2610 Tonnes Class, French Destroyers

Specifications:

Tonnage

2569 tons standard

Dimensions

434'6" by 40'6" by 16'6"
132.4m by 12.25m by 5.01m

Maximum speed      

37 knots nominal. On trials, all units exceeded design specifications, achieving 41 knots or more.

Complement

210

Armament

4x1 5.5" guns
1 4" dual-purpose gun
2x1 2-pdr
4x1 37mm AA guns
1x4, 2x2, 2x1 machine guns
3x3 21.7" torpedo tubes
50 mines

Bunkerage

580 tons fuel oil

Range

4000 nautical miles (7400km) at 15 knots
Sensors
British sonar and radar
Modifications

By 1943: 7x1 20mm Oerlikon AA guns added and 4x1 machine guns removed.

1943: 1 5.5" gun, 3x2 40mm Bofors AA guns and 3 20mm added and 1x3 torpedo tubes removed.


The French 2610 tonne destroyers (also described as the Le Fantasque class) were very advanced and modern ships, the first of the contre-torpilleurs, and compared favorably with some light cruisers. However, the only unit of this class to see service in the Pacific, Le Triomphant, was misused as an escort vessel (for which it lacked the necessary endurance).

Units in the Pacific:

Le Triomphant     

Noumea     

References

Whitley (1988)

Worth (2001)