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M/S John Bakke To John Bakke on the "Ships starting with J" page.
Captain Tallak Tallaksen. When Norway was invaded on April 9-1940 John Bakke was in Copenhagen, Denmark, unloading cargo from South America. She also had some cargo which was meant for Sweden (copper, lead and coffee), but remained in Copenhagen due to the German invasion. On Apr. 30 she was seized by German authorities and with German military personnel on board she was taken to Stettin (or possibly Hamburg?), where the cargo originally intended for Sweden was unloaded, and the crew placed in internment camps. According to Captain Tallaksen the Germans wanted to use the ship in their coal transport, but upon further investigation they found her to be unsuitable. She was freed and the crew sent on board again on May 25, then departed for Øresund (Sweden) on June 11 with German naval officers on board. Once there, the officers disembarked, probably assuming the ship was still under German control, and that she'd subsequently return to Haugesund, but instead, the crew took her to Gothenburg. On Jan. 23-1941, 5 Norwegian ships escaped from Gothenburg (Operation Rubble) and made it safely to British port. Among them were Knutsen's John Bakke and Elisabeth Bakke, the others being M/S Tai Shan, M/S Taurus and M/T Ranja (my text under Elisabeth Bakke has full details on the breakout. See also my page Ships in Sweden for a list of, and information on the other Norwegian ships there at the outbreak of war in Norway). Chief engineer on John Bakke at the time of escape from Sweden was Hans G. Hansen*, who also had his wife with him. Captain Tallaksen was replaced by the British W. J. Escudier. After the 2nd battle of Narvik, the crews of 4 steamers, D/S Blythmoor, sunk Narvik Apr. 10, D/S Mersington Court, sunk Narvik Apr. 15, D/S Romanby, sunk Narvik Apr. 22/23-1940 and D/S Riverton, sunk Narvik Apr. 24, as well as survivors from the destroyers Hunter and Hardy had been taken by the Germans through deep snow across to Sweden, where they were subsequently placed at the camp Hälsingmo north of Stockholm. George Binney used several of these men for "Operation Rubble", because many of the Norwegians on board were reluctant to take the risks involved, feeling the attempt was bound to fail. However, all 5 ships safely reached Kirkwall on Jan. 25. 147 men and 1 woman had taken part in the breakout, 58 were British, 57 Norwegian, 31 Swedish and 1 Latvian.
John Bakke is listed as sailing in Convoy HX 136 in July-1941, bound for Liverpool with general cargo, joining from Bermuda. The following month she's listed as bound for Trinidad with the westbound Convoy ON 5, leaving Liverpool on Aug. 6-1941. Follow the links for more convoy info.
According to "Nortraships flåte" John Bakke collided in convoy off Oversay with a British ship on Dec. 5-1942. The British ship was a total loss. A posting on my Ship Forum indicates this was the Blairatholl but the collision took place on Nov. 26. This question also came up in a previous query on my forum. It appears my Norwegian source gives the wrong date, unless John Bakke was involved in another collision early the following month? Yet another posting to my Ship Forum, in reply to a query on Convoy SC 110, which departed New York on Nov. 17-1942 and arrived Liverpool on Dec. 6 says the following: "Blairatholl was in collision with John Bakke on the 26-11-42. At 07.21 GMT 27-11-42 Blairatholl sent an SOS. 'Foundering. Require Assistance. Taking to rafts. Boats carried away'. Blairatholl foundered while proceeding to St. John's NF. She had arrived at New York from Partington 26-10-42 and left New York 17-11-42 for Loch Ewe and Tyne. John Bakke arrived New York 09-11-42 and left 17-11-42, arriving Liverpool 07-12-42 with slight damage, stem broken". Roger W. Jordan's "The World's Merchant Fleets" also gives the collision date as Nov. 26-1942, adding the position for Blairatholl's sinking as 51 25N 48 30W. In March-1943 John Bakke, destination Halifax, was in Convoy ON 170, which departed Liverpool on March 3 and arrived New York on the 20th. She returned to the U.K. the following month with Convoy HX 233, together with several other Norwegian ships. John Bakke had a cargo of explosives and general, and also carried 2 passengers. John Bakke (captain Holme) is said to have left the U.K. for Algiers at the beginning of July-1943, arriving July 8. However, note that she's listed in Convoy KMS 19 which left Clyde on June 25-1943. She was used as supply ship in connection with the allied invasion of Sicily (July-10-1943 - Operation Husky), and departed Algiers again on July 14, arriving Augusta via Malta on July 19 (having left Malta the previous night - see my page about KMS 19). While in England her armament had been heavily reinforced, and she had 9 Norwegian and 7 British gunners on board, under the command of Second Lieutenant Alf R. Christensen. Due to the continuous air attacks, during which her new armament and gunners were in constant use, unloading of her cargo was extremely difficult, so she was ordered to return to Malta on the 21st ; in fact, she's listed in the Augusta to Malta portion of KMS 19, again follow the link to my page for this convoy, which also has the names of ships sunk in air attacks at Augusta), but was back in Sicily by the 24th, anchoring up between Alvola and Syracuse, where she endured heavy, nightly air attacks until July 30, at which time she had finished unloading her cargo, returned to Malta, and then on to Port Said on Aug. 4., arriving on the 9th - see the second table on my page for Convoy KMS 21. Norwegian gunners at the time were: Ragnar Olsen, Torstein N. Flathaug, Harald Johan M. Odland, Erling M. Martinsen, Palmer Sputnesset, Lars Johan Jacobsen, Fridtjof Anker Thoresen, Karl Zincke Bauge, Arnold Strand Berg. John Bakke also transported supplies for the invasion forces in Italy in Sept.-1943, arriving Taranta from Alexandria and unloading from the 26th till the 30th of September (Taranta had been conquered by a small British force on Sept. 9).
