HMS Grasshopper (T85)

Grasshopper at the China Station
History
United Kingdom
Name	HMS Grasshopper
Namesake	Grasshopper
Ordered	9 August 1937
Builder	John I. Thornycroft & Company, Woolston, Southampton
Laid down	29 December 1937
Launched	19 January 1939
Completed	13 June 1939
Identification	Pennant number: T85
Fate	Sunk, 14 February 1942
General characteristics
Class and type	Dragonfly-class river gunboat
Displacement	585 long tons (594 t) (standard) 685 long tons (696 t) (deep load)
Length	196 ft 6 in (59.9 m)
Beam	33 ft (10.1 m)
Draught	6 ft 3 in (1.9 m)
Installed power	2 Admiralty 3-drum boilers 3,800 shp (2,800 kW)
Propulsion	2 shafts, 2 geared steam turbines
Speed	17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph)
Complement	74
Armament	2 × single 4 in (102 mm) guns 1 × single 3.7 in (94 mm) howitzer 8 × single .303 in (7.7 mm) anti-aircraft machine guns

HMS Grasshopper was a Dragonfly-class river gunboat built for the Royal Navy in the late 1930s. After completion was sent to the China station where she was deployed on the Yangtse River to relieve the Insect-class gunboat HMS Gnat. She remained there until the declaration of war by the Empire of Japan in December 1941. She was subsequently transferred to Singapore Naval Base and participated in the Malayan Campaign in early 1942. Near the end of the Battle of Singapore, she evacuated the base on 11 February together with her sister ship HMS Dragonfly. Three days later she was attacked and sunk by Japanese aircraft off the island of Sebayer. Most of the ship's survivors were later captured on Sumatra by Japanese troops.