RFA Abbeydale (A109) was a fleet tanker of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary and was originally one of six ships ordered by the British Tanker Co which were purchased on the stocks by the Admiralty. She was built by Swan Hunter and Wigham Richardson Ltd and launched on 28 December 1936. Abbeydale served until being decommissioned on 18 September 1959 and laid up at HMNB Devonport. She was then sold for scrapping, arriving at the Thos. W. Ward breakers' yards at Barrow-in-Furness on 4 September 1960.
Career
Ordered by the British Tanker Company in 1936, Abbeydale was built by Swan Hunter and Wigham Richardson Ltd, Wallsend and launched on 28 December 1936. She was taken over by the Admiralty on 4 March 1937 after completing her sea trials, and on 5 March 1937 sailed from the River Tyne bound for Trinidad on her maiden voyage. She made several voyages between Abadan on the Persian Gulf, and on the outbreak of the Second World War she was returning to the UK from Australia and New Zealand. She sailed to Trinidad in October 1939 and in December was at Kingston, Jamaica. On 29 December 1939 the German newspaper Bremer Zeituag falsely reported Abbeydale as one of a number of ships that had been sunk. There were no fatalities, but Abbeydale was severely damaged, breaking in two. HMS Salvestor towed the damaged vessel to Algiers, with both parts later towed to Taranto dockyard, the aft section arriving on 14 October 1944 and the fore section on 18 October 1944.