Towards the end of Febr.-1944 John Bakke joined Convoy HX 280, which had originated in New York on Febr. 20, but John Bakke joined from Halifax. She had a cargo of meats, grain and general and her destination was Manchester. In Apr. she shows up in the Halifax portion of Convoy HX 288, and in July-1944 she's listed in Convoy HX 298, bound for Manchester with general cargo and mail, joining the convoy from Sydney, C.B. A couple of months later, in Sept.-1944, she served as the Commodore's Vessel for Convoy HX 307 (having been cancelled from the previous HX 306), sailing with 7 other Norwegian ships, namely Buenos Aires, Fagerfjell, Frontenac, Idefjord, Kaia Knudsen, Thorsholm and Stiklestad, all listed on this website. John Bakke was bound for Mersey with a general cargo and trucks. In Nov. that same year she shows up in the New York-U.K. Convoy HX 322, general cargo for Liverpool. In Jan.-1945 John Bakke was in Convoy ON 276, which departed Southend on Jan. 2 and arrived New York on the 18th (this convoy, which also had several other Norwegian ships, will be added to my Convoys section). Captain in this period was S. Lyngholm. The following month she acted as Commodore Vessel for the New York-U.K. Convoy HX 336, and in Apr. that year she was the Commodore Vessel for Convoy HX 349 (Commodore Sir O.H. Dawson), leaving New York on Apr. 8, arriving Liverpool on the 23rd (this convoy is not available to me).
To D/S A/S Varøy (Vibran Shipping, Knut Knutsen), Haugesund in March-1956. Ran aground on August 14-1964 near Kokkola, on a voyage from Murmansk to Yxilpa. Refloated and docked in Haugesund. Condemned and sold in Oct.-1964 to Norsk Skipsopphugging A/S, Grimstad (breakers). Left Haugesund on her last voyage on Oct. 17. Related external links: Operation Husky Back to John Bakke on the "Ships starting with J" page. Other ships by this name: Knut Knutsen had previously had another ship by the name John Bakke (steam ship), delivered in Sept.-1913, 1611 gt.. Sunk by gun fire from U-88 on June 7-1917, 65 n. miles east of Shetland on a voyage Baltimore-Rotterdam, on charter to Belgian Relief. My Ship Forum has a thread on this ship. The company's 2nd D/S John Bakke was built in 1923, 1907 gt. Sold in March-1929 to Banck & Co., Helsingborg and renamed Capella. From 1951 she sailed as Ängsø of Stockholm, and in 1954 as Anni Stinnes of Hamburg. Broken up in Lübeck in 1962 as Fritz Ho Stinnes. (This info from "Våre gamle skip", Leif M. Bjørkelund & E. H. Kongshavn). Knut Knutsen's 4th John Bakke was a Container ship, built in Kobe in 1978, 16 438 gt. This ship sailed as Høegh John from Aug.-1982 while under time charter to Leif Høegh & Co. A/S, Oslo. Sold in Nov.-1982 to Denmark and renamed Høegh Borg, then Wedellsborg in May-1983. Sold again in 1987 and became Laja under Chilean flag. The text on this page was compiled with the help of: "Nortraships flåte", J. R. Hegland, "Våre motorskip", Leif M. Bjørkelund and E. H. Kongshavn (pre war and post war details). Also, "Tilbakeblikk", published in 1995 by the Norwegian Gunners' Veterans Association, and misc. others for cross checking info, incl. "The World's Merchant Fleets", Roger W. Jordan, and "The Allied Convoy System" by Arnold Hague, and misc. postings to my Ship Forum.
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