ANS Antiope (CV-1932)

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The Navy had five years of experiences with the two aircraft carriers in service, before making any further decisions on what to build next. One of the more useful tools had been the two times the Amazonian Navy had wargamed against the US Pacific Fleet in exercises in the waters between Mu and Hawaii. The US Navy had the Lexington and Saratoga, the Amazons the Prindylla and Smyrna. The advantage of aircraft numbers lay with the Americans. The extra numbers of aircraft was decisive in one instance while in the other the the Amazons had been able to feint the Americans into launching early so that when their own attack arrived the two US ships were unprepared with aircraft on deck and unable to launch extra fighters. One all. But the number of aircraft that could be launched would normally carry the day.

The next thing to figure out was what could be built at the limit for aircraft carriers of 27,000 tons. The conversion of the Smyrna took a fast battleship and added aircraft handling facilities on top. The ship was built to take a lot of shell fire damage from big guns. An aircraft carrier built from the keel up would not require the same level of heavy protection. The savings could be put toward carrying capacity and ease of handling from hangar to flight deck. One of the problems with the Smyrna was the limited amount of time it could operate its aircraft for before the fuel tanks ran dry and the armouries were emptied. The new ships would require at least three times the amount of munitions and fuel for the aircraft. The Navy wanted a ship over 800 feet to carry 80-90 aircraft, internally, using the US Navy deck parks would take the limit over 100.

The designers got their slide rules out and did the sums. The best they could do on 27,000 was 72-75 aircraft. On 30,000 tons 85-90 could be carried. The Sisterhood was just as capable of lying as the best of them. The order for two ships went out at 30,000 tons!

The two Antiope class ships were a mixture of original parts and parts copied across from the Smyrna. The 4" were a new dual purpose twin mounting, and eight were mounted in sponsons, equally, fore and aft. The 2 pounder AA guns were a new octuple (8 gun) mounting, which when built only four were fitted another four would be fitted in future refits. The first 20mm cannons appeared, compared to the later 20mm Oerlikon they were slower firing but quite accurate. An improved, larger bridge superstructure was fitted with better command and control functions. Having eight squadrons of aircraft required better communications for Commander (Air) to be able to keep in contact and in charge of the aircraft. More and larger briefing rooms. A lot more accommodation was required. While much larger (in volume 847x112) compared to the Smyrna (739x101), Antiope required every extra square foot it could find to fit everything in. Having two hangar decks made it simpler to make the aircraft number, plus the space between the hangar walls and side of ship could be used for all sorts of storage, including crew! Aircraft available when the ships were completed were the last generations of Bi-planes. These started being replaced by monoplane fighters and bombers in 1935-36.



The ships received continual upgrades and additions at all the refits they had. From 1938-39, the major bits being upgraded or added were Electronic parts. Homing signal tower, Radar, better radios, all were added to and upgraded with every return to port. 1942 saw the beginning of the replacement of the earlier model light AA with the Bofors 40mm weapons system. Quad mountings with predictors replaced the octuple 2 pounder mountings on a one for one basis. Further 40mm in single and twin mountings replaced the single 20mm in 1943-44. The 4" directors received Radar control in 1940.

Aircraft were also upgraded continuously as new models became available. 1939-40 the aircraft aboard ship were: AmzAC Whirlwind I, long range reconnaissance fighter, AmzAC Griffon, fighter, AmzAC Battle, torpedo bomber, and AmzAC Buccaneer, dive bomber. The Whirlwind I was replaced by the Whirlwind II, the Buccaneer and Griffon by the Corsair, and the Battle by the Myrina.

AmzAC = Amazon Aircraft Corporation, which produced local aircraft and overseas aircraft under license.

The two ships spent late 1939 to early 1940 in Ephesos dockyards receiving a major refit  of electronic and AA weaponry. Once completed the ships would be joined by the two Phillipis class battleships and head for the Eastern Mediterranean. Admiral Cunningham was more than pleased to add four such fine capital ships to his Fleet. He now had the firepower to put the Italians in their place. Two months of training followed which was abruptly cut short when the Italians declared war against the Allies in July of 1940. France had fallen. Admiral Cunningham did a deal with the French Admiral to demilitarise his ships till the French Navy could rejoin the fight. A much better outcome than what happened at the other end of the Med. Admiral Cunningham wanted to get to the Italian Fleet and bring it to battle as he knew he had the superior forces. The Italians knew this and wanted to draw the Allied Fleet onto submarine traps and where its bombers might reduce the Allied advantage. Neither side gained an advantage up until the night of 11/12 November 1940. Taranto. The Allied Fleet had three carriers to launch a night  raid on the Italian Fleet at Taranto. The results were outstanding with all of the Italian big ships receiving damage from being sunk to having to ground themselves in shallow water to stop from being sunk. Aerial photos of the next day showed the extent of the mayhem the attack had caused. A resounding success! Arise my Lord.



Taranto was a major landmark in history. The Japanese took notice and Pearl Harbour was the result. The US Pacific Fleet being no more ready for such an attack than the Italians had been. The Eastern Fleet rode a wave of successes for two months until January 1941. The arrival of the German Fliegerkorps X in Mediterannean waters changed everything. In one fell swoop the bombers and divebombers of FG-X swung the battle to the Axis. The Illustrious, Antiope, Phillipis, Malaya, and several cruisers and destroyers were either sunk or damaged in a strike that was just as devastating to the Allies as Taranto had been for the Axis. At one stroke the Fleet had been halved. The only effective carrier in the East was the Formidable with three Queen Elizabeth class battleships for company. The Murovian Empire contingent was withdrawn to Ceylon for repair, rest and recuperation.

May 1941 and two Amazonian cruisers were sent back to the Med just in time to help with the evacuation of Allied troops during which one of the cruisers was sunk. Thus ended Murovian Empire involvement in the Mediterranean. The Phillipis spent until June in Trincomalee repairing battle damage. On completion it was transferred to Sydney, Australis to join the rest of the Task Force. Antiope's damage had required it to be transferred to Sydney for repair and it was there till November 1941. The rest of the Squadron spent time with the Australis Navy learning close co-operation drills for both the heavy and light forces. This would pay dividends in the very near future. On completion of its repairs, Antiope and the rest of the Fleet sailed for Ephesos to join with two other carriers and battleships to become Task Force 69. This Task Force was then to head north for Hawaii and the US Pacific Fleet.

The tale of TF69 will be told in the history of the next carrier class.
 

Antiope, Queen of the Amazons.

 

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