Norwegian Victims of Pinguin - Norwegian Merchant Fleet 1939-1945 (original) (raw)

M/T Filefjell w/crew list | M/S Morviken w/crew list | M/S Nordvard w/crew list | M/T Storstad w/crew list

SOME FACTS ON PINGUIN: M/S Pinguin (HSK V SCHIFF 33), commanded by Ernst Felix Krüder was formerly Hansa's Kandenfels, built in 1936, measuring 7766 gt with a top speed of 17 knots. She sank or captured 28 ships with a total tonnage of 136 551 gt. Also, 4 ships (total of 158 256 tons) were sunk by mines laid by Pinguin, with the help of Passat (which was the captured Norwegian Storstad). Pinguin caused more damage to the Norwegian fleet than any other raider, largely due to the capture of the whaling fleet in Jan.-1941. She went out in June-1940. Was eventually sunk by the British cruiser Cornwall on May 8-1941. Krüder, 18 of his officers and 323 crew went down with her, as well as more than 200 prisoners, the majority from India. Only 57 ratings, 2 doctors, 1 prize officer and 22 prisoners were saved. Pinguin had been disguised as the Norwegian Tamerlane at the time.

Armament: Six 5.9 inch, one 75 mm, one twin 37 mm, four 20 mm, two twin 21 inch torpedo tubes, 300 mines. Two Heinkel 114 aircraft (spare fuselage and wings), later one Arado 196.

Ships sunk or taken by Pinguin (in chronological order):

June 15-1940/May 8-1941
Domingo de Larrinaga, Filefjell, British Commander, Morviken, Benavon, Nordvard, Storstad, Nowshera, Maioma, Port Brisbane, Port Wellington, Ole Wegger, Pol VIII, Pol IX, Pol X, Torlyn, Solglimt, Pelagos, Star XIV, Star XIX, Star XX, Star XXI, StarXXII, Star XXIII, Star XXIV, Empire Light, Clan Buchanan, British Emperor.

Sunk by mines: Millimulmul, Nimbin, Cambridge and City of Rayville (the latter 2 sunk by mines laid by Passat, the captured Norwegian Storstad).

Related external links:
Pinguin - Ship 33 – "Mac's Web Log", which has a detailed description of Pinguin's travels and captures. Also has a picture of a disguised Pinguin.

Map showing Pinguin's cruise - (On the website Arsenal of Dictatorship, which also has a section about the German raiders).

Owner: A/S Filefjell. Manager: Olsen & Ugelstad, Oslo Tonnage: 7616 gt Call Sign: LDON. (Click on Filefjell above to go to that ship on the Ships starting with F page). Captain: Josef Nordbye.	Roger W. Jordan collection

Received from Arve Wiborg, Norway.

Encountered Pinguin on Aug. 26-1940 about 200 km south of Madagascar (24S 51E) while on a voyage from Abadan to London with 10 405 tons gasoline, 643 tons diesl oil, 144 tons fuel oil, having departed Abadan on Aug. 5. She had no armament. When one of Pinguin's He 114 aircraft, camouflaged to look like a British one, circled above them several times, nobody suspected what was to come. Its crew waved at them and they waved back, whereupon the aircraft took off in the direction of Afrika. But after a while it returned (at just after 17:00 hrs), this time with a wire behind it which cut the radio antenna between the masts of Filefjell, then dropped a bag containing the following note down on Filefjell's deck:
"On account of vincinity of enemy raider alter cours to 180°, distance 140 miles. From that point take up cours direct to 31N 37E. Thence you get further informations. Do not use wireless. S. N. O."
When Filefjell did not follow the order to stop, shots were fired from the aircraft. As darkness started to fall the aircraft returned, landed and signalled "Remain stopping here, cruiser Cumberland will go with you". Filefjell stopped (the time was 18:26), was ordered "Show your lights" and Pinguin then approached at full speed. Filefjell was boarded and most of her crew members were transferred to Pinguin's prisoners' quarters, both ships heading southeast (the chief engineer and some of the engine crew remained on Filefjell, but they were also sent over to Pinguin the following day).

In the early morning hours of the 27th a British ship, British Commander was captured, but managed to send out a distress call with her position before the 46 men were transferred to the raider which then sank their ship. HMS Neptune, light cruiser Colombo and AMCs Arawa and Kanimbla were sent out by the Royal Navy after having caught the signals, but all that was found was a patch of oil where the British Commander had been attacked.

Filefjell was attempted sunk by explosives that same day, but was still afloat by 2 in the morning of Aug. 28, so Krüder had to shell her to hide his tracks. At 02:04 one of her tanks was hit, causing her cargo to explode, and within seconds she erupted in flames which could be seen for miles and Pinguin quickly withdrew from the scene, leaving Filefjell to sink in position 30 21S 47 10E.

By the middle of Sept. Pinguin had 189 prisoners on board, who were all transferred (except for 10 badly injured British) to the Norwegian M/S Nordvard (listed further down on this page) after that ship had been captured on Sept. 16 and sent to Bordeaux under the command of Neymeyer, arriving on Nov. 22.

