HMS Skipjack (1889)
HMS "Skipjack" was a of the British Royal Navy. She was built at Chatham Dockyard from 1888–1891. She was converted to a minesweeper in 1908–1909 and continued these duties during the First World War. "Skipjack" survived the war and was sold for scrap in 1920. Design and construction. The "Sharpshooter"-class was designed under the leadership of William Henry White, the Director of Naval Construction, to be faster and more seaworthy than the preceding prototype torpedo gunboat, and the three ships, while carrying a heavier armament. As torpedo gunboats, they were intended to defend the fleet from attack  by torpedo-boats, while being capable of carrying out torpedo attacks themselves. The "Sharpshooter"s were larger than the preceding ships, with a raised forecastle to improve seakeeping. They were long overall and between perpendiculars, with a beam of and a draught of . Displacement was . Two triple-expansion steam engines, fed by four locomotive boilers, drove two propeller shafts. The machinery was intended to produce giving a speed of . The use of locomotive boilers was not a success, with the machinery being unreliable and unable to provide the expected power. The machinery actually delivered giving a speed of when forced and  giving under natural draft. The ship was armed with two 4.7 inch (120 mm) QF guns mounted fore and aft on the ships centreline, backed up by four 3-pounder (47 mm) guns (two in single mounts on the ship's beam and two in casemates forward). Five 14-inch torpedo tubes were fitted (one fixed in the ship's bow and two twin mounts), with three reload torpedoes carried. The ship had a crew of 91. "Skipjack" was laid down at Chatham dockyard on 4 July 1888 was launched on 30 April 1889 and completed in July 1891 at  a cost of £59,531. Service. On 26 June 1897 "Skipjack" was present at the Jubilee Fleet Review at Spithead, In 1898 "Skipjack" was sent to Palmers of Jarrow for refit. "Skipjack" had her locomotive boilers replaced by Reed water-tube boilers in early 1900, which increased power and reliability. "Skipjack"s new machinery delivered over giving a speed of . "Skipjack" took part in the Royal Navy's annual manoeuvres in July–August 1900, and again in 1901. In January 1901 she was a tender to the cruiser in Kingstown. In 1905 "Skipjack" was in reserve, but after refit, she returned  to active service as part of the Fishery Protection Squadron in 1907. In 1909 she was converted to a minesweeper, a conversion that resulted in her torpedo tubes being removed. On 8 October 1910 "Skipjack" arrested the French trawler "G599", which had been caught fishing within British territorial waters in the Thames estuary. The skipper of the trawler was fined five guineas for the offence. In January 1911 "Skipjack" completed a refit at Chatham and returned to fishery protection duties in the North Sea. First World War. On the outbreak of the First World War "Skipjack" joined the newly established  Grand Fleet at Scapa Flow in Orkney. In August 1914, the minesweepers attached to the Grand Fleet, including "Skipjack" were employed on carrying out daily sweeps of the Pentland Firth. In early October 1914, as part of expensive Grand Fleet operations to protect a large convoy carrying Canadian troops across the Atlantic to England, "Skipjack" was led eight minesweeping gunboats on patrols between Orkney and Shetland. On 27 October, the battleship struck a mine off Tory Island, north-west of Lough Swilly, and despite efforts to tow her to safety, sank later that day. As a result, "Skipjack" together with  sister ships and were ordered from Scapa Flow to join and in clearing this minefield. On 18 November 1914 "Skipjack" and the gunboat were about to start a minesweeping run in the channel between Fair Island and North Ronaldsay when "Skipjack" commanding officer sighted the conning tower of the German submarine "U-22". The two gunboats set off at full speed in pursuit, but the submarine outpaced them and dived to safety after a chase of 45 minutes. On the evening of 24 November 1914, the German submarine "U-16" was off the east coast of Orkney when she was spotted by  a group of trawlers that were minesweeping. The trawlers summoned nearby gunboats, and at 1 pm the next day, "Skipjack" spotted "U-16", but the submarine dived to safety and escaped. While the German official history records that "Skipjack" fired on "U-16", this is not confirmed by "Skipjack"s log or official report of the incident. On 17 December 1914, "Skipjack" and the torpedo gunboats and were on passage from Lowestoft to Scapa Flow, when they were temporarily diverted to help to deal with a minefield laid off Scarborough during the Bombardment of Scarborough on 16 December. In early May 1917 "Skipjack  and three other torpedo gunboats were sent to sweep a minefield laid by the German submarine UC-68" in the approaches to the Clyde which was holding up shipping from the Clyde and Liverpool. "Skipjack" was a member of the Second Fleet Sweeping Flotilla, based at Scapa Flow as part of the Grand Fleet, in July 1917. In 1918 she was a member of the 13th Fast Minesweeper Flotilla at Oban . Disposal. "Skipjack" was sold for scrap to Hammond Land Foundry of Dublin on 23 February 1920.