Convoy SC-121
Encyclopedia
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
Slow Convoys
SC convoys
The SC convoys were a series of North Atlantic convoys that ran during the battle of the Atlantic during World War II.They were east-bound slow convoys originating in Sydney, Cape Breton ; from there they sailed to ports in the UK, mainly Liverpool.For a time after the entry of the...
of merchant ships from Sydney
Sydney, Nova Scotia
Sydney is a Canadian urban community in the province of Nova Scotia. It is situated on the east coast of Cape Breton Island and is administratively part of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality....
, Cape Breton Island
Cape Breton Island
Cape Breton Island is an island on the Atlantic coast of North America. It likely corresponds to the word Breton, the French demonym for Brittany....
to Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
. Ships departed New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
23 February 1943; and were met by Mid-Ocean Escort Force
Mid-Ocean Escort Force
Mid-Ocean Escort Force referred to the organization of anti-submarine escorts for World War II trade convoys between Canada and the British Isles...
Group A-3 consisting of the USCG Treasury Class Cutter
USCG Treasury Class Cutter
The Treasury-class high endurance cutters were a group of seven ships launched by the United States Coast Guard between 1936 and 1937. The class were called the "Treasury-class" because they were each named for former Secretaries of the Treasury. These ships were also collectively known as the...
Spencer
USCGC Spencer (WPG-36)
USCGC Spencer was a Treasury-class cutter of the United States Coast Guard that served during World War II.-Early career and World War II:...
, the Wickes class destroyer
Wickes class destroyer
The Wickes-class destroyers were a group of 111 destroyers built by the United States Navy in 1917-1919. Along with the 6 preceding Caldwell class and 155 subsequent Clemson-class destroyers, they formed the "flush-deck" or "four-stack" class. Only a few were completed in time to serve in World...
Greer
USS Greer (DD-145)
USS Greer was a Wickes class destroyer in the United States Navy, the first ship named for Rear Admiral James A. Greer . In what became known as the "Greer Incident," she became the first U.S. Navy ship to fire on a German ship, three months before the United States officially entered World War...
, Flower class corvette
Flower class corvette
The Flower-class corvette was a class of 267 corvettes used during World War II, specifically with the Allied navies as anti-submarine convoy escorts during the Battle of the Atlantic...
s Dianthus
HMS Dianthus (K95)
HMS Dianthus was a Flower-class corvette of the Royal Navy. She was launched on 9 July 1940 from the Leith Docks on the Firth of Forth and named after the genus of flowering plants including Carnation, Pink, and Sweet William...
, Rosthern
HMCS Rosthern (K169)
HMCS Rosthern was a that served in the Royal Canadian Navy. She was laid down on 18 June 1940 at Port Arthur Shipbuilding in Port Arthur, Ontario and launched on 30 November 1940. She was named after the town of Rosthern, Saskatchewan....
, Trillium
HMCS Trillium (K172)
HMCS Trillium was a that served in the Royal Canadian Navy. She was ordered for the Royal Navy from Canadian Vickers Ltd. in Montreal and laid down on 20 February 1940. She was launched on 26 June 1940, transferred to the RCN, and commissioned on 31 October 1940...
and Dauphin
HMCS Dauphin (K157)
HMCS Dauphin was a that served in the Royal Canadian Navy. She was ordered from Canadian Vickers Ltd. in Montreal and laid down on 6 July 1940. She was launched on 24 October 1940 and commissioned on 17 May 1941. She was named after the city of Dauphin, Manitoba.Dauphin escorted merchant ships...
, and the convoy rescue ship
Convoy rescue ship
During the Second World War purpose built convoy rescue ships accompanied some Atlantic convoys to rescue survivors from ships which had been attacked. Rescue ships were typically small freighters with passenger accommodations. Conversion to rescue service involved enlarging galley and food...
Melrose Abbey. Three of the escorts had defective SONAR
Sonar
Sonar is a technique that uses sound propagation to navigate, communicate with or detect other vessels...
and three had inoperative RADAR
Radar
Radar is an object-detection system which uses radio waves to determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The radar dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio...
.
Battle
On 6 March U-405 sighted the convoy scattered by nine consecutive days of northwesterly Force 10Beaufort scale
The Beaufort Scale is an empirical measure that relates wind speed to observed conditions at sea or on land. Its full name is the Beaufort Wind Force Scale.-History:...
gales and snow squalls. The storm damaged the radio communication system aboard the escort commander's ship Spencer; and Dauphin had to leave the convoy with damaged steering gear. U-230
German submarine U-230
U-230 was a Type VIIC U-boat built for the German Kriegsmarine for service during World War II.She was commissioned on 24 October 1942 with Oberleutnant Siegmann in command...
torpedoed British freighter Egyptian on the night of 6-7 March. British freighter Empire Impala stopped to rescue survivors and was torpedoed after dawn by U-591.