The Norwegians, 85 in all from Filefjell, Morviken and Nordvard were sent to a camp in France on Dec. 12, and on Apr. 4-1941 they arrived Milag und Marlag Nord where they stayed until May 1, at which time they were sent to Stettin to board the German ship Donau*, which arrived Oslo, Norway on May 3-1941.

* Donau was used as troop transport during the war, but was also used to transport Norwegian Jews, resistance people and political prisoners from Norway to camps in Germany, as were Goteland and Monte Rosa. When Donau departed Oslo on Nov. 26-1942, 532 Jewish men, women and children were on board, only 9 of whom survived and came home to Norway in 1945. The ship was also used to transport Russian prisoners of war who were sent to build bunkers in Norway. Additionally, she carried supplies and troops to Norway, among others injured soldiers from the 6th army who had been flown out of Stalingrad. Donau would then take fresh troops from Norway to the Eastern Front via Stettin.

Crew List - No Casualties:

The Scandinavians were repatriated to their respective countries.

I = Interned in Germany

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Manager: Wallem & Co. A/S, Bergen
Tonnage: 5008 gt, 9500 tdwt.
Call Sign: LJWN.

(Click on Morviken above to go to that ship on the Ships starting with M page).

Picture received from Terje Hansen Øiestad, Norway, who in turn received it from Wallem & Co.

Captain: Anton E. Norvalls.

In the morning of Aug. 27-1940, the day after M/T Filefjell had been captured, Pinguin found yet another Norwegian victim. M/S Morviken was on a voyage from Cape Town to Calcutta in ballast when she was captured (Charles Hocking gives the position as "about 300 miles east of Madagascar"). Her voyages prior to this event are listed on this original document received from the National Archives of Norway.

The 34 Norwegians and 1 American on board were transferred to the raider before Morviken was sunk with explosives, 30 08S 46 15E (29S 51E??). Six months later a raft with Norwegian markings and the name "Morviken Bergen 1938" and 7 raincoats washed ashore at Spitzkop near Cape Agulhas, the last trace of this Norwegian ship.

As mentioned under Filefjell most of the 189 prisoners were transferred from Pinguin to M/S Nordvard and sent to Bordeaux under the command of Neymeyer, arriving on Nov. 22. The Norwegians, 85 in all from Filefjell, Morviken and Nordvard went through various prison camps in France and Germany before they on May 3-1941 came to Oslo with the ship Donau.

Crew List - No Casualties:

The Norwegians were repatriated to Norway.
I wasn't sure what happened to the American crew member, until I got this Guestbook message from his daughter.
Here's another, Norwegian Guestbook message from the grandson of 3rd Engineer Harald Øiestad
There's also a Guestbook message from the granddaughter of Odd Larsen.
Guestbook message from Olav Karlsen's son.
(I can provide E-mail addresses for all these posters, if anyone would like to get in touch)

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Manager: Lauritz Kloster, Oslo
Tonnage: 4111 gt, 7700 tdwt.
Call Sign: LCUE.

(Click on Nordvard above to go to that ship on the Ships starting with N page).

Captain: Henry M. Hansen.

Her voyages prior to being captured are listed on this original document from the National Archives of Norway.

A picture is available in this external newspaper article - see also this external page. (The latter page states she was renamed Vestvard before being taken to France by the Germans, where she again got the name Nordvard).
See also this Guestbook message, in which the poster refers to another Norwegian newspaper article where links to severeal pictures can be found (PDF files).

Nordvard was on a voyage from Bunbury, Australia to Port Elizabeth with a cargo of 7000 tons wheat (having left Bunbury on Sept. 5) when she was captured on Sept. 16-1940, 30S 60E. The ship did not radio. Pinguin had 189 prisoners from the 3 British ships Domingo de Larrinaga, Brtitish Commander and Benavon (the latter had been sunk just a few days before, on Sept. 12) on board, as well as the prisoners from the Norwegian ships listed above, and they were all transferred (except for 10 badly injured British men) to M/S Nordvard, which was then sent to Bordeaux under the command of Neymeyer on Sept. 19, arriving on Nov. 22. While there, they were subjected to several allied air attacks and ships were hit all around them, but Nordvard escaped harm.

As mentioned in the text under the ships above, the Norwegians from Filefjell, Morviken and Nordvard went through various prison camps in France and Germany before they on May 3-1941 arrived Oslo with the German ship Donau.

Crew List - No Casualties:

The Norwegians were repatriated to Norway - I'm not sure what happened to the Finnish crew member (sent home to Finland?).

Nordvard was used as target ship by the Kriegsmarine, then as a U-boat supply / depot ship 1943. Attacked by British aircraft Dec. 28/29-1944 and sunk, Moss Sound. 9 are said to have died, but the number is probably much higher. (According to Charles Hocking 116 died? when she blew up and sank). The newspaper articles that I've linked to further up on this page states that there is a big problem with leakage of oil from Nordvard today.

