HMS Zulu (F18) was a British destroyer of the interwar period and World War II. The keel for this ship was laid down in 1936 and launched in September 1937. The ship's overall length at the time of launch was 115 meters and its beam was 11.13 meters. The full displacement reached approximately 2,500 tons and the maximum speed was approximately 36 knots. The armament at the time of launch consisted, among other things, of four twin 120 mm guns, a 40 mm gun and a read 533 mm torpedo tube.
HMS Zulu was one of the Tribal-class destroyers (also called the Afridi class). These types of ships were originally designed as light cruisers and were only later developed as destroyers. Units of this type were characterized by a relatively high displacement, they also had a powerful artillery at the expense of, for example, limited torpedo armament. They were also characterized by good maximum speed and high seaworthiness. They later also received ASDIC, which significantly increased their anti-submarine capabilities (ZOP). They are often considered successful units with high combat value. At the beginning of World War II, HMS Zulu performed escort duties in her home waters, and in 1940 supported Royal Navy operations in Norwegian waters against the Kriegsmarine. In early 1941, she was on convoy duty in the Atlantic, and in May of that year she participated in the tracking and sinking of the battleship Bismarck. In the summer of 1941, the destroyer underwent a modernization in the UK, which mainly consisted of installing radar. In 1942, the unit was transferred to the Mediterranean. HMS Zulu was sunk by air operations on 14 September 1942 in the Tobruk area.