U-190 torpedoed British freighter Empire Lakeland when the gale subsided on 8 March; and four more stragglers were sunk by U-526, U-527, U-591, and U-642. On 9 March the convoy escort was reinforced by No. 120 Squadron RAF
No. 120 Squadron RAF
No. 120 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operated the Nimrod MR2, based at RAF Kinloss, Moray, Scotland until the type's withdrawal in March 2010.-Formation in WWI:...
B-24 Liberator
B-24 Liberator
The Consolidated B-24 Liberator was an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and a small number of early models were sold under the name LB-30, for Land Bomber...
s from Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
and by the Wickes class destroyer
Wickes class destroyer
The Wickes-class destroyers were a group of 111 destroyers built by the United States Navy in 1917-1919. Along with the 6 preceding Caldwell class and 155 subsequent Clemson-class destroyers, they formed the "flush-deck" or "four-stack" class. Only a few were completed in time to serve in World...
Babbitt
USS Babbitt (DD-128)
USS Babbitt was a Wickes class destroyer in the United States Navy during the World War I and World War II, later classified as AG-102. She was named for Fitz Babbitt....
and the USCG Treasury Class Cutter
USCG Treasury Class Cutter
The Treasury-class high endurance cutters were a group of seven ships launched by the United States Coast Guard between 1936 and 1937. The class were called the "Treasury-class" because they were each named for former Secretaries of the Treasury. These ships were also collectively known as the...
s Bibb
USCGC Bibb (WPG-31)
The USCGC Bibb was a Secretary-Class Coast Guard ship commissioned in 1936. Seven similar "combat cutters" were built and named for secretaries of the United States Treasury. The legendary Bibb was named for U.S. Secretary of the Treasury George M. Bibb.The ship saw service in World War II...
and Ingham from Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
.
U-530 torpedoed straggling Swedish freighter Milos on the evening of 9 March; and that night U-405 torpedoed Norwegian freighter Bonneville while U-229
German submarine U-229
German submarine U-229 was a Type VIIC U-boat of the German Kriegsmarine during World War II.The submarine was laid down on 3 November 1941 at the Friedrich Krupp Germaniawerft yard at Kiel, launched on 20 August 1942, and commissioned on 3 October 1942 under the command of Oberleutnant zur See...
torpedoed British freighter Nailsea Court and U-409 torpedoed British escort oiler
Tanker (ship)
A tanker is a ship designed to transport liquids in bulk. Major types of tankship include the oil tanker, the chemical tanker, and the liquefied natural gas carrier.-Background:...
Rosewood and American ammunition ship Malantic.
Flower class corvette
Flower class corvette
The Flower-class corvette was a class of 267 corvettes used during World War II, specifically with the Allied navies as anti-submarine convoy escorts during the Battle of the Atlantic...
s Campion and Mallow
HMS Mallow (K81)
HMS Mallow was a Flower-class corvette that served in the Royal Navy. She also served in the Yugoslav Royal Navy and the SFR Yugoslav Navy under the names Nada and Partizanka, and the Egyptian Navy as El Sudan....
reinforced the convoy escort on 10 March, and the convoy reached Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
on 14 March. Only 76 of the 275 crewmen of the sunken ships were rescued.
Ships in convoy
| Name | Flag | Dead | Tonnage | Cargo | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alcoa Leader (1919) |  |
5,041 gross register tons (GRT) | petrol | ||
| Astrid (1942) |  |
2,861 GRT | sugar | ||
| Badjestan (1928) |  |
5,573 GRT | wheat | ||
| Baldbutte (1919) | |
6,295 GRT | |||
| Bengkalis (1918) |  |
6,453 GRT | general cargo | survived this convoy and convoy ONS 5 | |
| Bonneville (1929) | |
36 | 4,665 GRT | 7,196 tons explosives & general cargo | carried convoy commodore Capt H C Birnie DSO RD RNR; sunk by 10 March |
| Brant County (1915) | |
5,001 GRT | general cargo | returned to Halifax | |
| British Freedom (1928) | |
6,985 GRT | furnace fuel oil | ||
| British Progress (1927) | |
4,581 GRT | petrol | veteran of convoy SC 104 | |
| Camerata (1931) | |
4,875 GRT | iron ore | ||
| Clunepark (1928) | |
3,491 GRT | phosphates | ||
| Coulmore (1936) | |
3,670 GRT | general cargo | torpedoed, but towed and salvaged | |
