HMCS Orillia

There has been only one vessel named HMCS Orillia in the Royal Canadian Navy.

HMCS Orillia (K119)

Commissioned 25 November 1940 at Collingwood, Ontario, the Flower Class corvette HMCS Orillia arrived at Halifax, Nova Scotia, on 11 December and was assigned to Halifax Local Defence Force until 23 May 1941. She sailed that day for St. John’s, Newfoundland, to become one of the seven charter members of the Newfoundland Escort Force, and for the balance of the year escorted convoys between St. John’s and Iceland.

She arrived at Halifax 24 December for a refit, upon completion of which on 22 March 1942 she joined Escort Group C-1, leaving St. John’s 3 April with SC.77 for Londonderry, Northern Ireland. On her arrival, she was sent to Tobermory, Scotland, for three weeks of workups, and then returned to the Newfoundland-Londonderry run until January 1944. HMCS Orillia took part in major battles around convoys SC.94, which lost eleven ships in August 1942 and ON.137 that October, which lost only two ships despite being heavily attacked. She was a member of Escort Group C-2 from November 1942 to May 1944 when she joined Escort Group C-4 following two months’ refit at Liverpool, Nova Scotia. She left Londonderry for the last time on 16 January 1944 to commence a long refit, again at Liverpool, which included the lengthening of her forecastle. This refit was completed on 3 May, but further repairs were completed at Halifax late in June. She arrived at Bermuda on 29 June for three weeks’ workups, on her return joining Escort Group W-2, Western Escort Force, for the duration of the war. Paid off on 2 July 1945 at Sorel, Quebec, she was broken up at Hamilton, Ontario, in 1951.

• Builder: Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood, Ontario
• Date laid down: 4 March 1940
• Date launched: 15 September 1940
• Date commissioned: 25 November 1940
• Date paid off: 2 July 1945
• Displacement: 965.2 tonnes
• Dimensions: 62.5 m x 10.1 m x 3.5 m
• Speed: 16 knots
• Crew: 85
• Armament: one 4-inch (102-mm) gun, one 2-pound (0.9 kg) gun, two 20-mm guns (2 x I), one Hedgehog mortar and depth charges.

Battle honours

Atlantic 1941-1945