HMS Indomitable (92) - Construction and Early History

Construction and Early History

She was laid down by Vickers-Armstrong at Barrow-in-Furness, on 10 November 1937, as war loomed ever closer. She was launched on 26 March 1940 and commissioned the following year in October.

She sailed to the West Indies in November 1941 for her maiden voyage. While there, Indomitable ran aground on a coral reef near Jamaica, though she returned to service soon afterwards. It has been suggested that this short delay proved fatal for British plans for Singapore. There were provisional plans that Indomitable was to join HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse in the port of Singapore as part of a deterrent force, Force Orange, against Japanese aggression in the Far East. However, given that the aircraft carrier was in the vicinity of Jamaica, on November 3rd. 1941, it seems unlikely that Indomitable could really have reached Singapore in sufficient time to provide air cover for the battle fleet. For that to have been achieved, it would have been necessary to order the ship to proceed to Singapore, at an earlier date than November 3rd. In the event, the other two capital ships, designated Force Z, did not have adequate air cover, and were sunk by Japanese aircraft (see Sinking of Prince of Wales and Repulse) when the Japanese landed in Malaya in December 1941. In January 1942 Indomitable joined the Eastern Fleet based at Ceylon, now Sri Lanka, where she ferried 48 Royal Air Force Hawker Hurricanes for Singapore via Java, during January. These planes again came too late as the British commanders in Singapore surrendered to the Japanese in February.

After the fall of Britain's Far Eastern colonies (Hong Kong and Burma also fell) Indomitable was redeployed. A new Eastern Fleet was established under the command of Admiral Sir James Somerville. Indomitable, and her sister-ship Formidable were the only modern aircraft carriers of the Fleet, and were a vital asset to the Allies in the Far East; the only other available carrier, Hermes, was effectively obsolete.

In April 1942 Somerville attempted to intercept the Japanese carrier strike force as they raided the Indian Ocean. Incomplete intelligence led him to abandon his ambush just hours before the Japanese force arrived. Over the next few days Indomitable was part of a force that attempted to intercept the Japanese fleet at night, where the slow, but radar equipped, British torpedo planes would have the best chance of a successful strike. Despite several days of searching no decisive action was achieved, and Somerville eventually withdrew his fast carriers to Bombay. Hermes, the Australian destroyer HMAS Vampire, the corvette HMS Hollyhock, and two heavy cruisers, the Cornwall and Dorsetshire, were sunk in action during this Japanese raid, as were a score of merchant ships.

In May 1942 the British launched Operation Ironclad, the invasion of French Madagascar. It was feared that the Japanese would themselves occupy Madagascar and use it as a submarine base to attack allied convoy routes in the Indian Ocean.

Indomitable, her sister-ship Illustrious, and many other warships converged at Durban, South Africa preparing for the invasion. The assault began on 5 May at Courrier Bay, just west of the actual objective. Sea Hurricanes made their first operationally hostile duties during the invasion and, in their escort role, destroyed three French Morane-Saulnier M.S.406 fighters on the ground. The following day the Royal Marines launched an assault on the town itself and after bitter fighting that lasted almost two days the strategic town was taken.