Convoy rescue ship

Last updated

The convoy rescue ship, SS Gothland, in 1943. With a Rescue Ship. 19 To 22 February 1943, in the Clyde, Off Greenock, Showing Practice in Progress With the Ss Gothland, One of the Fleet Auxiliary Rescue Ships Which Sailed With Convoys When the U-boat War W A14743.jpg
The convoy rescue ship, SS Gothland, in 1943.

During the Second World War, designated convoy rescue ships accompanied some Atlantic convoys to rescue survivors from ships that had been attacked. Rescue ships were typically small freighters with passenger accommodation converted to rescue service. This involved enlarging galley and food storage areas and providing berthing and sanitary facilities for approximately 150 men. Preparation for service included the installation of scrambling nets along the sides, and the substitution of boats suitable for open sea work for normal lifeboats. Rescue ships normally included a small operating room for an embarked naval doctor and sick bay staff. [1]

Contents

Service

The crew of Gothland with a scramble net used to pick up survivors. With a Rescue Ship. 19 To 22 February 1943, in the Clyde, Off Greenock, Showing Practice in Progress With the Ss Gothland, One of the Fleet Auxiliary Rescue Ships Which Sailed With Convoys When the U-boat War W A14752.jpg
The crew of Gothland with a scramble net used to pick up survivors.

The first specially equipped rescue ship went into service in January 1941. When rescue ships were unavailable, large, ocean-going tugboats or converted trawlers were sometimes designated to perform rescue duty. [2]

By the end of the war 30 rescue ships had been built or converted. They participated in 797 convoys and rescued 4,194 survivors from 119 ships. Seven rescue ships were lost, six to enemy action (three to U-boats and three to aircraft). [3]

Origins

Survivors' quarters aboard a rescue ship in 1943. With a Rescue Ship. 19 To 22 February 1943, in the Clyde, Off Greenock, Showing Practice in Progress With the Ss Gothland, One of the Fleet Auxiliary Rescue Ships Which Sailed With Convoys When the U-boat War W A14740.jpg
Survivors' quarters aboard a rescue ship in 1943.

In 1940 Admiral Sir Max Horton (later Commander-in-Chief Western Approaches Command) broached the idea of rescue ships with the Admiralty. The concept was to have merchant vessels that would accompany convoys but not carry cargo; they would instead have the role of saving the lives of seamen from ships sunk by enemy action. The rescue ship would take its position at the rear of one of the central columns of ships. [1] From this position it could observe damaged ships falling astern of the convoy and quickly rendezvous to transfer survivors. The rescue ships would also be able to provide surgical or other treatment as required. This would free the cargo vessels of the convoy to continue on their way and escorts to focus on countering the attacking U-boats or aircraft. [4]

The convoy rescue ship was a response to early experience. Each merchant ship in a convoy was assigned a station so that the convoy formation would consist of several columns of three to five ships. The lead ships of the columns were spaced at intervals of 1,000 yards (910 m) along a line perpendicular to the convoy course. Each ship in the column followed the ship ahead at a distance of 800 yards (730 m). [5] The typical convoy would be approximately 8 to 10 kilometers (5.0 to 6.2 mi) wide and 3 kilometers (1.9 mi) long. The rescue plan for early convoys was to have the last ship of each column rescue survivors of other ships in that column. [6] If the last ship in column was hit, the rescue task fell to the escorting warships. In practice, the escorting warships performed rescue tasks more often than the 25% suggested by random hits on a four-ship column because some merchant ships refused to leave the protection of the convoy formation to fall back and remain a stationary target while rescuing survivors. Furthermore, merchant ships were not well suited to manoeuvre to pick up survivors, and those attempting rescue were hampered by lack of suitable rescue equipment. [4]

For the role the Admiralty sought out small, quick, manoeuvrable vessels; it drew many from among the Clyde Shipping Company's coastal passenger transports. The requisitioned passenger ships had a speed of 11 to 12 knots, which enabled them, after completing their rescue operations, to catch up with the convoys travelling at 10 knots. Although these vessels had not been built for the Atlantic or the Arctic, none was lost to Atlantic storms; one did ice-up and founder off the coast of Newfoundland. [3]

The rescue ships were not hospital ships and so were legitimate targets as far as German submarines or bombers were concerned. Consequently, the Admiralty armed them with AA guns for protection when they were separated from the convoy and vulnerable to enemy attack. In addition to equipment for rescuing and treating survivors, rescue ships carried High Frequency radio Direction Finding equipment (abbreviated to HF/DF and known as "Huff-Duff") to assist in the location of U-boats. [1] The rescue ship's position at the rear of the convoy provided good triangulation in combination with the HF/DF installed on the escort leader typically patrolling in front of the convoy. [1]

The Rescue Ship Service was organised by Lieutenant-Commander L. F. Martyn RNVR, who later co-authored a book highlighting the successes and challenges of the rescue ships. [7]

List of convoy rescue ships

Rathlin The convoy rescue ship Rathlin (6105339735).jpg
Rathlin

The rescue ships were: [3]

Empire Rest, a converted corvette. HMS Empire Rest FL9352.jpg
Empire Rest, a converted corvette.
SS St Clair. StateLibQld 1 168215 St Claire (ship).jpg
SS St Clair.

