HMS Pheasant (U49)

HMS Pheasant was a Modified Black Swan-class sloop of the Royal Navy. She was laid down by Yarrow Shipbuilders, in Scotstoun, Glasgow on 13 July 1942, launched on 21 December 1942, and commissioned on 12 May 1943. She was adopted by the rural district of Runcorn, then in Cheshire, as part of Warship Week in 1942.

Design
The Modified Black Swan-class sloops were specialised convoy-defence vessels, with an anti-aircraft and an anti-submarine capability. They were designed to have a longer range than a destroyer at the expense of lower top speed while remaining capable of outrunning the German Type VII and Type IX U-boats when they were surfaced.

Pheasant had a top speed of 20 kn - their prey, the German U-boats, could only manage 18 kn on the surface and no more than 8 kn submerged.

Service history
In the latter part of the war, Pheasant was sent to the Pacific theatre. There she served in a task force with the escort carriers HMS Striker (D12) and HMS Ruler (D72) from April to August 1945.

After being placed on the disposal list Pheasant was sold for scrap, arriving at Troon for breaking on 15 January 1963.