SS Sagaing

Last updated

History
Civil Ensign of the United Kingdom.svg United Kingdom
NameSS Sagaing
Namesake Sagaing
Owner P Henderson & Company
Operator P Henderson & Company (via the British and Burmese Steam Navigation Co.)
Port of registry Glasgow
RouteVaried. Usually Liverpool or Glasgow to Rangoon
Builder William Denny and Brothers
Yard number1167
Launched12 December 1924
Completed13 March 1925
Identification Official number: 148845
FateAttacked and destroyed by aircraft from the Kidō Butai on 9 April 1942; hulk deliberately sunk on 24 August 1943
General characteristics
Type Steamship
Tonnage7,994  gross register tons  (GRT)
Length454.6 feet (138.56 m)
Beam61.2 feet (18.65 m)
Draft27.9 feet (8.50 m)
Depth34.6 feet (10.55 m)
Installed power
PropulsionSingle shaft, single screw
Speed13.5 knots (25.0 km/h; 15.5 mph)
Capacity137
Crew120+

SS Sagaing was a twin-hatched passenger and cargo steamship that regularly plied a route connecting Liverpool, Glasgow and Rangoon in the first half of the 20th century. It was attacked and partially destroyed at Trincomalee Harbour by aircraft of the Imperial Japanese Navy in 1942, as part of the Easter Sunday Raid on Ceylon. The hulk was sunk a year later to act as a pier but was raised in 2018 after a 5-month operation by the Sri Lanka Navy, moved out of the harbour area, and resunk.

Contents

History

The Sagaing was built in the 1924–1925 period by William Denny and Brothers at their Leven shipyard (yard number 1167) in Dumbarton, Scotland, and completed on 13 March 1925. [1] [2] [3] It was made to an order placed by P Henderson & Company through the British and Burmese Steam Navigation Company which they managed, registered at Glasgow, and placed in service on their Shaw, Savill & Albion Line. [1] The Sagaing thus plied a route between Glasgow, Liverpool and Rangoon, although this could be subject to change. Other routes included ports of call such as Halifax, Hampton Roads and Saint Lucia. [4] [5]

On the night of 18 October 1939, the U-boat U-48 pursued the Sagaing and fired torpedoes at it during a patrol in the North Atlantic Ocean. [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] She had been part of Convoy Blue3 sailing from Port Said to Gibraltar with the SS Nevasa, then joined Convoy HG3 alongside SS Garbrattan, City of Guildford and Clan Macbean to Liverpool. [7] [11] [12] Passengers panicked and several got aboard a lifeboat and cast off, and were lost at sea. [6]

The Sagaing was placed under the Ministry of War Transport at some point before April 1942, and was slated by the owners to be placed under the operational control of the Burma Steamship Company and sail under the Burmese flag in order to avoid Board of Trade safety regulations. [5] [13]

Attack at Trincomalee

The Sagaing undertook its last Rangoon–Glasgow run in 1941, reaching Glasgow on 19 December 1941 for repairs. [5] This lasted until 7 February 1942, and she sailed for Rangoon three days later on 10 February with a crew/passenger complement of 123. [3] [5] On her departure from the United Kingdom, the crew received Top Secret orders from the Allied Chief of Staff, assigning to them a cargo of munitions. [5] [13] The cargo consisted of disassembled Hawker Hurricanes, assorted ammunition, mines and about 2300 depth charges, mostly stored above decks; this was in addition to a regular cargo of 20,000 cases each of Allsopp beer and Johnnie Walker Red Label whiskey. [13] En route, the ship called at Cape Town on 12 March (sailing out on the 13th), Durban on 16 March (sailing on the 19th) and Colombo on 1 April (sailing on the 3rd); on their way to Ceylon, the crew had received multiple telegrams from the Admiralty that an attack by the Japanese was highly probable, given their naval presence in Southeast Asia following the fall of both Rangoon and Singapore. [5] [13] The approach to Trincomalee on 3 and 4 April was thus performed close to shore to avoid any patrolling Japanese aircraft or ships from a fleet patrolling the Straits of Malacca; the approach was made in poor visibility caused by heavy fog. [13] The Sagaing reached Trincomalee early on the 4th, berthing at the munitions anchorage at Malay Cove and awaiting orders for the unloading of the war cargo. [13] On 5 April, she attempted to sail out but returned to Trincomalee the following day. [5]

