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05-06-2012 10:17 AM
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Re: Early WW-2 KIA U-Boat Wehrpass
For U-122's first operational cruise, she departed Kiel on 16th May 1940 and transitted to Trondheim in Norway to transport various items, including an 88mm Flak gun, some ammunition, aircraft fuel and motor oil. Arriving at her destination on 19th May, she returned to Germany on 24th May although not without incident as on the 23rd May she encountered an enemy submarine but for whatever reason neither boat attacked the other. Arriving at Wilhelmshaven on the 24th May, U-122 then made the short transit to Kiel through the canal arriving on the 25th.
U-122's next, and final, patrol wasn't long in coming and on 13th June 1940 she sailed once again from Kiel and made her way into the North Sea and around the top of the UK.
On the 20th June, to the west of Scotland U-122 sunk her one and only target, the Empire Conveyor, a 5,900 ton merchant ship carrying nearly 8,000 tons of wheat to Manchester from Montreal. Although originally built in Britain in 1917, the ship had spent many years sailing under other flags, mainly those of France, Greece and, ironically, Germany. It was while she was in German service as the 'Gloria' that she was captured on 21st October 1939 by HMS Sheffield and eventually renamed and re-entered service with the British Merchant Navy as 'Empire Conveyor'.
Her sinking saw the death of 3 sailors from her ships company of 41.
The image shows her under her original 'as built' name of Farnworth.
The attack was actually witnessed by another U-Boat, U-61, who saw the unescorted and zig-zagging Empire Conveyor hit on the port side by a torpedo. Although U-122 never reported her success she was the only other U-Boat in that area and so is credited with the sinking. Although the radio operator on the ship couldn't send out a Mayday due to damage, she was spotted by a flying boat and as well as sending out a call to alert the Admiralty the aircraft dropped a pattern of bombs to keep the U-Boat at a distance. A small group of 3 ships, a tug and two destroyers were despatched to her aid but she sunk before they could arrive and the survivors spent 6 hours in the water before being picked up by one of the destroyers, HMS Campbell. One of the ships company killed was the Master, Finlay Black MacIntyre, when one of the lifeboats was swamped during launch.
Last edited by hucks216; 05-06-2012 at 11:32 AM.
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Re: Early WW-2 KIA U-Boat Wehrpass
Very tasty Wehrpass and a nice bit of research !
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