The ''Avenger''-class escort carrier was a Ship class, class of escort carriers comprising three ships in service with the Royal Navy during the World War II, Second World War and one ship of the class in the United States Navy called the Charger Type of 1942-class escort carrier. All three were originally American Type C3-class ship, type C3 merchant ships in the process of being built at the Sun Shipbuilding & Drydock Co., Sun Shipbuilding and Drydock Company Chester, Pennsylvania. The ships laid down in 1939 and 1940 were launched and delivered to the Royal Navy by 1942 under the Lend-Lease agreement.
[Cocker (2008), p.78.]
The ships had a complement of 555 men and an Length overall, overall length of , a Beam (nautical), beam of and a height of .
[ Their displacement was at normal load and at deep load. Propulsion was provided by four diesel engines connected to one shaft giving , which could propel the ships at .][Cocker (2008), p.79.]
Aircraft facilities were a small combined bridge–flight control on the starboard side and above the long wooden flight deck, one aircraft lift , one aircraft catapult and nine Arresting gear, arrestor wires. Aircraft could be housed in the half hangar below the flight deck.[Poolman (1972), p.29.] Armament comprised three single mounted QF 4 inch Mk XVI naval gun, 4-inch dual purpose anti-aircraft guns and fifteen Oerlikon 20 mm cannon, 20 mm cannons on single or twin mounts.[ They had the capacity for fifteen aircraft which would typically be a mixture of Grumman Martlet or Hawker Sea Hurricane fighter aircraft and Fairey Swordfish or Grumman Avenger anti-submarine aircraft.][ The three ships in the class were , and . A fourth ship, was built at the same time to the same design but was commissioned in the U.S. Navy.][
]
Service history
HMS ''Avenger''
HMS ''Biter''
HMS ''Dasher''
USS ''Charger'' (CVE-30)
See also
*List of ship classes of the Second World War
Notes
References
*
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Avenger Class Escort Carrier
Escort aircraft carrier classes
Avenger-class escort carriers, Avenger class escort carrier
World War II escort carriers of the United Kingdom, Avenger class escort carrier
Ship classes of the French Navy