HMS Hoste (K566)

For other ships with the same name, see HMS Hoste and USS Hoste.

The third HMS Hoste (K566), ex-Mitchell, was a Captain-class frigate of the Evarts-class of destroyer escort, originally commissioned to be built for the United States Navy. Before she was finished in 1943, she was transferred to the Royal Navy under the terms of Lend-Lease, and saw service during the World War II from 1943 to 1945.

History
United States
Name	unnamed (DE-521)
Awarded	7 August 1942
Builder	Boston Navy Yard, Boston, Massachusetts
Laid down	14 August 1943
Launched	24 September 1943
Renamed	USS Mitchell (DE-521) 19 October 1943
Namesake	British name assigned in anticipation of transfer to United Kingdom
Renamed	USS Hoste (DE-521) 5 November 1943
Namesake	British name assigned in anticipation of transfer to United Kingdom
Completed	3 December 1943
Sponsored by	Mrs. D. W. Mitchell
Christened	3 December 1943
Fate	Transferred to United Kingdom 3 December 1943
Acquired	Returned by United Kingdom 22 August 1945
Name	USS Hoste (DE-521)
Namesake	British name retained
Commissioned	29 August 1945
Decommissioned	23 October 1945
Fate	Sold June 1946 Scrapped 7 May 1947
United Kingdom
Name	HMS Hoste
Namesake	Captain Sir William Hoste (1780–1828), British naval officer who was commanding officer of HMS Amphion at the Battle of Lissa in 1811
Acquired	3 December 1943
Commissioned	3 December 1943
Fate	Returned to United States 22 August 1945
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 K566

Construction and transfer

The still-unnamed ship was laid down as the U.S. Navy destroyer escort DE-521 at the Boston Navy Yard in Boston, Massachusetts, on 14 August 1943 and was launched on 24 September 1943. On 9 October 1943, she was allocated to the United Kingdom and received the British name Mitchell, but the British changed her name to Hoste on 5 November 1943. Upon completion on 3 December 1943, she was christened, sponsored by Mrs. D. W. Mitchell, and transferred to the United Kingdom.

Service history

Royal Navy, 1943–1945

Commissioned into service in the Royal Navy as HMS Hoste (K566) on 3 December 1943 simultaneously with her transfer, the ship served on patrol and escort duty for the remainder of World War II. The Royal Navy returned her to the U.S. Navy at Harwich, England, on 22 August 1945.

U.S. Navy, 1945

Retaining her British name, the ship was commissioned into the U.S. Navy as USS Hoste (DE-521) on 22 August 1945 at Harwich simultaneously with her return to U.S. custody. She departed Harwich on 29 August 1945 and proceeded to the Philadelphia Navy Yard at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where she arrived on 9 September 1945. She was decommissioned there on 23 October 1945.

Disposal

Hoste was sold for scrapping in June 1946. Her date of scrapping was 7 May 1947.

References

•  This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.

External links

• Painting of HMS Hoste (K566)
• Photo gallery of Hoste at NavSource Naval History
• Drury at Uboat.net
• Hoste at Captain class frigate association