Finnish gunboat Turunmaa
| History | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Name: | Turunmaa |
| Commissioned: | 1916 (Finnish Navy) |
| Fate: | Scrapped in 1953 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Filin-class guard ship |
| Displacement: | 342 tons |
| Length: | 50 m (160 ft) |
| Beam: | 6.9 m (23 ft) |
| Draft: | 2.9 m (9.5 ft) |
| Propulsion: | two boilers, 860 kW |
| Speed: | 15 knots (28 km/h) |
| Range: | 700 nautical miles (1,300 km) at 15 knots |
| Complement: |
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| Armament: | In 1920s:
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Turunmaa was a Finnish gunboat built in 1918. She served in the Finnish Navy during World War II. The ship was named after Turuma, a type of frigate designed for use in shallow waters of the archipelago and served in the Swedish Archipelago fleet in the late 18th century. The frigates had in turn been named after the region of Finland.
During construction while in Russian lists (1916–1917) the ship had been named both Orlan and Tshirok. Turunmaa was built in Helsinki for the Imperial Russian Navy but was taken over by Finnish troops in the Finnish Civil War. The ship was used as a training ship for Finnish sea cadets during peacetime and was nicknamed as Surunmaa (land of sorrow).
In the second half of 1919, Turunmaa, amongst other Finnish naval vessels, was tasked with security and patrol duties in the Koivisto region where the British naval detachment was located. On 4 September 1939, Turunmaa as part of the Coastal Fleet was moved to the Sea of Åland. However, for the rest of the autumn, Turunmaa patrolled the waters from Kotka to Koivisto together with Karjala.
On 1 December 1939 Turunmaa was covering the minelaying effort by auxiliary minelayer Suomi south-east of Isosaari.Turunmaa join to the Coastal Fleet near Åland in mid December 1939. She participated in anti-submarine patrols which continued until the sea froze on 30 January.
Turunmaa was tasked with escort duties at the start of the Continuation War. She was detached from that duty following the Soviet attack to Bengtskär and ordered to rejoin the rest of the Finnish gunboats. On 29 August Turunmaa together with Karjala, Hämeenmaa and Uusimaa escorted by Riilahti and Ruotsinsalmi sailed through the main Soviet minebarrier south of Hanko to the eastern Gulf of Finland.
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