Convoy SC 15 - warsailors.com (original) (raw)
CONVOY SC 15
Departed Sydney, C.B. on Dec. 8-1940 and arrived Liverpool on the 23rd.
Arnold Hague's "The Allied Convoy System" gives 21 ships in this convoy.
Transcribed from several documents received from Tony Cooper (Advance Sailing Telegram) - His source: Public Records Office, Kew.
The station numbers have been extracted from documents recived from Don Kindell, based on Arnold Hague's database - see ships in all SC convoys.
Further details have been added with the help of:
"Axis Submarine Successes of World War Two", Jürgen Rohwer
"The World's Merchant Fleets 1939", R. W. Jordan.
"Lloyd's War Losses", Vol. 1 & II.
Crossed out ships did not sail, underlined ships returned to port (except those that are linked, which will automatically be underlined. The Norwegian Atle Jarl, however, did return, as did Spind and Rym).
MoWT = Ministry of War Transport
Ship
Nationality
Cargo
Station
Destination
Remarks
Anastassia
Greek
lumber
92
Sharpness
From SC 14
Sunk - See Notes
Norwegian
lumber
–
Hull
From SC 14
See Notes
Listed in SC 16
"
lumber
53
Preston
From SC 14
See Notes and page about Gulhaug
Disa
Swedish
phosphates
43
Silloth
From SC 14
Tahchee
British
Tanker B
52
River Mersey
–
Norwegian
pit props
12
Sunderland
From SC 14
See Notes
"
lumber
62
Preston
From SC 14
Orion
Greek
phosphates
63
Garston
From SC 14
Norwegian
lumber
23
Great Yarmouth
–
"
lumber
13
Leith
–
Kalypso Vergotti
Greek
sulphur
72
Garston
Norwegian
lumber
91
Dublin
Miguel de Larrinaga
British
steel - trucks - special
81
Newport
Anthippi N. Michalos
Greek
iron ore
82
Birkenhead
See also SC 10
Collided - sank
See Notes
Clare Lilley
British
steel - scrap
42
Swansea / Cardiff
From SC 14
Ethel Radcliffe
"
wheat - trucks
51
Manchester
Rozenburg
Dutch
wood pulp
–
Methil d.g. / Grimsby
To SC 17 - did not sail
To SC 18 - returned
To SC 19 - did not sail
To SC 20 - returned
Listed in SC 22
Baron Nairn
British
steel - lumber
31
W. Hartlepool
–
Amicus
"
phosphates
11
Ipswich
Sunk - See Notes
Asiatic
"
steel - lumber
71
Garston / Port Talbot
Put back to St. John's
(see SC 21)
Norwegian
lumber
–
Grangemouth
Dartford
British
grain - trucks - special
41
London
–
Norwegian
scrap iron
–
Ardrossan
From SC 13
To SC 20 - returned
Joined SC 24 - returned
To SC 26 - did not sail
Joined SC 28 - returned to port
To SC 29 - not listed
See page about Bernhard
Pendeen
British
lumber - steel
–
Ipswich
Boltonhall
"
steel - scrap
–
Glasgow
Scottish Standard
"
Adm. tanker B
–
Scapa
Listed in SC 16
Norwegian
pulp
–
Ellesmere Port
Follow link to Borgfred
Masunda
British
grain
–
Manchester
–
Kmicic
Polish
lumber - steel
83
Sharpness
–
Peterton
British
maize
21
Ipswich
From HX 94
See also Notes
Stornest
"
steel - scrap
32
Ardrossan / Glasgow
–
Llanwern
"
maize
61
Avonmouth
From HX 94
Katwijk
Dutch
lumber
93
Bristol City
–
Norwegian
Tanker B
22
Glasgow
A. Hague has also included the Greek Dimitrios Chandris in this convoy - this ship is not mentioned in the Advance Sailing Telegram. He adds that she returned with weather damage (see also SC 13 - shows up again in SC 19). Again, see Hague's listing for SC 15 at ships in all SC convoys.
Notes:
Commodore was in Dartford, Vice Commodore in Llanwern.
Barry Commodore in Miguel de Larrinaga.
* A. Hague says that Spind did join but returned to port. This ship is crossed out on the original Advance Sailing Telegram, but according to her Voyage Record she did put back to Halifax on Dec. 12. Also, he says that Rym returned. This is not noted on the Advance Sailing Telegram, but it agrees with the information found on my page about this ship, which says she put back to St. John's, N.F. on Dec. 18, and did not head to the U.K. until Jan. 31-1941, when she shows up in Convoy SC 21. See also her voyage record for this period.
**There's a note for Gulhaug in connection with Convoy SC 16 (for which she was scheduled) saying she may, in fact, have gotten away with Convoy SC 15. Going back to A. Hague's listing for SC 15, we see that he has her in station 53, with a note saying she returned with defects. According to her Voyage Record, she arrived Halifax on Dec. 10.
Anastassia, on a voyage from Newcastle, N.B. for Belfast and Sharpness was torpedoed on Dec. 18 by the Italian submarine Veniero, 54 24N 19 04W. She had a crew of 28, 18 of whom died, 10 were taken prisoners, 1 of whom died. The captain of Flowergate reported sighting the derelict ship awash on Dec. 20.
Amicus, on a voyage from Tampa for Ipswich with 5600 tons phosphates, was torpedoed and sunk on Dec. 19-1940 by the Italian submarine Alpino Bagnolini, 54 10N 15 50W. She had a crew of 35 and 2 gunners, all of whom died (compare w/details found at the external link below).
According to R.W. Jordan's "The World's Merchant Fleets 1939", Anthippi N. Michalos sank following a collision with the British Beaverdale on Dec. 22-1940, 53 10N 05 03W.
Peterton, on a voyage from Sorel for Ipswich with maize, and a crew of 35, experienced some sort of difficulties on Dec. 24-1940. She arrived Rothesy Bay in tow leaking on Dec. 28. ("Lloyd's War Losses", Vol II).
The convoy arrived rendezvous on Dec. 20.
A. Hague names the British Cilicia as AMC escort from Dec. 8.
Related external link:
Alpino Bagnolini - Operational life. The date of the attack on Amicus is given as Dec. 11, but when reading the relevant paragraph (which says she reached her patrol area on the 18th) it becomes obvious it's a simply misprint. Also, the site says the entire crew was rescued. There's also a page about Veniero, mentioning the attack on Anastassia.
To the next SC convoy in my list SC 16