A series of false alarms of a Japanese attack took place in the days that followed- the last such alarm was on the morning of 9 April. [13] An all-clear signal had been given, but a short while later Japanese aircraft appeared with no warning, bombing the harbour. [13] The Sagaing was struck both fore and aft in the first bombing run, incapacitating its captain. [13] A second volley took place, at the end of which the ship was listing to starboard and inclining forward into the water, its engine room flooded and its doors jammed shut from hull deformation. [13] A third volley blasted open the hatch doors to the holds below deck, exposing the volatile cargo of alcohol to shelling. [13] Soon, the ship was on fire below decks and the crew began neutralizing the depth charges for dumping overboard and preparing lifeboats for launch, while the fire spread through hatchways across the decks and towards the crew quarters. [13] The crew evacuated about fifteen minutes later, at which point the ship's plating was glowing red, and the ship appeared to briefly right itself before listing starboard even more heavily. [13] Compressed air from below decks vented violently, tearing the deck plates apart and forming a cloud of mud and rust over the ship; shortly afterwards, the ship exploded as the fires reached the munitions that had not been dumped overboard, and slowly drifted towards the shore of Malay Cove. [3] [13] Most of the undamaged munitions and aircraft were rescued. [3] [14] The aircraft carrying out the attack were later established to be part of the Imperial Japanese Navy's Kidō Butai.[ citation needed ] The entire attack lasted less than half an hour. [13]

On 24 August 1943, the hulk of the ship was shelled and sunk deliberately by order of the Government of Ceylon for use as a pier; the wreck lay 35 feet (10.67 m) underwater. [6] [15] [16]

Salvaging

On 11 September 2017, the Eastern Command of the Sri Lanka Navy was assigned the task of salvaging the wreck and moving it to a different location in order to make room for a harbour expansion project. [14] [15] [17] Captain Krishantha Athukorala, Command Diving Officer of the Eastern Command, headed the operation, which was supervised by senior diver A Liyanage. [15] Strengthening of the hulk's superstructure was carried out, and a prebuilt artificial side to the ship had to be installed in order to enable dewatering of the wreck below deck level in order to reestablish buoyancy. [15] [16] The operation took 5 months to complete, requiring a team of 98 divers deployed permanently, and assistance from a crane barge lent by the Tokyo Cement Company. [15] The wreck was refloated on 22 March. [17]

The refloated hulk was then moved out of the harbour's vicinity and resunk for preservation on 30 March 2018. [14] [17]

Design

The Sagaing was a steel steamship that measured 454.6 feet (138.56 m) fore to aft, with a beam of 61.2 feet (18.65 m), a draft of 27.9 feet (8.50 m) and a depth of 34.6 feet (10.55 m). [1] [3] She was assessed at 7,994 gross register tons with 4,678 net register tons of cargo space and a cargo capacity of 10,330 deadweight tons. [1] She was powered by 3 Scotch boilers and a single 3 cylinder triple expansion steam engine producing a total of 471 nominal horsepower and a top speed of 13.5–14 knots; a low pressure turbine was added in 1939. [1] [3] [13] Propulsion was achieved using a single shaft, single screw setup. [1]

The ship had a two-hatch cargo hold with light-duty union-purchase derricks, and is described as follows in April 1942:

Her accommodation structure was crowned by a tall, black, slightly raked funnel, making her high freeboard and bluff lines appear top-heavy, especially when viewed from aft, at the point where her vertical sides of her joggle-plated hull shaped abruptly to form her wide fantailed counter... In contrast to her glistening varnished brightwork and shiny polished fittings, her steel superstructure hadn't seen a lick of paint in years. Her once-gleaming white deck structures, browned over with a heavy film of rust, were pockmarked with weeping paint blisters interlaced by large areas of corroding decay. [13]

The installation of a Browning anti-aircraft gun on the poop deck had been planned but never enacted, and, by the time of the attack at Trincomalee, the ship had had all of its safety equipment and stock of emergency spare parts removed by the owning company. [13]

Related Research Articles

HMS <i>Hermes</i> (95) 1924 unique aircraft carrier

HMS Hermes was a British aircraft carrier built for the Royal Navy and was the world's first ship to be designed as an aircraft carrier, although the Imperial Japanese Navy's Hōshō was the first to be launched and commissioned. The ship's construction began during the First World War but not completed until after the end of the war, delayed by multiple changes in her design after she was laid down. After she was launched, the Armstrong Whitworth shipyard which built her closed, and her fitting out was suspended. Most of the changes made were to optimise her design, in light of the results of experiments with operational carriers.

