Destroyer Escorts: Restigouche Class
Posted: Mon Oct 15, 2018 5:59 am
Restigouche Class Destroyer Escort HMCS Kootenay pictured passing through the First Lock,Welland Canal, 1959.
The Restigouche Class destroyer-escorts were the follow on to the St Laurent Class. The most notable change was the substitution of the British 3"70 caliber gun forward for the American 3" 50 caliber twin mount. Four of the ships underwent a substantial ASW modernization which saw the addition of a Variable Depth Sonar system at the stern and the addition of a standard ASROC launcher in place of the after 3" 50 caliber gun. Radars and other sensors were also updated. The remaining three ships were not updated and were relegated to stationary training and spare parts sources. All were ultimately scrapped or sunk as wrecks for civilian divers.
The class was succeeded by the near identical Mackenzie Class which served on the West Coast of Canada as seagoing training ships. There were four of these ships. The odd one in this latter group was HMCS Quappelle which mounted the twin 3" 50 caliber twin mount forward in place of the British 3" 70 caliber weapon. The latter weapon was a poor performer when compared to the 3 inch 50 caliber system. All of this class was scrapped or sunk as divers wrecks.