A History of HMS SPEAKER

Laid down 9 October 1942, at Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Co. Tacoma, Washington, a C3-S-A1 type freighter Maritime Commission hull number 251, Seattle-Tacoma hull number 35; purchased by the US navy, to become DELGADA ACV-40. Whilst still under construction it had been decided that ACV-40 was to be transferred to the Admiralty on loan on her completion as an aircraft carrier. ACV-40 was launched on 20 February 1943 by her sponsor Mrs. James B. Sykes. ACV-40 was assigned to Willamette Iron & Steel, Portland, Oregon, for the completion of her construction as an escort carrier.

The USS Delgada completed fitting out at Willamette Iron & Steel in early November 1943, her USN designation was changed from ACV to CVE on 15 July 1943. CVE-40 was commissioned into the US navy as USS Delgada on November 20th 1943 and  immediately decommissioned before being transferred to the Royal Navy under the Lend Lease Scheme; CVE-40 was then commissioned into the Royal Navy as HMS SPEAKER (D90) by a skeleton, steaming crew, under the command of Commander, the Hon. Robert Southwell, RN, the ship's commander.

After completing her builder’s sea trials and her acceptance by the Admiralty Speaker sailed from Portland on December 6th 1943 bound for Vancouver, Canada. There she was to be modified to meet Admiralty requirements, receive her full crew compliment, complete sea trials and work up ready for beginning her active service. This work was undertaken by the Burrard Dry Dock Co. Ltd., North Vancouver, British Columbia. During this period the ships company vacated the ship; Officers lived ashore and the crew were accommodated aboard H.M.S. Thane which was acting as an accommodation ship at that time. Speaker was the eighth lend/lease CVE to be modified at Vancouver.

During January 1944 the crew began to arrive, including the commanding officer Captain U. H. R. James. On February 8th the ship left the dockside to begin her sea trials, ammunition ship and work up the various departments. HMS Speaker sailed as an operational CVE on February 24th 1944, headed for the Panama Canal, and the Atlantic Ocean.

Speaker reached Balboa on 8th March and passed through the Panama Canal, joining up with another CVE, HMS Empress and other assorted vessels on the Atlantic side; these proceeded to sail in convoy to Norfolk, Virginia on March 18th. The ship spent a week at Norfolk before sailing on to New York, arriving at Staten Island on March 25th.

Ferry duties and a change of role

Here Speaker was to collect  82 airframes, some crated, for passage to the UK.  Also 54 passengers, wives and children of servicemen, including the Captain's wife. Speaker sailed on March 28th, joining a fast east bound convoy. She arrived at Liverpool on April 8th and berthed at Gladstone Dock to off load her cargo and passengers.

All new CVEs made one ferry run on their first Atlantic crossing; Speaker though was to be employed in this role for the first part of her operational career. She left Liverpool on April 10th for the Tail of the Bank, Greenock to await a west bound convoy and return to New York, via Norfolk, Virginia. This time British and American aircraft were ferried. After leaving aircraft and passengers at Liverpool on 14th May, Speaker sailed for the Clyde and berthed in the Gareloch on the 17th to await further orders.

New orders arrived shortly, Speaker being despatched to Dundee, arriving 28th May, to be taken in hand by the Caledon Shipbuilding Company for conversion to an 'assault carrier'. This involved many new pieces of equipment being installed and other s modified; a new type 277 radar, a new telephone system consisting of over 100 telephones, new briefing room, additional plot and cabins added around the “Aircraft Direction Room,” an numerous other additions. Speaker was also to receive some army personnel in the form of the Army Liaison Section.

Work complete Speaker sailed for Rosyth on September 11th, and spent the next six weeks working up, being required to conduct flying operations for the first time. Speaker acted as a training carrier during this period, aircraft from 768 squadron came out daily to practice deck landings, and put the ships air departments through their paces. In total 1,460 deck landings were made, including 160 in one day alone.

Speaker left Rosyth for Belfast on December 14th 1944, arriving there two days later to embark 1840 Hellcat squadron from RNAS Eglinton. 1840 was to be assigned to Speaker for operations in the Army Co-operation role as well as normal fighter squadron duties. Having got to know each other the ship and squadron parted company for Christmas, Speaker docked in Glasgow while 1840 disembarked to RNAS Ayr. Whilst ashore 1840 re-equipped, exchanging Hellcat MK 1s for rocket equipped MK IIs before rejoining Speaker on December 28th.

