This genuine old Duty Board once graced the vessel H. Clearly it was used to indicate, in no uncertain way, which officers were “Ashore” or “Afloat”. This will make a truly AWESOME backdrop to any Old Salt’s man-cave or NAVAL MUSEUM. Truly a UNIQUE ITEM that I have NEVER SEEN another example of in 40 + years as an antique dealer. SIZE = Approx 675 mm by 540 mm. OR may be picked-up in-person HERE in Edinburgh SCOTLAND (by PRIOR appointment) POST-FREE. HUBBERSTON had a very long and fruitful life serving in places such as Singapore and Hong Kong. She also became a member of the STANAVFORCHAN fleet at least 4 times. Laid Down: 29th January 1953 Built By: Fleetlands Shipyard, Gosport Completed: 14th October 1955 Time to Build: 32 months Commissioned: 18th December 1964 for 11th MSS based Singapore Converted to Minehunter: May 1963 to December 1964 at Chatham Years Fully Operational: 24 Outline of Operational Career: January-May 1965 Work-up in UK Waters May-July 1965 Passage to Singapore 1st July 1965 Joined 11th MSS. 2 Singapore Straits Patrols September-December 1965 6 Singapore Straits Patrols January-August 1966 2 Singapore Straits Patrols of 10 days each, 1 Sarawak Patrol of 12 days, 1 Tawau Patrol, North Borneo 18 days. The Ton class were coastal minesweepers built in the 1950s for the Royal Navy, but also used by other navies such as the South African Navy and the Royal Australian Navy. They were intended to meet the threat of seabed mines laid in shallow coastal waters, rivers, ports and harbours, a task for which the existing ocean-going minesweepers of the Algerine-class were not suited. Description The design of the class drew on lessons learnt in the Second World War when it became apparent that minelaying in coastal waters was more effective than in the deep sea; the existing fleet minesweepers were not well suited to deal with this threat. The lead constructor was John I. Thornycroft & Company, although Ton-class vessels were also built at fifteen other yards. They were diesel powered vessels of 440 tons displacement fully laden, largely constructed from aluminium and other non-ferromagnetic materials, with a hull composed of a double layer of mahogany planking. Their small displacement and shallow draft gave them some protection against pressure and contact mines and allowed them to navigate in shallow inshore waters. Primary armament was one Bofors 40 mm gun, although the South African variants also had an Oerlikon 20 mm cannon behind the funnel. RN vessels also had the same but they were gradually removed and an M2 Browning machine gun mounted midships. Sweeping equipment was provided for moored mines and magnetic mines. It was originally planned to name the ships after insects, with names like Red Ant, Green Cockchafer and so on, but this plan was abandoned in 1952 and the Royal Navy ships of the class were given names of British towns and villages ending in “-ton”, hence the name of the class. The contemporary but smaller inshore minesweepers were originally to be named after birds, but became the Ham-class, after towns and villages ending in “-ham”. Sixteen of the class were converted to minehunters by the incorporation of active rudders and the installation of the Type 193 minehunting sonar and associated equipment, including a very welcome enclosed bridge (the exception being HMS Highburton who retained her open bridge until decommissioning in the 1970s, this actually becoming a source of manliness to her crew when meeting other Ton crews). These vessels only retained mechanical “Oropesa” sweep capability. The Ton-class served as patrol vessels in Borneo, Malaysia, Northern Ireland and Hong Kong. The minehunters played a significant role in the Suez Canal clearance after the Yom Kippur war. They also provided the backbone of the UK’s Fishery Protection Squadron (4th MCM). With the rundown of the Royal Navy fleet in the 1960s, many were sent to become base ships for the Royal Naval Reserve allowing reserve crews to get to sea for short periods without a lot of effort to organise a crew of significant size. Some of these had their names changed to reflect the RNR Division they were attached to. Five of the class in Royal Navy service were permanently converted to patrol craft for service policing of Hong Kong’s territorial waters in 1971. These vessels, comprising HM Ships Beachampton, Monkton, Wasperton, Wolverton and Yarnton had their minesweeping gear removed and were fitted with a second Bofors 40 mm gun aft of the funnel. They also received new pennant numbers: Beachampton P1007, Monkton P1055, Wasperton P1089, Wolverton P1093 and Yarnton P1096. Two vessels were converted into survey ships, one an air sea rescue vessel and one a diving tender. At the start of the Falklands War in 1982, the elderly Ton-class vessels were deemed to be unsuited to the long voyage to the South Atlantic, so five deep-sea trawlers were hired and hastily converted into minesweepers, although the crews were largely taken from the Ton-class mine countermeasures flotilla based at Rosyth. The RNR vessels lasted until the introduction of the River-class minesweepers in 1984. The remainder of the regular RN ships began to be retired with the introduction of the Hunt-class MCM vessels from 1980. She was the first major warship in the world using this technology, which was used for all of the succeeding Hunt-class ships. Decommissioned in 1994, Wilton now serves as a floating clubhouse for the Essex Yacht Club at Leigh-on-Sea. I have several old genuine signs currently listed these will be packed VERY SAFELY. We will happily COMBINE these……. Any questions please MESSAGE ME. Track Page Views With. Auctiva’s FREE Counter. Add a map to your own listings. The item “ON-DUTY BOARD H. M. S. HUMBERSTON M1147 1 Ton MINE HUNTER SWEEPER Cold WAR Era” is in sale since Sunday, September 23, 2018. This item is in the category “Collectibles\Transportation\Boats & Ships\Military\Other Naval Collectibles”. The seller is “phillip_in_new_zealand” and is located in Auckland (aprox. 12,000 “clicks” from USA). This item can be shipped worldwide.
- Country/Region of Manufacture: United Kingdom
- Coold war MINE SWEEPER Served 1955-1991: UNIQUE Naval Collectable ONE-OFF