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Usage served the Navies of Great Britain and Turkey.
Auk Class Minesweeper:
Laid down 1 January 1942 as Usage (AM 130) by the Gulf Shipbuilding Co., Chickasaw, AL
Launched 4 October 1942
Completed and transferred to Great Britain as HMS Tourmaline (J 339), 7 June 1943
Returned to U.S. custody in January 1947, struck from the Navy Register, transferred to the Foreign Liquidation Commission for disposition, sold to Turkey and renamed TCG Çardak (M 507)
Served with the Turkish Navy until 1974
Fate unknown.
Specifications:
Displacement 890 t.
Length 221' 2"
Beam 32'
Draft 10' 9"
Speed 18.1 kts.
Complement 105
Armament: One 3"/50 dual purpose gun mount, two single 40mm gun mounts, two single 20mm gun mounts, two depth charge tracks and five depth charge projectors
Propulsion: Two 3,532shp General Motors 12-278 diesel electric engines, Farrel-Birmingham single reduction gear, two shafts.
Click on thumbnail for full size image
Size
Image Description
Source
HMS Tourmaline (J 339)
157k
National Maritime Museum photo TFF-1
Paul Silverstone
117k
7 September 1943 Navy Yard, Charleston, SC Starboard quarter view U.S. Navy photo