700-033 HMS EMPIRE MACALPINE ESCORT AIRCRAFT CARRIER

HMS (MV) Empire MacAlpine was a British transport ship, converted into a Merchant Aircraft Carrier (MAC for short) under which the keel was laid in August 1942 and launched in December of the same year. The total length of the ship at the time of launching was 132.2 m, width 17.3 m, and the maximum speed did not exceed 13 knots. The ship's armament included: a single 100 mm cannon, 4 40 mm anti-aircraft guns and 4 AA cannons. cal. 20 m. The aviation team consisted of a maximum of 4 planes. The HMS (MV) Empire MacAlpine was built in a shipyard Burntisland Shipbuilding Company in Scotland as a grain ship. However, almost immediately after launching, it was converted into an escort aircraft carrier, classified in Great Britain as " Merchant Aircraft Carrier ”. It was the first ship in the UK, defined in this way during World War II! Interestingly, despite the fact that it had an air deck added to it, it still retained its transport capacity, and was formally under civilian authority, hence the use of the abbreviation "HMS" before the name raises some controversy. During World War II, the unit operated mainly in the Atlantic and luckily survived until the end of hostilities. It was not scrapped until 1970.