Scuttling Act of deliberately sinking a ship by allowing water to flow into the hull

Scuttling is the deliberate sinking of a ship by allowing water to flow into the hull. This can be achieved in several ways—seacocks or hatches can be opened to the sea, or holes may be ripped into the hull with brute force or with explosives. Scuttling may be performed to dispose of an abandoned, old, or captured vessel; to prevent the vessel from becoming a navigation hazard; as an act of self-destruction to prevent the ship from being captured by an enemy force ; as a blockship to restrict navigation through a channel or within a harbor; to provide an artificial reef for divers and marine life; or to alter the flow of rivers.

Imperial Japanese Navy submarines originated with the purchase of five Holland type submarines from the United States in 1904. Japanese submarine forces progressively built up strength and expertise, becoming by the beginning of World War II one of the world's most varied and powerful submarine fleets.

P Henderson & Company

P Henderson & Company, also known as Paddy Henderson, was a ship owning and management company based in Glasgow, Scotland and operating to Burma. Patrick Henderson started business in Glasgow as a merchant at the age of 25 in 1834. He had three brothers. Two were merchants working for an agent in the Italian port of Leghorn; the third, George, was a sea captain with his own ship.

SS <i>California</i> (1907)

The twin screw steamer California was built by D & W Henderson Ltd, Glasgow for the Anchor Line Ltd in 1907 as a replacement for the aging ocean liner Astoria, which had been in continuous service since 1884. She worked the Glasgow to New York transatlantic route and was sunk by the German submarine SM U-85 on 7 February 1917.

SS Stanwood was a British collier that was sunk off Falmouth in December 1939 after her cargo of coal caught fire.

SS <i>Barøy</i> (1929)

SS Barøy was a 424-ton steel-hulled steamship delivered from the Trondhjems mekaniske Værksted shipyard in Trondheim in 1929. She had been ordered by the Norwegian shipping company Ofotens Dampskibsselskab for the local route from the port city of Narvik to the smaller towns of Lødingen and Svolvær. After the company suffered ship losses in the 1940 Norwegian Campaign Barøy was put into Hurtigruten service on the Trondheim–Narvik route. She was sunk with heavy loss of life in a British air attack in the early hours of 13 September 1941.

SS <i>City of Adelaide</i> (1863)

The City of Adelaide was a passenger steam ship launched during 1863 from Glasgow, Scotland. The vessel was later converted to a barque for use as a cargo transport. In 1912 the vessel was gutted by fire, and in 1916 the burnt hulk was run aground in Cockle Bay, Magnetic Island, Australia. During the Second World War four people were killed in a training accident when a RAAF aircraft struck the masts of the vessel.

Convoy OA 178 was an Atlantic convoy that sailed in July 1940 from the Thames Estuary via the English Channel, prior to dispersal to various transatlantic destinations.

SS <i>Zealandic</i> (1911) British ocean liner

SS Zealandic was a British ocean liner initially operated by White Star Line. She was used both as a passenger liner and a cargo ship as well as serving during both world wars.

HMAS <i>Koolonga</i>

HMAS Koolonga was a 4,260 gross register tons cargo ship built by Sunderland Shipbuilding Company, South Dock Sunderland, England, in 1914 and bought by McIlwraith, McEacharn Line Pty Ltd, Melbourne and named SS Koolonga. She was requisitioned by the Royal Australian Navy on 6 August 1914, as a collier and supply ship. She was returned to her owners in late 1915. She was sold in 1937 to Madrigal & Company, Philippines and renamed Paz. She was scuttled during the Second World War at Sourabaya Harbour in 1942 and was later salvaged by the Imperial Japanese and renamed Hatsu Maru. While at anchor in Manila Bay, Philippines on 13 November 1944, she was attacked by United States Navy carrier aircraft and was sunk.

SLN Dockyard

Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) Dockyard is the largest naval base of the Sri Lanka Navy and a major shipyard located in Trincomalee, Sri Lanka. Established by the British as the Royal Naval Dockyard, Trincomalee it was home to the East Indies Station of the Royal Navy during World War II. Since the withdrawal of the Royal Navy, the Royal Ceylon Navy took over dockyard. It became the home base of the RCyN fleet and today it is home to the Eastern Naval Command and the Naval and Maritime Academy of the Sri Lanka Navy.

