D/S Akabahra

To Akabahra on the "Ships starting with A" page.

Crew List

In Sept.-1940 we find her in the slow Sydney (C.B.)-U.K. Convoy SC 4, which had a large number of Norwegian ships. Akabahra was bound for Hull with a cargo of pit props. At the beginning of Dec. that year she shows up in Convoy OB 256, leaving Liverpool on Dec. 8-1940. Her destination is given as Sydney, C.B. The first external website that I've linked to below has more on this convoy.

In March-1941 she's listed in the slow Halifax-U.K. Convoy SC 26, in which Helle was sunk, but returned to port and later joined Convoy SC 28, bound for London with lumber, station 24. She was scheduled for the westbound North Atlantic Convoy ON 19 in Sept.-1941, but returned to port. She subsequently joined Convoy ON 29 at the end of Oct. (will be added), but returned to port, then in Nov. she shows up in Convoy ON 31, joining the convoy off Iceland on Nov. 4. She returned to the U.K. the following month with Convoy SC 58, cargo of flour for London.

In Apr.-1942 she joined the westbound North Atlantic Convoy ON 88, returning to the U.K. at the end of May with Convoy SC 85, cargo of lumber for Hull. In July we find her in the westbound Convoy ON 110, and she was scheduled to go back to the U.K. with the Sydney portion of Convoy SC 96 the following month, but instead joined Convoy SC 97, in which the Norwegian Bronxville was sunk. (The 2 ON convoys mentioned here, as well ON 29, will be added to my Convoys section; in the meantime, see this list of ships in ON convoys).

Final Fate - 1943:

Captain Marcus Grepne. Akabahra served as military transport for Operation Torch. On Jan. 7-1943 she was in station 45 (54?) of Convoy KMS 6, on a voyage from Algiers to Bone, having departed Algiers that same morning with a cargo of railroad tracks and crossties as well as misc. food stuffs. That afternoon the convoy was attacked by around 15 aircraft, and she was hit by a torpedo on the port side, probably in the boiler room, and started to sink right away (37 07N 04 38E). The port lifeboat was destroyed in the explosion, but the starboard boat was successfully launched, while 4-5 crew members jumped overboard and were later picked up by this boat. An attempt to get one of the rafts out failed as it got caught, but the aft raft was put on the water with 9 men. The captain placed himself in the motor lifeboat which floated free as the ship sank after about 10-12 minutes.

All 25 survived and were picked up by the escort vessel HMS Bicester (S.W.F.B. Bennets) which also picked up some of the survivors from the British Benalbanach, a victim of the same attack with great loss of life (follow the link to KMS 6 for details). They were landed in Bone on Jan. 8.

According to a personal story I've found, the survivors were placed in a military camp for a few days (location not named) before being sent "across the mountains" by train to Algiers, where they were given lodgings at a school. They were later sent to England.

Crew List:
Norwegian, unless otherwise noted

* Gunnar Knudsen had previously served on M/T Skaraas (from 1939), M/T Nortind (paid off just a few days before she embarked on her last voyage), M/T Polarsol, then Akabahra. After the loss of the latter he signed on D/S Knoll, and later took part in the Normandie invasion with Skarv. Today he spends his time accompanying school groups to former concentration camps, and has taken part in 77 such trips with over 6000 young students. A book has been written about his war experiences, entitled "Krigsseiler og tidsvitne" (by Oddvar Schjølberg), which he recently kindly sent me as a gift.

Captain Marcus Grepne	1st Mate Einar Fuhr	2nd Mate Sigurd Lauritsen	Radio Operator Ron Edgell (British)	Boatswain Toralf Gundersen	Able Seaman Birger Berentsen
Able Seaman Olse Solstad	Able Seaman Willy Bodin	Able Seaman Karsten Tønnesen	Able Seaman John Nilsen	1st Engineer Einar Ellingsen	2nd Engineer Jørgen Myrvang
3rd Engineer Haakon Liverød	Donkeyman Jesus Lopez (from Uruguay)	Stoker Arthur Thomson	Stoker Folke Svendson	Stoker Jean Piven (Russian)	Oiler Kevin Best (British)
Trimmer Kenneth Crowther (British)	Steward Helge Gustavsen	Cook Gunnar Knudsen*	Mess Boy Dennis Berry (British)	Gunner Peder Jakobsen	Gunner Jakob Espeland
Gunner ? Jackson (British).

Back to Akabahra on the "Ships starting with A" page.

An earlier Akabahra: Norway (possibly the same company) also had a ship named Akabahra in 1933-1935 (ex Fager), became Mirva in 1935 ('36?) then D/S Knoll in 1939 ('37?); follow the link for more details on this ship.

The text on this page was compiled with the help of: "Nortraships flåte", J. R. Hegland, "The Allied Convoy System", Arnold Hague, "Sjøforklaringer fra 2. verdenskrig", Norwegian Maritime Museum, Volume I, and misc - ref My sources.