| Dilworth (1919) | |
7,045 GRT | gas oil | ||
| Egton (1938) | |
4,363 GRT | iron ore | ||
| Egyptian (1920) | |
44 | 2,868 GRT | oilseed, palm oil & tin ore | sunk by 7 March |
| El Grillo (1922) | |
7,264 GRT | fuel oil | ||
| (1913) | |
5,787 GRT | general cargo | survived this convoy and convoy ONS 5 | |
| (1919) | |
6,448 GRT | general cargo | arrived in tow after steering failure on 11 March | |
| (1942) | |
2,873 GRT | bauxite | ||
| (1942) | |
7,025 GRT | general cargo | ||
| (1918) | |
5,736 GRT | general cargo | ||
| (1920) | |
48 | 6,116 GRT | 7,628 tons general cargo | sunk by while picking up survivors 7 March |
| (1942) | |
7,035 GRT | west African produce | carried convoy vice commodore Capt A Cocks DSC RD RNR | |
| (1942) | |
7,015 GRT | refrigerated and general cargo | straggled and sunk (probably by ) | |
| (1918) | |
5,644 GRT | grain | ||
| (1923) | |
4,290 GRT | general cargo | survived this convoy and convoy ONS 5 | |
| Eskdalegate (1930) | |
4,250 GRT | iron ore | ||
| Fort Lamy (1919) | |
5,242 GRT | steel & general cargo | veteran of convoy ON 154; straggled and sunk (probably by ) | |
| Fort Remy (1943) | |
7,127 GRT | general cargo | ||
| Garnes (1930) | |
1,559 GRT | veteran of convoy SC 104 | ||
| Gascony (1925) | |
4,716 GRT | general cargo | ||
| Gatineau Park (1942) | |
7,128 GRT | general cargo | fitted with Admiralty net defense | |
| Guido (1920) | |
3,921 GRT | sugar & cotton | romped and sunk (possibly by ) | |
| Hallfried (1918) | |
2,968 GRT | flour | ||
| Harpefjell (1939) | |
1,333 GRT | general cargo | ||
| Harperly (1930) | |
4,586 GRT | bauxite | survived to be sunk 2 months later in convoy ONS 5 | |
| Hollywood (1920) | |
5,498 GRT | general cargo | veteran of convoy PQ 18 | |
| Katendrecht (1925) | |
5,099 GRT | gas oil | ||
| Kingswood (1929) | |
5,080 GRT | general cargo | ||
| L V Stanford (1921) | |
7,138 GRT | furnace fuel oil | veteran of convoy SC 107 | |
| USS Laramie USS Laramie (AO-16) |-External links:***... (1919) |
|
5,450 GRT | detached for Greenland | ||
| Leadgate (1925) | |
2,125 GRT | flour | straggled and sunk by | |
| Lobos (1921) | |
6,479 GRT | tin & general cargo | ||
| Lombardy (1921) | |
3,379 GRT | general cargo | ||
| Lorient (1921) | |
4,737 GRT | steel & lumber | veteran of convoy SC 42; survived to be sunk 2 months later in convoy ONS 5 | |
| Malantic (1929) | |
25 | 3,837 GRT | 8,000 tons ammunition | veteran of convoy SC 107; sunk by 9 March |
| Manchester Progress (1938) | |
5,620 GRT | general cargo | ||
| Melrose Abbey (1929) | |
1,924 GRT | convoy rescue ship Convoy rescue ship During the Second World War purpose built convoy rescue ships accompanied some Atlantic convoys to rescue survivors from ships which had been attacked. Rescue ships were typically small freighters with passenger accommodations. Conversion to rescue service involved enlarging galley and food... |
||
| Miguel de Larrinaga (1924) | |
5,231 GRT | tobacco | veteran of convoy SC 42 | |
| Milos (1898) |  |
30 | 3,058 GRT | 804 tons steel & lumber | sunk by 11 March |
| Morska Wola (1924) |  |
3,208 GRT | general cargo | veteran of convoy HX 84 | |
| Nadin (1904) |  |
3,582 GRT | steel & lumber | ||
| Nailsea Court (1936) | |
45 | 4,946 GRT | 7,661 tons copper & general cargo | sunk by 10 March |
| Parkhaven (1920) | |
4,803 GRT | general cargo | ||
| Porjus (1906) | |
2,965 GRT | steel & pulp | veteran of convoy SC 104; returned to port & sailed with convoy SC 122 | |
| Raranga (1916) | |
10,043 GRT | refrigerated & general cargo | ||
| Ravnefjell (1938) | |
1,339 GRT | general cargo | veteran of convoy HX 79 & convoy ON 154; survived this convoy & convoy SC 130 | |
| Reaverley (1940) | |
4,998 GRT | bauxite | returned to port | |
| Rosewood (1931) | |
42 | 5,989 GRT | furnace fuel oil | escort oiler; sunk by 9 March |
| San Tirso (1913) | |
6,266 GRT | furnace fuel oil | ||
| Scorton (1939) | |
4,813 GRT | sugar | ||
| Sinnington Court (1928) | |
6,910 GRT | general cargo | veteran of convoy SC 104 | |
| Suderoy (1913) | |
7,562 GRT | fuel oil | veteran of convoy SC 104 | |
| Sutlej (1940) | |
5,189 GRT | general cargo | ||
| Thraki (1941) | |
7,460 GRT | grain & general cargo | ||
| Trontolite (1918) | |
7,115 GRT | |||
| Vancolite (1928) | |
11,404 GRT | |||
| Vojvoda Putnik (1916) |  |
5,879 GRT | wheat | straggled and sunk by | |
| Zouave (1930) | |
4,256 GRT | iron ore | returned to port to be sunk sailing with convoy SC 122 |