Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 27:24-30:19

Early Royal Navy radar installations

A detailed answer traces early Royal Navy radar fits from Saltburn to Sheffield, Rodney, Curlew, Dido and Prince of Wales.

HMS SaltburnHMS SheffieldNaval TechnologyRadarRoyal Navy
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Question

Which Royal Navy ships first received radar?

Short answer

Saltburn received Type 79X in 1936, followed by ships including Sheffield, Rodney, Curlew, Dido and Prince of Wales.

Notes

HMS Saltburn's Type 79X fit in October 1936 was the first Royal Navy installation. Sheffield followed with Type 79Y in 1938, and Rodney received the same family of set that October. Curlew carried Type 79Z in September 1939. Dido received the first Type 281 fit in October 1940, followed by Prince of Wales in January 1941. The sequence shows radar entering the fleet through trials and successive installations rather than one sudden fleet-wide leap.