350-004 FLOTILLA LEADER SCOTT CLASS HMAS STUART 1941 - 1942 R.

The HMAS Stuart was an Australian, and originally British, destroyer, laid down in October 1917, launched in August 1918, and commissioned in the Royal Navy in December of the same year. The total length of the ship at the time of launching was 101.4 m, width 9.69 m, and her standard displacement was up to 1,530 tons. The maximum speed, in turn, did not exceed 34 knots. In 1933, the ship's armament included: 5 120 mm guns, a single 76 mm anti-aircraft gun, and 2 AA cannons. cal. 40 mm. HMAS Stuart, or rather HMS Stuart, was the last of 8 ships of the Admiralty class, sometimes called Scott - from the very first ship of this type. Units of this type were conceived as the so-called destroyer flotilla leaders were therefore slightly larger than typical destroyers of the time, better armed, and above all had relatively large command and communication compartments and rooms. Overall, they turned out to be successful and solid ships. HMS Stuart during his service in the Royal Navy (1918-1933) served primarily in the Mediterranean and - temporarily - in the Black Sea, during the indirect support of Whites during the Russian Civil War. In 1933, the unit was handed over to Australia, which resulted in, among other things, changing its name - to HMAS Stuart. In Australian service, the ship traveled during World War II on a combat route marked by service in the Mediterranean Sea (1940-1941), participation in the Battle of Matapan in March 1941 and the implementation of convoy tasks in the waters of the South Pacific in the period 1942-1943. Due to the considerable wear and tear of the unit, in 1944 it was converted into a transport ship. In April 1946, HMAS Stuart was withdrawn from the line.