RCN Corvettes (Flower Class): HMCS West York K369/HMCS Wetaskiwin K175/HMCS Weyburn K173/ HMCS Whitby K346/HMCS Windflower K155/HMCS Woodstock K238)

HMCS West York (K369)

 (DND Photo)

HMCS West York (K369) (Flower-class).  Built by Midland Shipyards, Ltd., Midland, Ontario, she was commissioned at Collingwood, Ontario, on 6 Oct 1944.  HMCS West York arrived at Halifax in mid-Nov 1944 and left a month later for Bermuda to work up.  In Feb 1945, she joined EG C-5 at St. John's, leaving 16 Feb 1945 to rendezvous with her maiden 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.  Paid off on 9 Jul 1945, and laid up at Sorel, she was sold later that year for commercial use.  As SS West York, she was towing the decommissioned HMCS Assiniboine when the towline parted and the destroyer was wrecked on Prince Edward Island, 7 Nov 1945. The former West York sailed under a variety of names and flags, returning to Canadian registry in 1960 as Federal Express.  On 5 May 1960 she was rammed by Polaris (Swedish vessel) while moored at Montreal.  She broke free from her moorings and rammed into Thorshope (Norwegian vessel) and sank within 30 minutes.  Later partly raised and scrapped.

(RCN Photo)

HMCS West York (K369) (Flower-class).

‍HMCS Wetaskiwin (K175)

(Ken Macpherson, Naval Museum of Alberta Photo)

HMCS Wetaskiwin (K175) (Flower-class).  Laid down as HMCS Banff, she was renamed HMCS Wetaskiwin during construction.  Commissioned at Esquimalt on 17 Dec 1940 as HMCS Wetaskiwin K175,  she was the first west coast-built corvette to enter service.  She patrolled out of Esquimalt until 17 Mar 1941 when HMCS Alberni, HMCS Agassiz and HMCS Wetaskiwin departed Esquimalt for Halifax.  Enroute they stopped at San Pedro, California for fuel, where a party for the crew, hosted by actress Mary Pickford and her husband Douglas Fairbanks, was held for them. They arrived at Halifax on 13 Apr 1941.  On 23 May 1941, HMCS Alberni, HMCS Agassiz and HMCS Wetaskiwin left Halifax for St. John's to join the recently formed NEF.  In Jun 1941 she escorted her first convoy, HX.130, to Iceland, and during the next eight months made six round trips there with eastbound convoys.  She returned to Halifax on 24 Jan 1942, and in Feb 1942 commenced a major refit at Liverpool, NS.  After working up in May 1942 she joined EG C-3, arriving in Londonderry on 5 Jun 1942 for the first time from convoy HX.191.  During this period Wetaskiwin participated in two major convoy actions: SC.42 (Sep 1941); and SC.48 (Oct 1941).  On 31 July 1942, while escorting ON.115, she shared with HMCS Skeena the sinking of  U-588.  In mid-Jan 1943 she arrived at Liverpool, NS, for refit, which was completed on 9 Mar 1943 and followed by further repairs at Halifax.  In May 1943, she joined EG C-5, and that Dec 1943 went to Galveston, Texas, for a long refit, including extension of her fo'c's'le.  Following its completion on 6 Mar 1944, she returned briefly to Halifax before proceeding to Bermuda for work-ups late in Apr 1944.  Returning northward, she re-joined C-5, leaving Londonderry on 23 Sep 1944 for the last time to join EG W-7, WLEF, for the remainder of the war.  She was paid off at Sorel on 19 Jun 1945, and sold in 1946 to the Venezuelan Navy, which re-named her Victoria.  She was discarded in 1962.

(DND Photo)

HMCS Wetaskiwin (K175) (Flower-class).

(Marlene Hill Photo)

HMCS Wetaskiwin (K175) (Flower-class).

(Marlene Hill Photo)

HMCS Wetaskiwin (K175) (Flower-class).

(Marlene Hill Photo)

HMCS Wetaskiwin (K175) (Flower-class).

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(US Naval History and Heritage Photos)

HMCS Wetaskiwin (K175)

HMCS Weyburn (K173)

(Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No. 4950904)

HMCS Weyburn (K173) (Flower-class).  Commissioned at Montreal on 26 Nov 1941, she arrived at Halifax on 06 Dec 1941 and joined Halifax Force for local escort work, but was soon in need of repairs.  These were carried out at Halifax during Mar and Apr 1942, following which she joined WLEF.  In Jul 1942 she transferred to Gulf Escort Force for Quebec City-Sydney convoys but in Sep 1942 was allocated to duties in connection with Operation "Torch."  She arrived at Londonderry on 27 Sep 1942 from convoy SC.100, and at Liverpool on 02 Oct 1942 for fitting of Oerlikon A/A guns.  The work was completed on 21 Oct 1942 and in Nov 1942, HMCS Weyburn began four months' employment as escort to UK-Mediterranean convoys.  On 22 Feb 1943 HMCS Weyburn was mined off Cape Espartel east of Gibraltar in position 35º46'N, 06º02'W.  Twelve members of her crew including her commanding officer were lost with the ship.  The mine had been laid by U-118 on 1 Feb 1943.

