page_title: HMCS West York
section_title: Construction and career
hierarchical_section_title: HMCS West York / Construction and career
caption_attribution_description: English: HMCS West York - Flower class corvette (Revised).
context_page_description: HMCS West York was a Flower-class corvette of the Royal Canadian Navy which took part in convoy escort duties during the Second World War. Named after Weston, Ontario, she was built by Midland Shipyards Ltd. in Midland, Ontario and commissioned on 6 October 1944 at Collingwood.
context_section_description: West York was ordered in June 1942 as part of the 1943-44 Increased Endurance Flower-class building program, which followed the main layout of the 1942-43 program. The only significant difference is that the majority of the 43-44 program replaced the 2-pounder Mk.VIII single "pom-pom" anti-aircraft gun with 2 twin 20-mm and 2 single 20-mm anti-aircraft guns. West York was laid down by Midland Shipyards Ltd. at Midland, Ontario 23 July 1943 and launched 25 January 1944. She was commissioned into the RCN 6 October 1944 at Collingwood.
  West York arrived at Halifax in mid-November, 1944 and left a month later for Bermuda to work up. In February, 1945, she joined the Mid-Ocean Escort Force escort group EG C-5 at St. John's, leaving on 16 February to rendezvous with her first transatlantic convoy, HX 338. She made three round trips across the Atlantic before the end of her career, the last one as escort to ON 305, which she joined from Londonderry at the end of May 1945.
  West York was paid off on 9 July 1945 and laid up at Sorel, Quebec. She was sold into mercantile service as SS West York.  As SS West York, she was towing the decommissioned HMCS Assiniboine when the towline parted and the destroyer was wrecked on 7 November 1945 off Prince Edward Island.
  By 1947, she had her steam reciprocating engine replaced by diesel power and sailed under Moroccan registry as the Moulay Bouchaib. As late as 1950, she was the Italian Espresso. She returned to Canadian registry in 1959 as Federal Express. She was moored in Montreal on the evening of 5 May 1960, when she was struck by the Swedish Polaris. Holed and with her mooring lines carried away, Federal Express careened into the Danish Hilda Maersk and sank in 30 minutes. Later that year, the after part of the ship was raised and broken up for scrap.
caption: HMCS West York at sea
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