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 Hague 2000 p.90
  2. Hague 2000 p.92
  3. 1 2 3 Hague 2000 p.91
  4. 1 2 Hague 2000 pp.89 & 90
  5. Seth 1962 p.78
  6. Hague 2000 p.89
  7. 1 2 3 Schofield, B (1968). The Rescue Ships. Edinburgh and London: William Blackwood & Sons Ltd. p. 165.
  8. "Convoy OB.119". Convoyweb. Archived from the original on 24 September 2012. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  9. Rohwer & Hummelchen 1992 p.196
  10. 1 2 3 Irving 1968 p.182
  11. Rohwer & Hummelchen 1992 p.194
  12. Rohwer & Hummelchen 1992 p.191
  13. Rohwer & Hummelchen 1992 p.86

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timeline of the Battle of the Atlantic</span> Part of World War II

This is a timeline for the Battle of the Atlantic (1939–1945) in World War II.

HMS <i>Orwell</i> (G98) O-class destroyer converted to Type 16 frigate of the Royal Navy

HMS Orwell was an O-class destroyer of the Royal Navy that entered service in 1942 and was broken up in 1965.

HMS <i>Onslow</i> (G17) Destroyer

HMS Onslow was an O-class destroyer of the Royal Navy. The O-class were intermediate destroyers, designed before the outbreak of the Second World War to meet likely demands for large number of destroyers. They had a main gun armament of four 4.7 in guns, and had a design speed of 36 kn. Onslow was ordered on 2 October 1939 and was built by John Brown & Company at their Clydebank, Glasgow shipyard, launching on 31 March 1941 and completing on 8 October 1941.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Convoy HX 79</span> Convoy during naval battles of the Second World War

HX 79 was an Allied convoy in the North Atlantic of the HX series, which sailed east from Halifax, Nova Scotia. The convoy took place during the Battle of the Atlantic in the Second World War. One ship dropped out and returned to port, leaving 49 to cross the Atlantic for Liverpool. Two armed merchant cruisers and a submarine escorted the convoy to protect it from German commerce raiders.

HMS Marigold was a Flower-class corvette of the Royal Navy. She was launched on 4 September 1940 and was sunk by an Italian air-dropped torpedo on 9 December 1942.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Convoy SC 107</span> Convoy during naval battles of the Second World War

Convoy SC 107 was the 107th of the numbered series of World War II Slow Convoys of merchant ships from Sydney, Cape Breton Island to Liverpool. The ships departed New York City on 24 October 1942 and were found and engaged by a wolfpack of U-boats which sank fifteen ships. It was the heaviest loss of ships from any trans-Atlantic convoy through the winter of 1942–43. The attack included one of the largest non-nuclear man-made explosions in history, when U-132 torpedoed ammunition ships SS Hobbema and SS Hatimura - both were sunk, one exploded, with the German submarine also being destroyed in the explosion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Convoy ON 154</span> Convoy during naval battles of the Second World War

Convoy ON 154 was a North Atlantic convoy of the ON convoys which ran during the battle of the Atlantic in the Second World War. It was the 154th of the numbered series of merchant ship convoys Outbound from the British Isles to North America. It came under attack in December 1942 and lost 13 of its 50 freighters; one U-boat was sunk.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation FB</span> Sailings by unescorted merchant ships during WWII

Operation FB took place as part of the Arctic Convoys of the Second World War. The operation consisted of independent sailings by unescorted merchant ships between Iceland and Murmansk. In late 1942, the Allies had taken the offensive against Germany but the dispatch of supplies to the USSR by convoy via the Arctic route was suspended, due to the demands of the Mediterranean campaign. Convoy PQ 19 was cancelled because the Home Fleet diverted ships to the Mediterranean for Operation Torch which would have had to be postponed for three weeks had ships been provided for PQ 19.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Convoy PQ 14</span> WWII Arctic Convoy

Convoy PQ 14 was an Arctic convoy sent from Britain by the Western Allies to aid the Soviet Union during the Second World War. Convoys from Britain had been despatched since August 1941 and advantage had been taken of the perpetual darkness of the Arctic winter. German operations against the convoys had been muted due to the need to support Operation Barbarossa, confidence in imminent victory and the small size of the convoys. In late 1941 and early 1942 the Luftwaffe and Kriegsmarine had reinforced Norway with aircraft and ships.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Convoy PQ 8</span> Arctic convoy sent to aid the Soviet Union during World War II

