MV Empire MacAlpine was a grain ship converted to become the first Merchant Aircraft Carrier (MAC ship).
 MV Empire MacAlpine in dry dock at Messrs Cammell Lairds at Birkenhead.
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | Empire MacAlpine |
| Owner | Ministry of War Transport |
| Builder | Burntisland Shipbuilding Company, Fife, Scotland |
| Laid down | 11 August 1942 |
| Launched | 23 December 1942 |
| Renamed |
|
| Honours and awards | Atlantic (1943–45) |
| Fate | Scrapped Hong Kong 1970 |
| General characteristics | |
| Tonnage | 7,950 GRT |
| Length | 412 ft 6 in (125.73 m) (p.p.) 433 ft 9 in (132.21 m) (o/a) |
| Beam | 56 ft 9 in (17.30 m) |
| Depth | 24 ft 6 in (7.47 m) |
| Installed power | 3,300 hp (2,500 kW) |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | 12.5 kn (23.2 km/h) |
| Complement | 107 |
| Armament | 1 × 4 in (100 mm) dual-purpose gun, 2 × 40 mm anti-aircraft guns, 4 × 20 mm anti-aircraft cannons |
| Aircraft carried | 4 |
The Burntisland Shipbuilding Company, Fife, Scotland, built her under order from the Ministry of War Transport and was delivered on 14 April 1943.[1] As a MAC ship, only her air crew and the necessary maintenance staff were naval personnel.[2] She was operated by William Thomson & Co (the Ben Line).[3]
After the war she was converted to a grain carrier. She was scrapped in Hong Kong in 1970.[3]
References
edit- ^ "Burntisland Shipyard - List of Ships Page 5". Burntisland.net. Retrieved 26 January 2009.
- ^ Lenton, H.T.; Colledge, J.J. (1973). Warships of World War II. Ian Allan Publishing. p. 296. ISBN 0-7110-0403-X.
- ^ a b "List and history of the Empire ships - M". Mariners. Retrieved 18 March 2007.
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