- Yes, as a tech tree vehicle
- Yes, as a premium vehicle
- Yes, as an event vehicle
- Yes, as a squadron vehicle
- No, I would not like to see the Girl-class in game.
Pamela and Una’s boxy designs are clearly evident in this photograph of them at harbor, sometime in 1945.
History
The Girl-class River Gunboats were two wooden gunboats constructed for operations in the Indian territories of Britain during the close of the Second World War. Originally planned to include sixteen vessels, the Girl-class was hurriedly designed to provide fire support to the Fourteenth Army on the Chindwin River against Japan’s land forces. The lightweight, flat-bottomed ships had good armament with a 40mm Bofors, 20mm Oerlikon, and two twin 7.7mm machine guns. Supplies were flown in from Britain to be constructed in Kalewa, but the Sunderland air lifts carried the parts haphazardly, resulting in some damage that had to be ironed out at the dry dock. Four were laid down, but only two were launched in April 1945, with problems almost immediately arising from the poor-quality teak wood that had been provided to the shipbuilders. Despite being leaky messes, Pamela, named for Lady Pamela Hicks Nee Mountbatten, and Una, named for Una Slim, were pressed into action immediately against Japanese forces.
General Slim launching one of the two gunboats that were finished.
Pamela and Una had short but explosive careers, between shipping supplies and troops, providing fire support for the Gurkhas, and intercepting slow Burmese country boats that may have been transporting Japanese supplies and informants. Pamela was raked by Japanese machine gun fire, and Una nearly hit by a 75mm cannon shell, but neither ship suffered any casualties. Between their launch and VE-day, the Girl-class boats had proceeded from Kamela to Rangoon, all the way down the Chindwin River and Irrawady Delta in Burma, fighting the whole way through. They were stricken shortly after the war ended.
Specifications
Girl-class River Gunboats
Dimensions
- Length: 52 ft. (15.8 m)
- Beam: 13 ft. (3.96 m)
- Draught: 2 ft. 3 in. (0.69 m)
Displacement: 25 tons
Crew: 13
Propulsion: 3 x Ford V8 petrol engines (252 bhp)
Max Speed: 10 kt (11.5 mph, 18.5 km/h)
Fuel: 120 gallons petrol
Armament:
- Primary: 1 x 1 40mm Bofors cannon
- Secondary: 1 x 1 20mm Oerlikon cannon
- Additional: 2 x 2 .303" Vickers GO twin machine guns
Armor:
- Bulletproof plating to bridge (unspecified)
- Double-spaced armor for Bofors gun (unspecified)
- Standard Oerlikon gun shield
Conclusion
The Girl-class River Gunboats would make a good addition to the low ranks of the British coastal tree, with their good armament offsetting their slow speed and mediocre protection.
Sources
- River Gunboats: An Illustrated Encyclopedia by Roger Braneill-Cook
- Slim's Navy