HMS Porlock Bay

The Bay-class frigates were developed during the later stages of the Second World War. They used essentially the same prefabricated hull as the preceding Loch-class, but carried an anti-aircraft armament intended for operations in the Far East, where aircraft were considered a greater threat than submarines.^[1] Porlock Bay was ordered from Charles Hill & Sons of Bristol in 1944 in place of the proposed Loch-class frigate Loch Seaforth, whose order had been cancelled. She was laid down as yard number 302 on 22 November 1944, launched on 14 June 1945 and completed on 8 March 1946. She was the first Royal Navy ship to bear the name, which referred to Porlock Bay on the northern coast of Somerset, and was the last warship completed by the Charles Hill shipyard.^[1] The ship displaced 1,600 long tons (1,626 t) at standard load and 2,530 long tons (2,571 t) at full load. Her two four-cylinder triple-expansion steam engines produced a total of 5,500 ihp (4,100 kW) and gave a maximum speed of approximately 19.5 knots (36.1 km/h; 22.4 mph). With 724 tons of oil fuel, she had a range of about 9,500 nmi (17,600 km) at 12 knots (22 km/h).^[3] Her main armament consisted of four 4-inch (100 mm) QF Mk XVI guns in two twin mountings. The anti-aircraft armament comprised two twin 40 mm (1.6 in) Bofors mountings and two twin 20 mm (0.79 in) Oerlikon mountings. Anti-submarine weapons included a Hedgehog projector, four depth-charge throwers and two depth-charge rails.^[4]

Porlock Bay was commissioned on 14 February 1946 under Lieutenant D. L. Davenport for service on the North America and West Indies Station. Following weapons trials and working-up at Portland, she was temporarily attached to the Plymouth Local Flotilla. Her departure for the West Indies was delayed by post-war personnel shortages.^[1] On 22 July 1946, she sailed for Bermuda together with her sister ship Padstow Bay. After calling at the Azores, the ships continued towards Bermuda while towing the disabled landing craft headquarters ship LCH 50. Porlock Bay collided with the landing craft while the tow was being disconnected and suffered damage to her bow. Repairs in Bermuda prevented her from joining planned visits to ports in the United States.^[1] After repairs, the frigate sailed to St. John's, arriving on 7 September. Later that month, she carried the Governor of Newfoundland, Sir Gordon Macdonald, on an official tour of isolated communities on Newfoundland's southern coast. She subsequently visited ports in Newfoundland and eastern Canada and exercised with ships of the Royal Canadian Navy before returning to Bermuda in November for maintenance.^[1] Commander Frank Twiss assumed command during the refit. In early 1947, Porlock Bay participated in exercises and made visits to Veracruz, Galveston, Mobile, Key West and Nassau. During July, she supported an official tour by the Governor of the Bahamas to the Turks and Caicos Islands and other islands. She was subsequently sent to Belize during a period of tension caused by Guatemalan territorial claims.^[1] In September 1947, the ship was informed that her overseas commission was to be ended as part of post-war spending reductions. After calls at Santiago de Cuba and Miami, she returned through Bermuda and reached Devonport on 3 November. She served with the Fishery Protection Squadron in British waters throughout 1948 and was reduced to reserve at Devonport in January 1949. Her pennant number was changed from K650 to F650 the following month. She remained in reserve, receiving two refits, until her sale to Finland in 1962.^[1]

Furniture from the ship's officers' mess was transferred to the Finnish Naval Academy and remains in use in the academy's Matti Kurki mess and conference room. One of the ship's propellers was initially displayed outside the garrison officers' club at Upinniemi. In 2019 it was moved to the courtyard of the Naval Academy's D12 building in Suomenlinna.^[2] The ship's Hedgehog anti-submarine projector, known in Finnish service as Siili, is held in the collection of the Forum Marinum maritime museum in Turku.^[6] Other surviving items include anchors, radio-room equipment and shipboard furnishings.^[3] The Finnish Navy's next purpose-built seagoing training ship was the minelayer Pohjanmaa, completed in 1979.^[2][3]