The Story of an Escort Carrier

H.M.S. SLINGER was an ‘Ameer’ class escort carrier that saw service with the Royal Navy during the Second World War. She was built by American shipbuilders Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Co. Tacoma, Washington, originally intended for service with the US Navy as the USS CHATHAM  (CVE-32) but was one of 23 ships of the (second batch) US Navy 'Bogue' class carriers that were allocated to the United Kingdom under the 'Lend-Lease' agreement between the US and Britain supply of war materials. This agreement afforded Britain a valuable life-line on the basis that;

 

"the United States should loan what articles were needed, as a man would loan his garden hose to help his neighbor put out a fire without reference to payment, but with the expectation that the hose itself would be returned."

(Franklin D. Roosevelt 17 Dec 1941.)
 

Under these terms HMS SLINGER was commissioned into the Royal Navy on August 11th 1943 at the shipyard of Willamette Iron & Steel in Portland, Oregon, where she had been completed as an auxiliary aircraft carrier. After the war had ended and the need to retain her had passed CVE-32 was returned to US Navy custody on February 27th 1946 at Norfolk Navy Yard, Virginia.

 

About these pages:

These pages are based on the material  originally published for the HMS SLINGER Association by former Coder, and member of the ship's company, John Lawson . The photographs and materials contained within these web pages have been loaned or donated by former members of the ship's company and their families in order that the ship be remembered for future generations.

 

 

 

This site was last updated on 7 June, 2011

 

This site is no longer maintained but will remain accessable

 ©2005-2010 John Lawson & Tony Drury

These pages are hosted by Tony Drury, Editor, the Royal Navy Research Archive