Ton-class minesweeper

Silhouette of a Ton-class minesweeper
Class overview
Name	Ton class
Builders	John I. Thornycroft & Company, Southampton
Operators	Royal Navy  Argentine Navy  Royal Australian Navy  Ghana Navy  Indian Navy  Irish Naval Service  Royal Malaysian Navy  Royal New Zealand Navy  South African Navy
Preceded by	Algerine class
Succeeded by	River class, Hunt class, Sandown class
In service	1951–1994 (Royal Navy)
Completed	119
Active	1 (Malaysia)
Preserved	4 HMS Wilton HMAS Curlew M/Y Teal Mojo
General characteristics
Type	Minesweeper
Displacement	440 long tons (447 t)
Length	152 ft (46 m)
Beam	28 ft (8.5 m)
Draught	8 ft (2.4 m)
Propulsion	Originally Mirrlees diesel, later Napier Deltic, producing 3,000 shp (2,200 kW) on each of two shafts
Speed	15 knots (28 km/h)
Complement	33
Armament	1 × Bofors 40 mm gun 1 × Oerlikon 20 mm cannon or 1 × M2 Browning machine gun

The Ton class were coastal minesweepers built in the 1950s for the Royal Navy, but also used by other navies such as the South African Navy and the Royal Australian Navy. They were intended to meet the threat of seabed mines laid in shallow coastal waters, rivers, ports and harbours, a task for which the existing ocean-going minesweepers of the Algerine class were not suited.