HMS Bullen

HMS Bullen (K 469) was a Captain-class frigate of the Royal Navy during World War II. Originally laid down as BDE-78, a Buckley-class destroyer escort, she was diverted to the Royal Navy and named HMS Bullen before the launch. The ship was sunk by a German submarine in 1944.

History
United Kingdom
Name	Bullen
Builder	Bethlehem-Hingham Shipyard Inc
Laid down	17 May 1943
Launched	7 August 1943
Commissioned	25 October 1943
Fate	Sunk on 6 December 1944
General characteristics
Class & type	Captain-class frigate
Displacement	1,190 long tons (1,210 t) (standard)
Length	289 ft 5 in (88.2 m)
Beam	35 ft 2 in (10.7 m)
Draught	10 ft 1 in (3.1 m)
Installed power	6,000 shp (4,500 kW) electric motors
Propulsion	2 shafts; 4 diesel engines
Speed	20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph)
Range	6,000 nmi (11,000 km; 6,900 mi) at 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph)
Complement	198
Sensors & processing systems	SA & SL type radars Type 144 series Asdic MF Direction Finding HF Direction Finding
Armament	3 × single 3 in (76 mm)/50 Mk 22 guns 1 × twin Bofors 40 mm 9 × single 20 mm Oerlikon guns 1 × Hedgehog anti-submarine mortar 2 × Depth charge rails and four throwers

Description

The Buckley-class ships had an overall length of 306 feet (93.3 m), a beam of 37 feet (11.3 m), and a draught of 11 feet 3 inches (3.4 m) at full load. They displaced 1,430 long tons (1,450 t) at (standard) and 1,823 long tons (1,852 t) at full load.^[1] The ships had a turbo-electric powertrain with two Foster Wheeler Express D boilers providing steam to a pair of General Electric steam turbines which drove two electric generators which sent electricity to two 6,000-shaft-horsepower (4,500 kW) electric motors which drove the two propeller shafts. The destroyer escorts reached a speed of 24 knots (44 km/h; 28 mph) and had enough fuel oil to give them a range of 6,000 nautical miles (11,000 km; 6,900 mi) at 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph). Their crew consisted of 220 officers and ratings.^[2]

The armament of the Buckley-class ships in British service consisted of three single mounts for 50-caliber 3-inch (76 mm)/50 Mk 22 dual-purpose guns; one superfiring pair forward of the bridge and the third gun aft of the superstructure. Anti-aircraft defence was intended to consisted of a twin-gun mount for 40-millimetre (1.6 in) Bofors anti-aircraft (AA) guns atop the rear superstructure with eight 20-millimetre (0.8 in) Oerlikon AA guns located on the superstructure, but production shortages meant that that two additional Oerlikons sometimes replaced the Bofors guns. A Mark 10 Hedgehog anti-submarine mortar was positioned just behind the forward gun. The ships were also equipped with two depth charge rails at the stern and four "K-gun" depth charge throwers.^[3]

Construction and career

BDE-78 was laid down on 17 May 1943 at Hingham, Massachussets, by the Bethlehem Steel Corp., launched on 17 August 1943. The ship transferred to the United Kingdom on 25 October 1943 and commissioned in the Royal Navy that day as HMS Bullen (K460).^[4]

While part of the 19th Escort Group, Bullen was torpedoed by the German submarine U-775 northwest of Strathy Point, Sutherland, Scotland on 6 December 1944, striking her midships. Of the crew of HMS Bullen, 71 died and 97 survived.^[5] The wrecksite is designated as a 'protected place' under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986.^[6]