A History of HMS Activity

Built by Caledon Shipbuilding & Engineering at Dundee, she was laid down on 1 February 1940 as the refrigerated cargo carrier Telemachus for the Alfred Holt Line. In February 1941 the Telemachus was taken over by the Ministry of Transport to become Empire Activity but in January 1942 she was requisitioned by the Admiralty for conversation to and escort carrier. She was launched on May 30th 1942 and completed in August of that year, and was commissioned on September 29th 1942 as HMS ACTIVITY, pennant number D94, under the command of Captain Guy Willoughby.

She was to operate in the training role until October 4th 1943 when she arrived in Liverpool for a three month refit before commencing operational service.

Activity was to remain a part of Western Approaches Command after her refit, and began working up in the Clyde on January 12th 1944 embarking 819 naval air squadron. On January 29th Activity began her first tour of convoy escort duities, the first of ten operations providing air cover for convoys in the Western Atlantic and Bay of Biscay. As part of the 2nd Escort Group, under the command of Captain Walker, with sloops "Starling", "Kite", "Magpie", "Wild Goose" and "Woodpecker" accompanied by the escort carrier "Nairana" escorted convoys OS66 and KMS40 from January 29th; ON222 and NS28 from February 2nd; SL147 and MKS38 from February 7th; HX277 on the 11th; KMS43 and OS69 from the February 24th, After a short restoring stop over at Gibraltar 6th – 9th March she Sailed with convoy MKF29 bound for the Clyde.

Activity’s next duty was to escort the round trip convoys JW/RA58 to Murmansk, Northern Russia in company with HMS Tracker, departing Loch Ewe, Western Scotland on March 26th 1944. Activity re-embarked 819 squadron operating 3 Swordfish and 7 Wildcats for this operation. Together with 846 squadron’s 7 Wildcats on board Tracker they destroyed 6 German reconnaissance planes, Her aircraft assisted in sinking the U288 on 3 April 1944; U-288 was sunk in the Barents Sea south-east of Bear Island, Norway, in position 73.44N, 27.12E. The attack was a combined depth charge and rocket attack by Swordfish of Activity's 819 Sqdn and Avengers & Wildcats of 846 Sqdn from HMS Tracker. They also and participated in sinking U-355 and damaging U-362, U-673 & U-990. The destruction of the six aircraft made it impossible for the submarines to receive accurate position information about the convoy’s whereabouts and scuppered a carefully laid trap. Part of the out bound convoy of 48 merchant vessels was the USS MILWAUKEE being delivered to the Russian Navy under Lend-lease agreements. All vessels reach Murmansk without loss. The return convoy, RA58, arrived at Loch Ewe on April 7th without incident. During the round trip Activities aircraft completed a total of 67 flying hours.

At the beginning of May Activity entered a Clyde shipyard for defect rectification, returning to convoy duties on the 23rd when she rejoined 2EG and another tour in the western Atlantic approaches. Activity was to cover 16 convoys between May23rd 1944 and August 21st; OS78 and KMS52 from 23rd May; SL158 and MKS 49 from 28th May; OS78 and KMS52 again on June 2nd; SL 159 and MKS50 from June 3rd, continuing on to the Clyde arriving on June 10th. Covered SL162 and MK53 from June 20th and returned to the Clyde on July 11th. Escorted KMF33 to Gibraltar, departing July 19th, and returned to the Clyde with MKF33 on August 4th; covered convoys OS86 and KMS60 from Aufust 11th, and SL167 and MKS58.onthe 2st before returning to the Clyde.

This was the end of Activity’s role as a convoy protection carrier, she was redesignated as a ferry carrier and Activity sailed from the Clyde on August 27th 1944 bound for the Far East with a cargo of replacement aircraft. She arrived at Trincomalee, Ceylon to unload her aircraft and stores on October 23rd 1944 before returning to the UK via Gibraltar. She joined convoy MKF36 for the final leg, and was to undergo another round of defect rectifications in a Clyde shipyard on December 5th.

On completion of this work Activity was reassigned to the East Indies Fleet as a ferry carriere, her pennant number being redesignated R301. She arrived at Portsmouth dockyard on December 21st (possibly for tropicalisation refit). Activity arrived at Belfast on January 18th 1945 to load replacement aircraft, before joining convoy KM39 which sailed from the Clyde on January 29th.

Whilst in the Indian Ocean en route to Australia on February 28th Activity involved in the rescue of a party of survivors from the American liberty ship the S.S. PETER SILVESTER. She had been sunk by the German submarine U862 on Tuesday 6th February 1945 at 2215 hours in position 053º 50º south 098º 30º east, 700km from Fremantle, Australia. [The ‘Peter Silvester’ was the last allied ship to be sunk by enemy action in the Indian Ocean.]

Extract from signal raised by Captain E.R. North about the event:
"At approximately 1210 on Wednesday 28th February 1945, ship was steering 132º speed 15 knots, when the Officer of the Watch (Lieutenant L.L.P. Sinclair, M.H.R.) reported sighting an object bearing 123º distance about 8 miles. This at first, had the appearance of the coning tower of a submarine, but, as it appeared to be very lively in the moderate/average sea and swell was running, I considered the subject to be a small boat under sail.
Course was altered at 1220 in order to close and investigate, and the object was soon recognized as a ship’s lifeboat with red sails. The occupants of the boat had seen us, for, about this time they fired off Very lights and red flares. At 1240 I stopped the main engines and placed the ship to windward of the lifeboat which then came alongside, and 20 officers and men from the American S.S. “PETER SILVESTER” were taken on board. At 1308 the lifeboat was cast off and sunk by twin 4 inch, and the ship proceeded on her original course."

The survivors were put ashore at Freemantle on March 3rd, Activity continuing on to Sydney. Activity sailed form Sydney on March 24th bound for for Colombo, to commence ferrying aircraft between Cochin (S. India) and Colombo.

After the end of hostilities on August 15th 1945 attention turned to the reoccupation of former British territories held by Japanese forces. Activity followed behind a force of six CVEs (Ameer, Empress, Emperor, Hunter, Khedive, and Stalker) which sailed to reoccupy Singapore; Activity departing Colombo on September 1st, arriving off Singapore Island on the 6th. On September 10th Hunter, Khedive, Emperor and Stalker entered Singapore harbour. Activity was one of 90 ships (including 70 RN and RIN warships, 3 Royal Fleet Auxiliaries, 3 hospital ships and 14 merchant vessels) present in Singapore Roads for the surrender ceremony.

After loading ex-POWs and other passengers she sailed for Trincomalee on the 15th. Activity was to return to the UK after loading and exchanging passengers in Ceylon, sailing on the 22nd.

Upon her arrival at the Clyde on October 20th 1945 having disembarked her passengers, she was de-stored and placed in the reserve fleet; to Category B reserve in the Clyde on January 30th 1946 but was later pit up for disposal.

She was sold into merchant service on March 25th 1946, purchased by Glen Lines and following conversation to a Glenearn Class merchant vassal by Palmers at Hebburn-on-Tyne and renamed Breconshire. She commenced operations in September 1947 in the Far East. She made her final voyage n 20th April 1967 sailing from Kobe en-route to Mihara, Japan where she was to be broken up, starting 24 April 1967

The ship's company of HMS Activity