Convoy PQ 8 was an Arctic convoy of the Western Allies to aid the Soviet Union during the Second World War. The convoy left Iceland on 8 January 1942. On 12 January the convoy had to turn south to avoid ice; the weather was calm, visibility was exceptional, with a short period of twilight around noon. and arrived in Murmansk nine days later.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arctic naval operations of World War II</span> Naval theatre of operations

Arctic naval operations of World War II were the World War II naval operations that took place in the Arctic Ocean, and can be considered part of the Battle of the Atlantic and/or of the European Theatre of World War II.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Convoy ON 144</span> Convoy during naval battles of the Second World War

Convoy ON 144 was a trade convoy of merchant ships during the Second World War. It was the 144th of the numbered series of ON convoys Outbound from the British Isles to North America. The ships departed Liverpool on 7 November 1942 and were joined on 8 November by Mid-Ocean Escort Force Group B-6 consisting of the Flower-class corvettes Vervain, Potentilla, Eglantine, Montbretia and Rose and the convoy rescue ship Perth. Group B-6 had sailed without the destroyers Fame and Viscount which had been damaged in the battle for eastbound convoy SC 104. The United States Coast Guard cutters Bibb, Duane, and Ingham accompanied the convoy from the Western Approaches with ships that detached for Iceland on 15 November.

Convoy OG 71 was a trade convoy of merchant ships during the second World War. It was the 71st of the numbered OG convoys Outbound from the British Isles to Gibraltar. The convoy departed Liverpool on 13 August 1941 and was found on 17 August by a Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condor of Kampfgeschwader 40. Starting on August 19, it became the first convoy of the war to be attacked by a German submarine wolfpack, when reached by eight U-boats from 1st U-boat Flotilla, operating out of Brest. Ten ships comprising a total tonnage of 15,185 tons were sunk before the U-boats lost contact on 23 August.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Convoy HG 73</span> Convoy during naval battles of the Second World War

Convoy HG 73 was a trade convoy of merchant ships during the Second World War. It was the 73rd of the numbered HG convoys Homeward bound to the British Isles from Gibraltar. The convoy departed Gibraltar on 17 September 1941 and was spotted by a German reconnaissance aircraft on 18 September. The convoywas attacked over the next ten days. Nine ships were sunk from the convoy before the submarines exhausted their torpedo inventory on 28 September. The convoy reached Liverpool on 1 October.

HMS <i>Deptford</i> (U53)

HMS Deptford was a Grimsby-class sloop of the British Royal Navy. Built at Chatham Dockyard in the 1930s, Deptford was launched in 1935 and commissioned later that year. The ship saw early service on the Persian Gulf station, but the outbreak of the Second World War saw Deptford serving as a convoy escort in the North Atlantic and the Mediterranean, sinking a German U-boat in 1941. She survived the war and was scrapped in 1948.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gibraltar convoys of World War II</span>

The Gibraltar convoys of World War II were oceangoing trade convoys of merchant ships sailing between Gibraltar and the United Kingdom. Gibraltar convoy routes crossed U-boat transit routes from French Atlantic ports and were within range of Axis maritime patrol aircraft making these convoys vulnerable to observation and interception by bombers, submarines, and surface warships during the Battle of the Atlantic. OG convoys brought supplies from the United Kingdom to Gibraltar from September 1939 until September 1942. Beginning with Operation Torch, OG convoys were replaced by KM convoys transporting military personnel and supplies from the United Kingdom to and past Gibraltar into the Mediterranean Sea. HG convoys brought food, raw materials, and later empty ships from Gibraltar to the United Kingdom from September 1939 until September 1942. After Operation Torch, HG convoys were replaced by MK convoys returning mostly empty ships from the Mediterranean to the United Kingdom. KM and MK convoys ended in 1945.

HMS <i>Rhododendron</i> (K78) Flower-class corvette

HMS Rhododendron was a Flower-class corvette that served with the Royal Navy during the Second World War. She served as an ocean escort in the Battle of the Atlantic.

HMS <i>Sharpshooter</i> (J68) Minesweeper of the Royal Navy

HMS Sharpshooter was a Halcyon-class minesweeper of the British Royal Navy. Built at Devonport Dockyard, Sharpshooter was completed in 1937. She served through the Second World War, acting both in her designed role as minesweeper and as a convoy escort, escorting several Arctic convoys. She took part in the evacuation from Dunkirk in 1940, and sank the German submarine U-655 in 1942.

HMS <i>Weston</i> Sloop of the Royal Navy

HMS Weston was a Shoreham-class sloop of the British Royal Navy. Weston was built at Devonport Dockyard in 1931–1933.

HMS <i>Petunia</i> (K79) Flower-class corvette

HMS Petunia (K79) was a Flower-class corvette that served in the Royal Navy and was built by Henry Robb in 1940. She was named after Petunia. Commissioned in 1940, rammed and sold to the Chinese Nationalist Government and renamed ROCS Fu Bo.

References