HMS Kent (54) was a British heavy cruiser of the interwar period and World War II. The keel was laid for this unit in November 1924, the launch took place in March 1926, and the entry into service with the Royal Navy - in June 1928. The total length of the ship at the time of launching was 192 meters, total width 20.9 meters, and full displacement - about 13,700 tons. The maximum speed was around 31.5 knots. The deck armament at the time of launching included: 8 203 mm guns arranged in four turrets of two guns each, 4 single 102 mm guns, 4 single 40 mm anti-aircraft guns, and two quadruple 533 mm torpedo launchers.
HMS Kent (54) was one of the County-class British heavy cruisers. Units of this type were built in accordance with the provisions of the Washington Treaty of 1922, but had good main armament, good armor and good top speed. They largely replaced the cruisers from World War I in the Royal Navy. One of the ships of this class was HMS Kent (54), which was built at Chatham Dockyard in Kent. He began his service in the Royal Navy by representing the British flag in the Far East, being part of the 5th Cruiser Squadron. In the years 1929-1930 it was rebuilt, receiving, among others: a new anti-aircraft fire control system. However, in 1937 it received modernized armor and changes were made to its engine room. At the end of 1939, HMS Kent participated in the search for the German pocket battleship Admiral Graf Spee, and from the beginning to the summer of 1940, it operated in the Indian Ocean. From the second half of 1940, it operated in the Mediterranean Sea, taking part in, inter alia, escorting convoys to Malta. In the course of carrying out these missions, it was seriously damaged and spent almost the entire year 1941 on repairs and modernizations. At the turn of 1941-1942, he served in the North Atlantic, supporting the cover of the PQ-10 and PQ-16 convoys. In July 1944, he took part in an action against the battleship Tirpitz. Cruiser HMS Kent has been decommissioned and placed in the fleet's reserve. It was later used as a target ship, and in 1948 was sold to a shipyard for scrapping.
The 1941 version of the HMS Kent now joins the 1/700-scale Waterline model kit series from Aoshima! This version reproduces the Kent as she was seen after the Battle of Benghazi, with new parts for the characteristic three masts and Type 284 radar bridge. An in-scale British military reconnaissance plane, the Supermarine Walrus, is included, as are general decals for British heavy cruisers.
This is an injection-plastic ship model kit.