On January 11th 1945 HMS Speaker, in company with two of her sister escort carriers Khedive and Slinger (under command of Captain B. L. Moore, Senior Officer) and three escorts sailed from the Clyde bound for Gibraltar on the first leg of passage to Ceylon. Speaker was bound for Australia to join the British Pacific Fleet.

The British Pacific Fleet

The group of ships reached Alexandria on January 22nd, and entered the Suez Canal on the 24th. Intensive flying operations had been undertaken during the passage across the Mediterranean, no proper squadron work up time having been allowed for in the ship's departure time from the UK. Little was achieved before passing Gibraltar as weather conditions prevented safe flying.

Speaker lost her first aircraft and its pilot shortly after exiting the Suez Canal, when a Hellcat failed to pull out of a dive; Sub. Lt. (A) B. Jacques, RNVR and his aircraft vanished before any of the escorts could reach the impact site. After a brief stop at Aden to refuel and store ship on January 28th Speaker and company steamed straight across the Indian Ocean to Colombo, arriving there on February 4th. Here the CVEs were to part company, Speaker and Slinger departed for Sydney on the 6th, Khedive remained in Ceylon to join the East Indies fleet.

The traditional 'crossing the line' ceremony was observed when Speaker and Slinger cross the equator, these celebrations were soon forgotten though as both ships were called to assist in a search for survivors from a torpedoed troop ship, 1000 miles off the coast of Western Australia. No trace was found and Speaker went on to Sydney while Slinger remained to continue searching. Speaker arrived at Sydney on February 23rd, flying off her Hellcats to RNAS Bankstown before entering the harbour.

After some maintenance and adjustment to her aircraft compliment Speaker joined the Fleet Train on March 9th 1945, sailing for Manus; on board were the second echelon of M.S.R 4 which was to be delivered to RNAS Ponam (MONAB 4, arriving their March 13th. [Click HERE for more info on M.S.R. and MONABs]

Speaker anchored in Seeadler harbour on the 15th and became a part of the 30th Aircraft Carrier Squadron (30 ACS). On March 18th she sailed in company with CVE Striker (Commodore 30 ACS) and the destroyer Kempenfelt to join Task Force 112; Speaker's Hellcats of 1840 squadron were to provide combat air patrols (CAP) for operation 'Iceberg' strikes against the island of Okinawa. On completion of phase one the carriers anchored at Leyte in the Philippines between April 23rd and May 4th; this was a forward anchorage with limited repair facilities; HM ships Unicorn, Resource and Artifex were stationed here to provide maintenance and repair capabilities.

1840 squadron was to Part Company with Speaker at Leyte, all 16 aircraft and personnel being transferred to HMS Indomitable were they were absorbed into 1839 squadron, CAP duties transferring to the recently arrived HMS Ruler.

Speaker now took on the replenishment carrier role and embarked a selection of frontline aircraft for replacement airframes before rejoining TF112 in the replenishment area, sailing from Leyte on May 4th. Operations were completed by mid May and Speaker returned to Manus to transfer unserviceable airframes to the air station on Ponam (MONAB 4) before proceeding on to Sydney where she arrived on June 5th.

After a month in Sydney Speaker again sailed for Manus, spending the 9th to the 15th July anchored of Pityilu Island before heading north in preparation for BPF operations against mainland Japan which commenced on the 17th. Speaker, Striker, Chaser, Arbiter, and Ruler provided two CVEs at a time on station in the refuelling area  from July 28th; Speaker was at Manus replenishing her aircraft and stores on the 11th of August when news of the first Atomic bomb was announced.

