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D/T Acasta To Acasta on the "Ships starting with A" page. Manager: Martin Mosvold, Farsund Built by Sir J. Laing & Sons, Sunderland in 1918 as War Matron for Anglo-Saxon Petroleum Co. Renamed Acasta for same owner in 1921. Sold to Martin Mosvold, Farsund in 1927. Captain: Arne Corneliussen (1939-1945). 3rd mate and radio operator from Sept.-1939 was Birger Arnesen, who remained on board for 3 years. He later served in the "Shetland Gang" and was radio operator on Siglaos from March-1943, later served with "Shetland-Larsen" on Vigra - see this external website (Birger Arnesen died in 2007, 92 years old).
See also my narrative further down on this page. Follow the links provided to available convoys for more information on each (please be aware that some of the listings are incomplete). Compare Arnold Hague's records with these original images from the Norwegian National Archives (unfortunately, sailing dates are missing on Page 2, while arrival dates are missing on Page 4):
Please follow the convoy links provided for more details on them - several Norwegian ships took part. When Norway was invaded on Apr.-9-1940, Acasta was in New York. She was scheduled for Convoy HX 91 in Nov.-1940 (Bermuda section), but did not sail. She was also cancelled from Convoy HX 92, as well as from the slow Convoy SC 16, but eventually got away with Convoy SC 17, which left Halifax on Dec. 23-1940. At the external website that I've linked to at the end of this page she's listed as bound for Trinidad in Convoy OB 284, leaving Liverpool on Febr. 9-1941. However, it looks like she did not sail, because I have her in Convoy OB 286, which left Liverpool on Febr. 13 and dispersed on the 17th. Acasta detached from the convoy in order to proceed to her destination Trinidad, where she arrived on March 7. She was scheduled for the slow Halifax-U.K. Convoy SC 28 on Apr. 9, but instead joined the next convoy on Apr. 19, SC 29. Escorts' reports are also available for this convoy. The A 1 form gives her destination as Clyde, while the Advance Sailing Telegram says she was bound for Reykjavik; according to Page 1 of the archive documents, she arrived there on May 4. From Reykjavik, she proceeded to Curacao later that month, returning to Iceland in Convoy SC 37*, which departed Sydney, C.B. on July 12-1941. Her destination was Hvalfjord - this convoy is not yet available on my website (will be added), but I've linked directly to A. Hague's listing within the table above. The following month, she made a voyage to Baltimore, with arrival Aug. 24, and unless some voyages are missing from her record, it looks like she remained there for a long time - departure is given as Nov. 26, when she proceeded to New York. She was scheduled to return across the Atlantic in the slow Sydney C.B.-U.K. Convoy SC 58 on Dec. 4-1941 (Nidardal was lost), but joined the next convoy, SC 59, which left Sydney, C.B. on Dec. 10 and arrived Liverpool on the 27th. Acasta, however, was bound for Londonderry, where she arrived on Dec. 26, according to A. Hague (this is not mentioned on the archive document referred to above). In Apr.-1942 she's listed in Convoy OS 24, voyaging from Liverpool to Trinidad in ballast in station 34 of the convoy. Again, see the external links provided in the table above (a couple of other Norwegian ships also took part). In June that same year, when on a voyage from Trinidad to Freetown, she encountered a lifeboat with some of the survivors from the Norwegian M/T South Africa - follow the link for more details. At the end of Aug.-1942 we find her in Convoy HG 88 from Gibraltar to the U.K., bound for Clyde in ballast. She subsequently made a voyage to New York in the westbound North Atlantic Convoy ON 130*, which originated in Liverpool on Sept. 12 and arrived New York on Sept. 30. She now shows up, with final destination Trinidad, in the New York-Guantanamo Convoy NG 312, and is also included in the Guantanamo-Trinidad Convoy GAT 14 (arrived Trinidad Oct. 20), returning the following month with the Trinidad-Guantanamo Convoy TAG 18, and the Guantanamo-New York Convoy GN 18 (the latter arrived New York Nov. 17-1942) - the external site already mentioned has further dates and more info on all these convoys. Her last convoy voyage that year was made in the slow eastbound North Atlantic Convoy SC 112*, departing New York on Dec. 4-1942, arriving Liverpool on the 25th. According to her Voyage Record she was again bound for Londonderry, where she arrived on Dec. 23 - see also Page 2. Acasta subsequently joined the first westbound North Atlantic convoy of 1943, Convoy ON 158, in which the rescue vessel St. Sunniva was lost on her first and only voyage as rescue ship, not due to U-boat activities, but due to the horrendous weather endured by so many convoys that winter. The rescue vessel was last seen 2 days out of Halifax and was not heard of again. She was believed to have iced up and capsized without warning, a theory supported by the state of another ship from the convoy which arrived Halifax the day before with up to 10 ft thick ice in some parts. Other Norwegian ships in this convoy were Iron Baron, Ragnhild, Hallfried and Solitaire. ON 158 had departed Liverpool on Jan. 2-1943 and arrived New York on Jan. 23 (Acasta had joined from Londonderry). No other ships were lost, but other Norwegian ships went down later on, due to the continuous storms raging in the North Atlantic at the beginning of that year (Kollbjørg being one of them). It now looks like Acasta remained in New York for over 3 months - reason unknown. In May-1943, she's listed as sailing in Convoy SC 131 from Halifax, again bound for Londonderry where she arrived May 30/31, returning with the westbound North Atlantic Convoy ONS 10*, which originated in Liverpool on June 8 and arrived Halifax on the 27th. Acasta's destination is given as New York on that occasion, but she arrived Halifax on June 28 (according to Page 2), heading back to the U.K. on July 8 in the slow Convoy SC 136, which arrived Liverpool on July 23. Just a few days later she appears in the westbound Convoy ONS 14*, departing Liverpool on July 26, arriving Halifax on Aug. 9, and on Aug. 21, we find her Convoy SC 140 from Halifax. Her destination is given as Invergordon; according to the archive document referred to above, she arrived Cromarty (via Loch Ewe) on Sept. 5. Later that month, she's listed in the westbound Convoy ONS 19*, which originated in Liverpool on Sept. 26 and arrived Halifax on Oct. 14, and there's now another long gap in her voyages. At the end of that year she joined Convoy SC 150, which left Halifax on Dec. 30-1943 and arrived Liverpool on Jan. 14-1944. Acasta's destination is given as Belfast Dock and Londonderry. Her 1944 voyages are shown in the Voyage Record above, as well as on Page 2, Page 3 and Page 4 (though as already mentioned, 2 of these scans have been cut off, so that dates are missing in the left margin). In Jan.-1945, she sailed in Convoy OS 107/KMS 81, on a voyage from Milford to Freetown in ballast in station 53 of the convoy, which departed Liverpool on Jan. 27 and split up on Jan. 30, the KMS portion arriving Gibraltar on Febr. 5, while the OS convoy, in which Acasta sailed, continued to Freetown. The Norwegian San Andres also took part (Gibraltar portion, KMS 81) - again, see the external links provided in the table above. Page 5 lists her voyages to Apr.-1946.
Sold in 1948 to Cia di Nav. San Sirio, Genoa (Italian flag). Scrapped at Dunston-on-Tyne in 1953. Related external link: Back to Acasta on the "Ships starting with A" page. The text on this page was compiled with the help of: "Nortraships flåte", J. R. Hegland, "Convoy Rescue Ships" by Arnold Hague, E-mail from R. W. Jordan, and misc. (ref. My sources).
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