Related external link: Nordvard - Details on her final fate, from a Norwegian website for divers (text in English and Norwegian). Also has a small picture of her.

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Owner: Skibs-A/S Sommerstad
Manager: A. F. Klaveness & Co. A/S, Oslo
Tonnage: 8998 gt, 13 460 tdwt.
Call Sign: LCZF.

(Click on Storstad above to go to that ship on the Ships starting with S page).

Her voyages prior to being captured are listed on this original document received from the National Archives of Norway.

There's a picture of a ship named Storstad on this external page, and on this page (the last one was taken in 1933).

Captain: Egil Wilhelmsen.

Departed Miri, Borneo for Melbourne on Sept. 30-1940 with a cargo of 12 000 tons diesel oil and 500 tons bunkers oil, and was captured by Pinguin on Oct. 7_._ Storstad had no armament on board. Her complement consisted of 30 Norwegians and 1 Dane. 25 were transferred to Pinguin, while the rest were forced to stay on board Storstad to help with the work, namely the 2nd and 3rd engineers, the assistant, 2 mechanics and the carpenter. 1200 tons of her oil was transferred to Pinguin that same night. Kapitänleutnant Erich Warning was given the command of the ship along with 2 officers, 9 subordinate officers and 19 crew in addition to the 6 Norwegians. She was renamed Passat and was in the subsequent months used partly as minelayer (laid 70 delayed action mines, Banks Strait and Bass Strait between Oct. 29 and 31), partly as replenishing depot for several of the German auxiliary cruisers in The Indian Ocean, before being sent to Bordeax with 405 of Pinguin's prisoners on board (from Nowshera, Maioma, Port Brisbane and Port Wellington). After a meeting with the raider Atlantis on Dec. 8, when she supplied this raider with fuel and took on board some of her prisoners the total number had been increased to 524, whose voyage became quite an ordeal under terrible conditions. En route to France, in position 27S 12W on Jan 6-8-1941 Storstad met with Thor, Admiral Scheer and her prize Duquesa, and Nordmark, and transferred 6500 tons diesel oil to the latter, for use by Scheer, prizes and raiders, and in turn she received some provisions from the captured Duquesa, which had 3539 tons frozen meat and 15 million! eggs on board. Storstad reached the Gironde inlet on Febr. 4-1941.

Admiral Scheer had attacked Convoy HX 84, escorted by the well known Jervis Bay in Nov.-1940 (see D/S Hjalmar Wessel). It was after this incident that Admiral Sheer continued on south, sinking or capturing a number of British ships, one of them being Duquesa. British Naval forces searched in vain for the culprit, and in Jan.-1941 Admiral Sheer headed for the allied shipping routes off West Africa (M/T Sandefjord).

Storstad's Norwegian crew was interned in Germany (I would assume Marlag und Milag Nord) for about 4 weeks before being sent back to Norway. Some of them later escaped to England, 1 of whom, Kristen Møller Johansen, who escaped via Sweden in 1943 joined D/S Freidig as a gunner, but died when she sank in bad weather north of Cape Wrath in Febr.-1944. Erling Holtane also managed to get out of Norway. (One of my sources also lists Asbjørn Eltvik., but he may have been from another ship?).

Crew List - No Casualties:

The Norwegians were eventually repatriated to Norway - The Danish seaman was probably sent home to Denmark(?).

Storstad, or Passat as she was now called, was attacked by Allied aircraft on Sept. 2-1942 and sunk off St. Nazaire. She must have been raised, because I have information that she was broken up in 1949.

There's a message about Storstad on my Ship Forum, the text is in German. The poster (Theodor Dorgeist) says among other things that 80 died in the attack on Sept. 2-1942 and also mentions several other incidents in which she was heavily damaged, for instance in St. Nazaire on March 29-1942 when the Campeltown exploded, and was also hit on Apr. 18-1942. He says she was scuttled in Nantes on Aug. 11-1944, later raised and broken up.

Krüder on Pinguin, meanwhile, had made his way to the Bouvet-South Georgia region, a move which was to prove disastrous to the Norwegian whaling fleet. 3 Norwegian whale factories and their catchers were on the herding grounds that season, having arrived in Nov.-1940. The next page has that story.

The information on this page was compiled with the help of various sources, including "Skip og men", Birger Dannevig, "Nortraships flåte" Vol. 1, J. R. Hegland, "Handelsflåten i Krig" (The Merchant Fleet at War) Book 1, Atle Thowsen, "Tusen norske skip", Lise Lindbæk, "German Raiders of World War II", August Karl Muggenthaler. Some of the facts and post war info on the whale catchers are from E-mails from Roger W. Jordan (also, post war info on the other vessels), author of "World's Merchant Fleet", some data on whalers came from "List of Norwegian War and Merchant Ships to which Signal Letters have been allotted" Handelsdepartementet 1947 (The Norwegian Dept. of Commerce), "Sjøforklaringer fra 2. verdenskrig", Norwegian Maritime Museum, Volume I & II - all these books are listed in My sources.