POW evacuation

Upon her return to the replenishment area she stored the hospital ship Tjitjalengka; by this tine the Japanese had surrendered. All flyable aircraft were flown off to HMS Ruler on August 20th, before proceeding to join the combined fleet off Japan in preparation for entering Tokyo Bay.

peaker entered Tokyo Bay on August 30th 1945 observing 'dress ship' routine, the first ship to do so in peace time - all earlier vessels entering before her did so at full action stations. The next day all of her air maintenance personnel transferred to HMS Ruler to maximise space available for carrying passengers. That evening POWs began to arrive onboard.  On September 2nd 1945, the the signing of the Japanese surrender document was conducted on board the USS Missouri, Speaker was busy embarking Allied Prisoners of War in preparation for their evacuation to medical facilities.

On September 3rd 1945 HMS Speaker was the first vessel to leave the area, sailing for Manila with her first load of 473 POWs safely aboard. Thousands men lined the decks of other ships at anchor in the Bay and cheered as she passed, those passengers fit enough were on the flight deck waving in reply. Speaker returned to Japan after safely depositing her passengers at Manila and entered the harbour at Nagasaki on September 16th to collect POWs from Fukuoka 3-B prison camp. Speaker remained at anchor until the 18th riding out a Typhoon before sailing for Okinawa. Shortly after departing for Okinawa a British POW, Staff Sergeant Harry Stogden of the RAOC, who had been cared for aboard the American hospital ship USS HAVEN died from Beri Beri, his body was transferred to Speaker for a burial at sea with full honours.

After leaving her passengers at medical facilities on Okinawa Speaker returned to Nagasaki arriving on the September 21st, many of the crew took the opportunity to see the devastation of the atom bomb, before embarking eight officers and 633 men for her last run to Okinawa,  sailing on the 23rd.

From Okinawa she steamed to Hong Kong to replenish stores and refuel 28th - 30th September, before sailing for Sydney via Manila were she took on board Australian ex POWs for repatriation. She entered at Sydney harbour on October 15th.

Speaker spent two months in Sydney undergoing maintenance before sailing for Hong Kong on December 26th. This time her passengers were a mixed bag of service personnel and civilians, including a concert party with a magician 'the Great Lavante' who had been performing for servicemen in Sydney. The ship called in at Brisbane on the 28th where 10 Vultee Vengeance aircraft and the personnel of 721 squadron were embarked, along with a large number of vehicles destined for RNAS Kai Tak (MONAB 8). Speaker arrived back in Hong Kong on January 10th, sailing for Sydney again, via Manus, 7 days later. She arrived in Sydney on January 30th after suffering monsoon conditions for most of this journey.

Speaker was to make one more round trip journey Sydney  to Hong Kong before returning to the UK; Speaker sailed from Sydney on February 12th, making a brief stop at Manus on the 18th before continuing on to Hong Kong, arriving there on February 25th. Having unloaded her passengers and stores, and 721 squadron, she loaded aircraft from RNAS Kai Tak; Speaker sailed on March 4th, ditched the aircraft overboard 5 days out on route to Sydney.

Speaker entered Sydney harbour for the last time on March 16th 1946. She spent the next ten days sorting out personnel and equipment before she departed for home via Hong Kong on March 26th 1946. She made a 9 hour stop in Brisbane to collect passengers and stores, and another short call at Moratai on April 4th, before reaching Hong Kong on the 9th.

Speaker was to spend two weeks at Hong Kong, loading equipment and passengers for the UK, this included several captured Japanese one man suicide torpedoes which were loaded aboard on April 19th.

HMS Speaker sailed from Hong Kong on April 20th; she called at Colombo on the 30th, continuing on to Aden the next day, arriving there on May 8th. She transited the Suez Canal and docked at Port Said on May 14th before heading for Gibraltar and the UK. Speaker arrived at Greenock, Scotland on May 24th 1946 and unloaded her passengers.

After restoring she was to cross the Atlantic on her final voyage, to be returned to US Navy. CVE-40 arrived at Norfolk, Virginia on July 17th 1946 and was returned to US Navy custody 27 July 1946. No longer required for service by the US Navy She was placed on the disposal list 25 Sept 1946, and was sold to Dodero Navigation company on 22 April 1947 and converted to merchantman Lancero by Newport News Shipbuilding & Drydock co. being delivered 9 February 1948, Sold to the Philippine President Lines and renamed President Osmena 1965 and Lucky Three in 1971 for her delivery voyage to the breakers, scrapped at Kaohsiung 1972.

Content revised: July 2008