Channel Force

The Channel Force was a temporary squadron of the British Royal Navy during the Second World War that was based at Portland, England from September to October 1939.

Channel Force
Active	1939
Country	United Kingdom
Allegiance	British Empire
Branch	Royal Navy
Commanders
Notable commanders	Lancelot Holland

It was under the command of Rear-Admiral Lancelot Holland throughout the period.^[1]

History

The Channel Force was a powerful squadron established at Portland on 3 September 1939 to deal with any attempt by the Germans to operate light forces in the southern part of the North Sea, certain cruisers and destroyers were detached from the Home Fleet to be based on the Humber. It was under direct operational control by the Admiralty until 7 October 1939 when it was dispersed.

The force was formed with ships from both Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth and Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth.^[2]

Components

Components of the force included:^[2]

	Unit	Date	Notes
1	3rd Battle Squadron	3 September - 7 October 1939	2 battleships [1]
2	Aircraft Carriers	3 September - 7 October 1939	2 aircraft carriers, HMS Hermes - HMS Courageous,[2][1]
3	Cruisers	3 September - 7 October 1939	2 CL, HMS Ceres, HMS Caradoc - 1 CAA, HMS Cairo[2][1]
4	12th Destroyer Flotilla	3 September - 7 October 1939	10 destroyers [2]
5	18th Destroyer Flotilla	3 September - 7 October 1939	2 Destroyer Divisions 35 and 36 [2][1]