ORP Krakowiak
Index of Allied warships during Operation Neptune
Histoire, fiche technique et photo
ORP Krakowiak history
The ORP Krakowiak was originally built by Great Britain from December 5, 1939 under the baptismal name HMS Silverton. Due to the lack of sufficient crews trained to serve the Silverton, the Royal Navy surrendered its warship to the Polish Free Naval Forces on May 22, 1941.
Krakowiak performed several convoy escort missions across the Atlantic before participating in North Sea patrols as well as the victorious raid on the Lofoten Islands German naval base. Engaged in the Mediterranean Sea as part of Operation Husky off Sicily, the Polish destroyer was deployed in the Channel waters in the spring of 1944.
It is involved in Operation Neptune within Bombarding Force K, which operated off Gold Beach.
On September 28, 1946, the Polish Navy surrendered the destroyer to the Royal Navy, which gave it back its original baptismal name. Integrated into the reserve fleet under a new frigate classification (F55), it was permanently withdrawn from service in 1959 and sold for scrap.
ORP Krakowiak technical sheet
Creator: Great-Britain
User: Poland
Denomination: ORP Krakowiak
Class: Hunt type II destroyer
Crew : 480 men
Armament (1944): 4x 120 mm guns, 2x 40 mm guns, 6x 20 mm Oerlikon guns, 2x 533 mm torpedo tubes
Displacement: 2,090 tons
Speed: 37 knots
Length: 111 m
Beam: 11 m
Draught : 3 m
