortsmouth on 20th April after her stint in the #Arctic High North for Exercises #ColdResponse22 off Norway🇳🇴 & #NorthernViking22 off Iceland🇮🇸
Read 11 tweets

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