HMS Cooke

For other ships with the same name, see USS Dempsey.

HMS Cooke (K471) was a British Captain-class frigate of the Royal Navy in commission during World War II. Originally constructed as the United States Navy Evarts-class destroyer escort USS Dempsey (DE-267), she served in the Royal Navy from 1943 to 1946.

History
United States
Name	USS Dempsey (DE-267)
Namesake	U.S. Navy Lieutenant, junior grade Richard John Dempsey (1919-1942), killed in action aboard the heavy cruiser USS Vincennes (CA-44) when she was sunk in the Battle of Savo Island
Ordered	25 January 1942
Builder	Boston Navy Yard, Boston, Massachusetts
Laid down	11 March 1943
Launched	22 April 1943
Sponsored by	Mrs. J. A. Dempsey
Commissioned	never
Fate	Transferred to United Kingdom 23 August 1943
Acquired	Returned by United Kingdom 5 March 1946
Fate	Sold 3 or 10 June 1947 for scrapping
United Kingdom
Name	HMS Cooke
Namesake	Captain John Cooke (c. 1762-1805), British naval officer killed in action as commanding officer of HMS Bellerophon at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805
Acquired	23 August 1943
Commissioned	23 August 1943
Fate	Returned to United States 5 March 1946
General characteristics
Displacement	1,140 long tons (1,158 t)
Length	289.5 ft (88.2 m)
Beam	35 ft (11 m)
Draught	9 ft (2.7 m)
Propulsion	Four General Motors 278A 16-cylinder engines GE 7,040 bhp (5,250 kW) generators (4,800 kW) GE electric motors for 6,000 shp (4,500 kW) Two shafts
Speed	20 knots (37 km/h)
Range	5,000 nautical miles (9,260 km) at 15 knots (28 km/h)
Complement	156
Sensors and processing systems	SA & SL type radars Type 144 series Asdic MF Direction Finding antenna HF Direction Finding Type FH 4 antenna
Armament	3 × 3 in (76 mm) /50 Mk.22 guns 1 × twin Bofors 40 mm mount Mk.I 7–16 × 20 mm Oerlikon guns Mark 10 Hedgehog antisubmarine mortar Depth charges QF 2-pounder naval gun
Notes	Pennant number K471

Construction and transfer

The ship was laid down as the U.S. Navy destroyer escort USS Dempsey (DE-267), the first ship of the name, by the Boston Navy Yard in Boston, Massachusetts, on 11 March 1943 and launched on 22 April 1943, sponsored by Mrs. J. A. Dempsey, mother of the late Lieutenant, junior grade Richard John Dempsey (1919-1942), for whom the ship was named. Dempsey was transferred to the United Kingdom under Lend-Lease upon completion on 23 August 1943.

Service history

Commissioned into service in the Royal Navy as HMS Cooke (K471) on 23 August 1943 simultaneously with her transfer, the ship served on patrol and escort duty. On 29 June 1944 she joined the British frigates Domett, Duckworth, and Essington and a Royal Air Force Liberator aircraft of No. 244 Squadron in a depth charge attack that sank the German submarine U-988 in the English Channel west of Guernsey at 49°37′00″N 003°41′00″W. On 26 July 1944, she sank the German submarine U-214 with depth charges in the English Channel southeast of the Eddystone Rocks in position 49°58′00″N 003°30′00″W.

The Royal Navy returned Cooke to the U.S. Navy on 5 March 1946.

Disposal

The United States sold Cooke on 3 or 10 June 1947 (sources vary) for scrapping.

References

•  This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
• Navsource Online: Destroyer Escort Photo Archive DE-267 Dempsey HMS Cooke (K-471)
• uboat.net HMS Cooke (K 471)
• Captain Class Frigate Association HMS Cooke K471 (DE 267)

External links

• Photo gallery of HMS Dempsey (DE-267)