M/T Gard

M/T Gard

To Gard on the "Ships starting with G" page.

Lillesand Sjømannsforening's website (Lillesand Seamen's Association) has a picture of Gard,
along with pictures of several other Norwegian ships

Manager: H. M. Wrangell & Co. A/S, Haugesund
Tonnage: 8259 gt, 4959 net, 12 600 tdwt
Dimensions: 469.2' x 61.1' x 34.5'
Machinery: 6 cyl. 2T DV Eriksberg-B&W, 3750 bhp, 11.5 knots.

Delivered in Nov.-1938 from Erikbergs mek. Verkstads A/B, Gothenburg as Gard (283) to Skips-A/S Corona (H. M. Wrangell & Co., A/S), Haugesund.

According to R. W. Jordan (author of "The World's Merchant Fleets") she was managed by Anglo-American Oil Co Ltd, London during the war, returned to Norwegian owners at Liverpool in November 1945.

Misc. War Voyages:

Gard sailed in the Halifax-U.K. Convoy HX 65 in Aug.-1940. A few months later, at the end of Nov., she was scheduled for Convoy HX 92, but did not sail.

In Jan.-1941 she sailed in Convoy HX 103, bound for Liverpool, and the following month she can be found in Convoy OB 287, which departed Liverpool on Febr 16 (she had been cancelled from the previous convoy, OB 286). She was scheduled for HX 118 in March, but instead joined the next convoy, HX 119. In June that year she was scheduled for Convoy HX 132, but did not sail. She was also cancelled from HX 133 (in which Soløy and Vigrid were sunk, and Kongsgaard was torpedoed and damaged), but finally got away with HX 134, joining with the Bermuda portion.

In Jan.-1944 she's listed in the Alexandria portion of Convoy MKS 37, voyage Augusta-Bizerta.

Gard is also mentioned in connection with Convoy GUS 47 in Aug.-1944 and is said to have arrived New York from Gibraltar on Aug. 17-1944. This convoy had originated in Port Said on July 24-1944 and had several Norwegian ships.

I've received a story about an Atlantic crossing from the British Radio Officer on M/T Gard, Don Hunter. It so happens he had also served on M/T Thorshov, which is the ship my father joined after he had finished Radio School in London in the fall of 1944. In fact, they must have just barely missed meeting each other, as this man payed off shortly before my father took over the job.

He says the following:

"I was a short time ago reading the replies posted on your website, because I was searching for any information concerning the Norwegian ship M.V. Gard, an oil tanker. I served as Radio Officer on her after I left the S.S. Thorshov until after the war ended. We carried high octane aviation fuel across from America, on the Atlantic convoys to Italy for the American and British Air offensive against the Germans who had continued the battle after the Italians surrendered (I always liked the Italians who really did not want to be in the War). On one trip across the Atlantic we ran into a hurricane and lost all our American new fighters which had been lashed on our decks, during one night. We had been overloaded with fuel in America and were out in mid-Atlantic. The storm lasted 3 days. That particular night we lost the planes we all thought we would not live to see the dawn, because in that sea, and being overloaded it was not uncommon for a tanker "to break its back", that is break in half. If that had happened our chance of survival was nil. Incidentally I was the only Englishman on the ship among the all Norwegian crew and I was treated very well indeed. When we left New York with our full load we were worried about the overload and when we arrived at the Ambrose light (which marks the channel in and out of New York) the sea was then gently lapping over our tanks. Apart from the well known threat of the U-boat, there was the weather. Sailing in convoy and meeting unexpected fog patches made the ever present danger of collision with the adjacent ships in your convoy very possible, also the North Atlantic weather was very unpredictable, especially during the winter months, the weather could change and deteriorate quite rapidly".

POST WAR:

Laid up in Bøvågen, Avaldsnes (Norway) from June 26-1959 until March 1961, when she was sold to Norsk Skipsopphugging, Oslo/Grimstad (breakers), towed to Grimstad and broken up in the fall of 1961.