BNS Belem (DD-1935)

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Having acquired such a large battlefleet the Brazilians required plenty of destroyers to escort the Capital ships. This need was met originally by the 30 M class units Brazil had sourced from Britain. These ships were getting toward their use by dates and the Brazilian Navy started ordering their replacements in 1931-32.

The Belem class were built on the basic A-I class hull. After that, the rest of the superstructure and armament disposition was left to the builder, Yarrows. Built in groups of four, four groups were ordered for completion in 1935, the last four in 1938.

The Belem class were excellent fleet destroyers and allowed the M types to be slowly reduced to DDE escort destroyer roles. The main upgrades were the addition of electronics and the change of the 2 pounder guns to twin 40mm (with predictors) and the Hispano-Suiza mounts being replaced with Oerlikons. These ships operated in groups of four with one Manaus class destroyer as Leader.


The hulls and superstructure are the basic ship that was here to begin with. I have upgraded the parts with the latest available. It is easy to end up with a decent drawing if you start with a good base.
 

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