Reactivation For Neutrality Protection Duties
When the Second World War broke out Draug had, as had her sister ships Troll and Garm, been mothballed for a number of years as part of pre–war savings on the Norwegian military budget. Draug had been anchored at Marineholmen in Bergen, the two other vessels at Horten. With the outbreak of war the three Draug class vessels were reactivated on 5 September 1939 in order to take part in guarding Norwegian neutrality. When the reactivation order came, it took well over a month for workers to find and repair all the cracks and leaks in the ship's steam boilers and make her seaworthy again. In early October 1939 Draug was ready for action. The tiny destroyers of the Draug class were not considered fit for potential combat operations and were only meant to perform escort and guard duties.
One of the main weaknesses of the Draug class ships was their lack of effective anti-aircraft armament, Draug herself being equipped with a single 12.7 mm Colt anti-aircraft machine gun. She also carried a Madsen machine gun that was rendered inoperable by the absence of a vital part. Draug's anti-submarine weapons were equally primitive, with four depth charges located on the stern. The depth charges had no throwing mechanism and had to be dropped overboard manually. The ship also had no radar or asdic to help in locating targets.
Read more about this topic: HNo MS Draug (1908)
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