HMCS ''Preserver'' was a

depot ship A depot ship is an auxiliary ship used as a mobile or fixed base for submarines, destroyers, minesweepers, fast attack craft, landing craft, or other small ships with similarly limited space for maintenance equipment and crew dining, berthing and ...

of the Coastal Forces of the Royal Canadian Navy during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. Commissioned in July 1942, ''Preserver'' supported Canadian Fairmile B motor launches in Canadian and

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

waters during the war. The ship was sold to the

Peruvian Navy The Peruvian Navy ( es, link=no, Marina de Guerra del Perú, abbreviated MGP) is the branch of the Peruvian Armed Forces tasked with surveillance, patrol and defense on lakes, rivers and the Pacific Ocean up to from the Peruvian littoral. Addit ...

in 1946 and renamed the vessel ''Mariscal Castilla''. Used as a fleet supply ship, ''Mariscal Castilla'' was renamed ''Cabo Blanco'' in 1953. Past 1960, the sources diverge on the fate of the vessel, with most stating that ''Cabo Blanco'' was broken up for scrap, while one states the vessel was sold into commercial service. Renamed ''Cayo Blanco'' and then ''Petronap'' the vessel caught fire and wrecked at San Lorenzo Island near

Callao Callao () is a Peruvian seaside city and region on the Pacific Ocean in the Lima metropolitan area. Callao is Peru's chief seaport and home to its main airport, Jorge Chávez International Airport. Callao municipality consists of the whole Call ...

on 20 April 1963.

Description

''Preserver'' was long overall and between perpendiculars with a beam of and a draught of . The ship had a displacement of , a gross register tonnage (GRT) of 2,347 tons and a

deadweight tonnage Deadweight tonnage (also known as deadweight; abbreviated to DWT, D.W.T., d.w.t., or dwt) or tons deadweight (DWT) is a measure of how much weight a ship can carry. It is the sum of the weights of cargo, fuel, fresh water, ballast water, pro ...

(DWT) of 3,455 tons. The vessel was powered by

diesel engine The diesel engine, named after Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which ignition of the fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to mechanical compression; thus, the diesel engine is a so-ca ...

s turning two

screws A screw and a bolt (see '' Differentiation between bolt and screw'' below) are similar types of fastener typically made of metal and characterized by a helical ridge, called a ''male thread'' (external thread). Screws and bolts are used to f ...

with a designed speed of , but a maximum speed of . The ship had a range of at . The ship was either armed with one naval gun and two Oerlikon cannon or one

QF 12-pounder 12 cwt naval gun The QF 12-pounder 12-cwt gun (abbreviated as Q.F. 12-pdr. (12-cwt.)Gun ...

. The ship was designed to be a

Fairmile B Motor Launch The Fairmile Type-B motor launch was a type of motor launch (often referred to as MLs) built by British boatbuilder Fairmile Marine and others during the Second World War for the Royal Navy for coastal operations. Design While the Type A had ...

depot ship and was fitted with a machine shop, spare accommodations and extra fuel and store spaces. The vessel had a ship's company of 107, with 20 officers and 87 ratings.

Service history

Canadian service

The vessel was constructed at the

Marine Industries Marine Industries Limited (MIL) was a Canadian ship building, hydro-electric and rail car manufacturing company, in Sorel-Tracy, Quebec, with a shipyard located on the Richelieu river about 1 km from the St. Lawrence River. It employed up ...

shipyard at Sorel, Quebec in 1941 and given the

yard number __NOTOC__ M ...

104. ''Preserver'' was launched on 21 December 1941 and completed in July 1942, ahead of

sister ship A sister ship is a ship of the same class or of virtually identical design to another ship. Such vessels share a nearly identical hull and superstructure layout, similar size, and roughly comparable features and equipment. They often share a ...

. The ship was commissioned on 11 July 1942 at Sorel and sailed for Halifax, Nova Scotia on 4 August, escorting a Quebec- Sydney

convoy A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and can help maintain cohesion within a unit. It may also be use ...

en route. The ship was then assigned to Newfoundland Force as a base ship for the

es operating there. The ship arrived at St. John's,

on 18 September. During the period at St. John's, ''Preserver'' became a refuelling station for all naval vessels within harbour as the main refuelling tanks at St. John's had not finished construction. ''Preserver'' and a

flotilla A flotilla (from Spanish language, Spanish, meaning a small ''flota'' (Naval fleet, fleet) of ships), or naval flotilla, is a Tactical formation, formation of small warships that may be part of a larger fleet. Composition A flotilla is usually ...

of Fairmiles were deployed to Botwood, Newfoundland. Botwood had been planned as a new Royal Canadian Navy base and ''Preserver'' and the Fairmiles were sent there to protect the transports unloading

aviation fuel Aviation fuels are petroleum-based fuels, or petroleum and synthetic fuel blends, used to power aircraft. They have more stringent requirements than fuels used for ground use, such as heating and road transport, and contain additives to enhance ...

at Lewisporte that was destined for the

airfield An aerodrome (Commonwealth English) or airdrome (American English) is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for publ ...

at Gander. ''Preserver'' and the Fairmiles returned to St. John's in mid-December 1942, sailing for Botwood again the following July. At the end of July 1943, ''Preserver'' and the Fairmiles relocated to Red Bay, returning to St. John's in November. Due to strategic changes in the Atlantic theatre, Botwood was abandoned as a base and ''Preserver'' and the Fairmiles became the only Royal Canadian Navy vessels ever to deploy there. In mid-June 1944, ''Preserver'' and the Fairmiles returned to Red Bay. In September, they transferred to Sydney before ''Preserver'' sailed to Halifax for a refit. Upon returning to service, ''Preserver'' was sent to St. John's and then to Shelburne, Nova Scotia in June 1945. The ship was

paid off Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service and may be regarded as a particular application of the general concepts and practices of project commissioning. The term is most commonly applied to placing a warship i ...

on 6 November 1945 and sold to the

on 4 January 1946.

Peruvian service and fate

The ship was re-designated a fleet supply ship and renamed ''Mariscal Castilla''. The name commemorated the former

president of Peru The president of Peru ( es, link=no, presidente del Perú), officially called the president of the Republic of Peru ( es, link=no, presidente de la República del Perú), is the head of state and head of government of Peru. The president is th ...

, Marshal

Ramón Castilla Ramón Castilla y Marquesado (; 31 August 1797 – 30 May 1867) was a Peruvian '' caudillo'' who served as President of Peru three times as well as the Interim President of Peru (Revolution Self-proclaimed President) in 1863. His earliest ...

. The ship was renamed ''Cabo Blanco'' in 1951 and continued in Peruvian service until March 1961. The sources diverge from here on the fate of the vessel. Macpherson & Barrie, Colledge & Warlow, and Blackman all state the vessel was broken up for scrap. The Miramar Ship Index states the vessel was sold into commercial service to Agencia Nacional de Vapores Jose Poblete Vidal in 1960 and renamed ''Cayo Blanco'' and

registered Registered may refer to: * Registered mail, letters, packets or other postal documents considered valuable and in need of a chain of custody * Registered trademark symbol, symbol ® that provides notice that the preceding is a trademark or service ...

in Panama. In 1962, the ship was sold again, this time to Aninat & Bluhn and renamed ''Petronap''. On 20 April 1963, ''Petronap'' caught fire and wrecked on San Lorenzo Island near

, Peru.

Notes

Citations

Sources

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Preserver Auxiliary ships of the Royal Canadian Navy 1941 ships Auxiliary ships of the Peruvian Navy