SS <i>John Burke</i> American Liberty ship

SS John Burke was an American Liberty Ship built during World War II, one of the 2,710 type 'EC2-S-C1' ships that carried all kinds and types of dry cargo during the war. The ship was named for John Burke, the 10th Governor of North Dakota. Burke was built at Kaiser Shipbuilding Company's Oregon Shipbuilding yard in Portland, Oregon. Burke's keel was laid November 20, 1942 and the hull was launched on December 13. After fitting-out, Burke was delivered to the US Maritime Commission on December 23, just 33 days after construction began. The War Shipping Administration then placed Burke under management of the Northland Transportation Company.

SS <i>Hobbs Victory</i>

SS Hobbs Victory was a cargo Victory ship built for World War II under the Emergency Shipbuilding program. Hobbs Victory, was launched on January 9, 1945 by Permanente Metals Corporation, Richmond, California and completed on January 9, 1945. She was built in just 87 days. She was operated by the Sudden & Christenson for the United States Maritime Commission.

The following index is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Wikipedia's articles on recreational dive sites. The level of coverage may vary:

Outline of recreational dive sites Hierarchical outline list of articles about rereational dive sites

Recreational dive sites are specific places that recreational scuba divers go to enjoy the underwater environment or for training purposes. They include technical diving sites beyond the range generally accepted for recreational diving. In this context all diving done for recreational purposes is included. Professional diving tends to be done where the job is, and with the exception of diver training and leading groups of recreational divers, does not generally occur at specific sites chosen for their easy access, pleasant conditions or interesting features.

SS <i>Bärenfels</i> (1921)

SS Bärenfels was a German steam cargo liner that was launched in 1921 for DDG Hansa. In 1940, she took part in the German invasion of Norway and was sunk by Fleet Air Arm dive bombers. Her wreck was raised, and in 1941, she was returned to service. In 1944, a Royal Navy midget submarine sank her, killing 11 of her complement. In 1947, her wreck was raised to be scrapped, but while under tow she sank a third time.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Sagaing". Scottish Built Ships. clydeships.co.uk. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
  2. ↑ "P. Henderson & Co. / British & Burmese Steam Navigation Co". The Ships List. theshipslist.com. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "SS Sagaing (+1942)". Wreck Site. wrecksite.eu. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
  4. ↑ "Ship Name: Sagaing Gross Tonnage: 7968, 7958". The National Archives. Registry of Shipping and Seamen. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Ship Name: Sagaing Gross Tonnage: 5958". The National Archives. Registry of Shipping and Seamen. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
  6. 1 2 3 Hannan, Martin (2 April 2018). "Clyde ship sees daylight after 76 years in Indian Ocean". The National. thenational.scot. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
  7. 1 2 Bertke, Donald A.; Smith, Gordon; Kindell, Don (March 2011). World War II: Sea War- Volume 1: The Nazis Strike First. Dayton, Ohio: Bertke Publications. p. 161. ISBN   9780578029412 . Retrieved 8 April 2018.
  8. ↑ NickDooley. "Topic: Lost at Sea". Rootschat. rootschat.com. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
  9. ↑ "Patrol info for U-48". uboat.net. uboat,net. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
  10. ↑ Konstam, Angus; Showell, Jak P. Mallmann (December 2002). 7th U-Boat Flotilla: Donitz's Atlantic Wolves (Spearhead, 7). Shepperton: Ian Allan Publishing. ISBN   978-0711029576.
  11. ↑ Kindell, Don. "Naval Events, October 1939 (Part 2 of 2) Sunday 15th-Tuesday 31st". Naval History. naval-history.net. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
  12. ↑ neil1821. "Topic: Lost at Sea". Rootschat. rootschat.com. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Robertson, Douglas (2005). The Last Voyage of the Lucette. Dobbs Ferry, New York: Sheridan House. pp. 15–26. ISBN   9781574092066 . Retrieved 8 April 2018.
  14. 1 2 3 Raynor, Madeline. "Why the Sri Lankan Navy Raised a World War II Shipwreck—And Then Sank It Again". Mentalfloss. mentalfloss.com. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
  15. 1 2 3 4 5 "Navy proves professional expertise in salvage of HMNS SS Sagaing sank during WW II". defence.lk. Ministry of Defence, Sri Lanka. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
  16. 1 2 "SS Sagaing: WW2 shipwreck refloated by Sri Lanka navy". BBC News. 31 March 2018. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
  17. 1 2 3 De Alwis, Nathasha (21 March 2018). "SS Sagaing vessel sunk in World War II – re-floated by Navy and sunk again". NewsFirst. MBC Networks. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.