HMS Fencer (D64/R308) was an American-built escort carrier that served with the Royal Navy during World War II. Originally laid down on 5 September 1941 as a C3-S-A1 freighter under Maritime Commission contract (MC hull #197) by Western Pipe and Steel Company in San Francisco, her hull was purchased by the U.S. Navy for conversion into a Bogue-class escort carrier. During construction, she was transferred to the Admiralty under the Lend-Lease agreement, with a Royal Navy commissioning crew arriving in May 1942. She was launched on 4 April 1942, sponsored by Mrs. Powers Symington, and renamed Croatan (AVG-14). She was redesignated ACV-14 on 20 August 1942, commissioned into the U.S. Navy on 20 February 1943, and shortly thereafter decommissioned and transferred to the Royal Navy, entering service as HMS Fencer on 1 March 1943 under Captain E.W. Anstice, RN. Fencer was the fourth of eleven Attacker-class escort carriers, built in American shipyards, notably by Western Pipe & Steel. She measured 496 feet in length, with a beam of 69 feet 6 inches and a draught of 24 feet, displacing approximately 14,400 long tons at full load. Powered by two boilers driving a turbine connected to a single shaft, she could reach speeds of 18 knots and was armed primarily for anti-aircraft defense, including dual 4-inch guns, multiple Bofors 40mm, and Oerlikon 20mm cannons. Designed for convoy escort and anti-submarine warfare, Fencer could carry up to 24 aircraft, including fighters like the Sea Hurricane, Seafire, or Corsair, as well as torpedo bombers and anti-submarine aircraft such as the Swordfish and later the Grumman Avenger. Her flight deck was 450 by 120 feet, with two lifts and nine arrestor wires, and her hangar below accommodated aircraft maintenance and storage. Fencer's service included escorting Atlantic convoys, notably sinking U-666 with Swordfish aircraft in February 1944. She participated in Operation Tungsten against the German battleship Tirpitz and operated in Arctic waters, sinking multiple U-boats during patrols. In late 1944, she was transferred to the East Indies Fleet, ferrying personnel and providing air support in Ceylon and Australia. Post-war, she returned to the U.S. Navy, was stricken in 1947, and sold into merchant service, where she was extensively converted into a passenger ship named Sydney, later Roma, and eventually Galaxy Queen, before being scrapped in 1975.

This description has been generated using GPT-4.1-NANO based on the Vessel's wikidata information and then modified by ShipIndex.org staff.