(DND Photo, NP-1012)

HMCS Weyburn (K173) (Flower-class).

(Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No.4950903)

HMCS Weyburn (K173) (Flower-class).

(DND Photo)

HMCS Weyburn (K173) (Flower-class).

HMCS Whitby (K346)

(DND Photo)

HMCS Whitby (K346) (Flower-class).  Built at Midland, Ontario, she was commissioned at there on 6 Jun 1944.  She did not arrive at Halifax until 16 Aug 1944, owing to a layover en route at Shelburne for repairs.  Following workups in Bermuda in Sep 1944 she sailed direct to St. John's, arriving on 30 Sep 1944, and was assigned to EG C-4.  She left St. John's on 5 Oct 1944 for Londonderry to join the group, with which she was to serve for the balance of the war.   HMCS Whitby left Londonderry for Canada in mid-Jun 1945, and was paid off on 16 Jul 1945 and then placed in reserve at Sorel.  She was sold in 1946 for merchant service.  HMCS Whitby was acquired by the Portuguese Navy from the USA, and renamed NRP Bengo on 29 Apr 1948, probably for the delivery voyage to Mozambique, and on 1 Oct 1948 converted to pilot tender and renamed Bengo.  She was still in service as the pilot vessel Bengo at Lourenco Marques (now Maputo) in Mozambique in Aug 1977.

HMCS Windflower (K155)

(DND Photo)

HMCS Windflower (K155) (Flower-class), during acceptance trials in 1940, no armament fixed.  Built for the RN, she was commissioned on 20 Oct 1940 as HMS Windflower, at Quebec City.  She arrived at Halifax on 31 Oct 1940 and left on 6 Dec 1940 with convoy HX.94 for the UK.  There, at Scotsoun, she completed fitting out on 2 Mar 1941, following which she went to Tobermory to work up.  Later in Mar 1941 she was assigned to EG 4 (RN), Greenock, escorting convoys between the UK and Iceland.  On 15 May 1941 she was transferred to the RCN and commissioned as HMCS Windflower.  She left Aultbea on 10 Jun 1942 for St. John's with OB.332, and on arrival transferred to Newfoundland Command.  After two round trips between St. John's and Iceland, she arrived at Liverpool, NS, on 29 Aug 1942 for a short refit, resuming her ocean escort duties in mid-Oct 1942.  She made one more round trip to Iceland, and on 7 Dec 1941, while making her second trip, was rammed and sunk in convoy SC.58 by the Dutch freighter Zypenberg in dense fog off the Grand Banks.  Twenty-three of her complement were lost.

HMCS Woodstock (K238)

(DND Photo)

HMCS Woodstock (K238) (Flower-class).  Built by Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario, HMCS Woodstock was commissioned on 1 May 1942, at Montreal.  She arrived at Halifax on 23 May 1942 and, after working up at Pictou, joined WLEF.  Assigned to Operation "Torch," she arrived on 23 Sep 1942 at Londonderry from convoy HX.207 and proceeded to the Humber for six weeks' refit, including extra A/A armament.  While serving as escort to UK-Mediterranean convoys, on 10 Jan 1943, she sank MTB 105, 250 miles northwest of the Azores, after a merchant ship carrying it had been sunk.  HMCS Woodstock returned to Canada arriving in Halifax on 24 Mar 1943 with convoy ON.172, and in Apr 1943, after repairs at Halifax, joined EG C-1 for one round trip to the UK.  In Jun 1943 she was transferred to EG 5, Western Support Force, at St. John's but late that month was reassigned to EG C-4 at Londonderry.  She escorted only one convoy as member of that group before commencing refit late in Jun 1943 at Liverpool, NS.  Completed at Halifax in mid-Sep 1943, the refit was followed by three weeks' workups at Pictou, the ship then rejoining C-4.  In Apr 1944, while at Londonderry, she was allocated to Western Approaches Command for invasion duties, and was so employed for the next three months.  She left 'Derry for the last time on 3 Aug 1944, for two months' refit at Liverpool, NS.  She left Halifax on 18 Oct 1944 for the west coast, arriving at Esquimalt a month later to join Esquimalt Force.  On 27 Jan 1945, she was paid off there for conversion to a loop-layer but upon re-commissioning on 17 May 1945 was employed as a weather ship until finally paid off on 18 Mar 1946.  Sold in 1948 for conversion to a whale-catcher, she entered service in 1951 as the Honduran-flag Olympic Winner.  She passed into Japanese ownership in 1956, and was renamed Otori Maru No. 20, and in 1957, Akitsu Maru.  She was broken up at Etajima in 1975.

(DND/RCN Photo, NP 1069)

HMCS Woodstock (K238) (Flower-class), with a depth charge exploding astern of her.

(Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No. 4950910)

RCN Corvette in drydock.

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