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Type: Wreck Tonnage: Length: Cargo: Date Lost: 27/2/1943 How Lost: E Boat Max Depth Seabed: 60m Depth to top of Wreck: Minimum Qualification: (Or Equivilent) Formerly known as "The Blackwater", the local name,
HMS Lord Hailsham was a Royal Navy vessel that saw service in World War II. It was a converted trawler converted to be used in anti-submarine warfare. It had a 4 inch (114 mm) gun forward and Oerlikon machine guns on the wings of the bridge which could be used for anti-aircraft and anti-ship actions. It was also equipped with ASDIC anti-submarine sonar detection equipment. It also carried approximately 14 depth charges. Later on it was equipped with a Holman Projector. A crest of the Hailsham Family was given to the ship in 1942 at the request of First Lieutenant Reginald Mortimore and it was displayed on the front of the ship's bridge. The ship saw action in the English Channel, and the Eastern Atlantic. She was on convoy duty when she was sank on February 27th, 1943 in Lyme Bay by German E-boats. At the time she was one of 5 armed ships, led by the Hunt Class Destroyer Blencathra, escorting a convoy of 8 merchant vessels from South Wales to Southampton. Four of the merchant ships were also sunk in the action. |
Diving 
