There have been twelve ships of the Royal Navy that have been named HMSFlying Fish, after the
Flying Fish.
HMS Flying Fish (1778) was a
cutter purchased in 1778 and wrecked off
Calais in 1782. The French appear to have refloated her and taken her into service as Poisson Volant, commissioning her at Dunkirk on 12 June 1783. In 1785 or 1786 she was struck off at
Brest.[1]
HMS Flying Fish (1793) was previously the
schoonerEsperanza captured from the French in 1793, recaptured by the French in 1795 and named Poisson Volant, recaptured from the French in 1797 by
HMS Esperance, and sold in 1799.
HMS Flying Fish (1803) was previously the schooner Poisson Volant captured from the French in 1803. Renamed Firefly in 1807, she foundered in the West Indies that same year with the loss of all hands.
HMS Flying Fish (1804) was a schooner launched in 1804 and captured by prisoners on board. She became the French 5-gun privateer Tropard, which
Pheasant recaptured in 1808.[2] She did not return to service with the Royal Navy.
HMS Flying Fish (1873) was laid down as the
Fantome-classsloop HMS Daring, renamed prior to being launched in 1873. Converted to a survey ship in 1880 and sold in 1888.
His Majesty's
hired armedschoonerFlying Fish served the Royal Navy from 19 June 1804 to 15 December when
HMS Aigle accidentally ran her down and sank her. On 5 September the Navy had renamed her Gertrude, but the change of name was not widely known.
Demerliac, Alain (1996) La Marine De Louis XVI: Nomenclature Des Navires Français De 1774 À 1792. (Nice: Éditions OMEGA).
Winfield, Rif (2008). British Warships in the Age of Sail 1793–1817: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates. Seaforth Publishing.
ISBN978-1-86176-246-7.
List of ships with the same or similar names
This article includes a
list of ships with the same or similar names. If an
internal link for a specific ship led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended ship article, if one exists.