History
Canada
Name	Noranda
Namesake	Rouyn-Noranda,Quebec
Builder	Davie Shipbuilding,Lauzon
Laid down	27 December 1940
Launched	13 June 1941
Commissioned	15 May 1942
Decommissioned	28 August 1945
Identification	Pennant number: J265
Honours & awards	Gulf of St. Lawrence 1942,[1] Atlantic 1943-45
Fate	Sank off Jamaica, May 1971 as yacht
General characteristics
Class & type	Bangor-class minesweeper
Displacement	592 long tons (601 t)
Length	162 ft (49.4 m)
Beam	28 ft (8.5 m)
Draught	8.25 ft (2.51 m)
Propulsion	2 shafts, 9-cylinder diesel, 2,000 bhp (1,500 kW)
Speed	16 knots (30 km/h)
Complement	83
Armament	1 ×QF 12-pounder 12 cwt naval gun 1 ×QF 2-pounder Mark VIII 2 ×QF 20 mm Oerlikon guns 40depth charges as escort

HMCSNoranda was a CanadianBangor-classminesweeper built for theRoyal Canadian Navy in 1940. She was launched on 13 June 1941 and escorted convoys for the rest of the war. After the war the minesweeper was refitted and was transferred to theRoyal Canadian Mounted Police asIrvine. In 1962, the ship was sold and was turned into theyachtMiriana. RenamedMarijana andViking L&R in 1969, the yacht sank in May 1971 off the coast of Jamaica.

TheBangor class was initially to be a scaled down minesweeper design of theHalcyon class inRoyal Navy service.^[2][3] However, due to the difficulty procuring diesel engines led to the small number of the diesel version being completed.^[3] The shipsdisplaced 592 long tons (601 t) standard and 690 long tons (701 t) fully loaded. They were 162 feet (49.4 m)long with abeam of 28 feet (8.5 m) and adraught of 8 feet 3 inches (2.51 m).^[3][4] However, the size of the ship led to criticisms of their being too cramped for magnetic or acoustic minesweeping gear.^[3] This may have been due to all the additions made during the war with the installation ofASDIC, radar anddepth charges.^[2]

TheBangor class came in two versions.Noranda was of the diesel-powered version, being equipped with a 9-cylinder diesel engine driving two shafts that produced 2,000brake horsepower (1,500 kW). This gave the ship a maximum speed of 16.5knots (30.6 km/h). The vessels carried 65 long tons (66 t) of oil.^[3] The vessels had a complement of 6 officers and 77 ratings.^[4]

The Canadian diesel-poweredBangors were armed with a singlequick-firing (QF)12-pounder 12 cwt gun mounted forward.^[3][4][a] The ships were also fitted with aQF 2-pounder Mark VIII gun aft and were eventually fitted with single-mountedQF 20 mm Oerlikon guns on thebridge wings.Noranda was singular in having a single 20 mm gun in the aft mount.^[5] For those ships assigned to convoy duty, they were armed with two depth charge launchers and two chutes for the 40 depth charges they carried.^[3][5]

Noranda was ordered as part of the 1940–41 building programme. The minesweeper'skeel was laid down on 27 December 1940 byDavie Shipbuilding and Repairing Co. Ltd. atLauzon, Quebec. The ship waslaunched on 13 June 1941 andcommissioned into the Royal Canadian Navy atQuebec City on 15 May 1942.^[6]

Following work ups atPictou, Nova Scotia,Noranda was assigned to Halifax Force, a local escort force operating out ofHalifax, Nova Scotia. In February 1943, the minesweeper was reassigned to theWestern Local Escort Force (WLEF), escorting convoys along the coast of North America. In June 1943, WLEF's escorts were placed in groups, withNoranda joining W-9. She remained with that unit until May 1944 when the ship transferred to Sydney Force, a local escort force operating out ofSydney, Nova Scotia.^[6]

Noranda underwent a major refit atLunenburg, Nova Scotia from September to December 1944 before returning to service on 2 February 1945. The minesweeper briefly returned to Halifax Force before rejoining Sydney Force. The ship waspaid off on 28 August 1945 at Halifax.^[6]

The minesweeper was transferred to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) on 28 August 1945 for service in their Marine Division and renamedIrvine in 1947.^[6][7][8]Irvine was stationed at Halifax until 1962.^[8] The RCMP sold the vessel in 1962 for use as a yacht and renamedMiriana.^[6] In 1969 the vessel was renamedMarijana and owned by Rainbow Import & Manufacturing. The vessel was sold again in 1969, this time to Dolphin Sg Co Ltd and renamedViking L&R andregistered in theCayman Islands.^[9] In May 1971 the yacht foundered inMontego Bay, Jamaica.^[7][9] Her registry was deleted in the Cayman Islands in 1977.^[6]

• Brown, D.K. (2000).Nelson to Vanguard: Warship Design and Development 1923–1945. Chatham Publishing.ISBN 1861761368.
• Chesneau, Roger, ed. (1980).Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946. Greenwich, UK: Conway Maritime Press.ISBN 0-85177-146-7.
• Colledge, J. J.; Warlow, Ben (2006) [1969].Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of All Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy from the 15th Century to the Present (Rev. ed.). London: Chatham Publishing.ISBN 978-1-86176-281-8.OCLC 67375475.
• Haycock, John (2011). Vassilopoulos, Peter (ed.).The History of the RCMP Marine Services. Ottawa: Queen's Printer.ISBN 978-0-919317-47-5.
• Macpherson, Ken; Barrie, Ron (2002).The Ships of Canada's Naval Forces 1910–2002 (Third ed.). St. Catharines, Ontario: Vanwell Publishing.ISBN 1-55125-072-1.
• Macpherson, Ken (1997).Minesweepers of the Royal Canadian Navy 1938–1945. St. Catharines, Ontario: Vanwell Publishing.ISBN 0-920277-55-1.

• Bangor-class minesweepers of the Royal Canadian Navy
• World War II minesweepers of Canada
• Ships built in Lévis

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