SS Cathay (1924)

SS Cathay was a British passenger ship that was sunk during Operation Torch in 1942 by a German air raid in the Mediterranean Sea off Bougie, Algeria.[1]

For other ships with the same name, see SS Cathay.

SS Cathay while under P&O service.
History
United Kingdom
Name:	Cathay
Owner:	Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation Co. (P&O)
Port of registry:	UK, London
Route:	London - Sydney
Ordered:	1923
Builder:	Barclay Curle & Company
Yard number:	602
Laid down:	1924
Launched:	31 October 1924
Completed:	March 1925
Acquired:	12 March 1925
Maiden voyage:	27 March 1925
In service:	27 March 1925
Out of service:	11 November 1942
Identification:	148843
Fate:	Sunk following air raid
General characteristics
Type:	Passenger ship
Tonnage:	15.225 GRT
Length:	166.7 metres (546 ft 11 in)
Beam:	21.4 metres (70 ft 3 in)
Depth:	9.2 metres (30 ft 2 in)
Decks:	3
Installed power:	2 x 4 cyl. Quadruple expansion engines
Propulsion:	Double screw propellers
Sail plan:	London - Sydney (Since 1932: Bombay)
Speed:	16 knots
Capacity:	306 passengers First Class: 203 Second Class: 103
Crew:	278

Construction

SS Cathay was ordered in 1923 and laid down the following year at the Barclay Curle & Company shipyard in Glasgow, Scotland. It was launched by Lady Inchcape (wife of P&O's Chairman) on 31 October 1924. The ship was completed and acquired after completing its sea trials on 12 March 1925. The ship made its maiden voyage from London to Sydney on 27 March 1925.[2]

The ship was 166.7 metres (546 ft 11 in) long, with a beam of 21.4 metres (70 ft 3 in) and a depth of 9.2 metres (30 ft 2 in). It was assessed at 15.225 GRT. It had 2 x 4 cyl. quadruple expansion engines driving double screw propellers and the engine was rated at 13.437 nhp. Its second funnel was a dummy.[3]

Early career

After its maiden voyage in 1925, SS Cathay continued sailing for P&O on the Australian service route via the Suez Canal. In 1932 however, Bombay was added to its route. It also made an occasional run on the Far Eastern route.[4]

SS Cathay is refitted with a new propellor, March 1934

On 14 December 1933 SS Cathay lost a screw while trying to make up time between Colombo and Fremantle. It had to wait for repairs in Sutherland Dock, Australia, and returned to service in March 1934.[4]

World War II

On 25 August 1939, SS Cathay was requisitioned by the Admiralty and converted at Bombay for service as an armed merchant cruiser. The second (dummy) funnel was removed and eight 6-inch and two 3-inch guns were fitted on the decks. The ship served on the Bombay–Durban patrol after its conversion in October 1939.[5]

Sinking of SS Anselm

SS Anselm was a troopship that was part of a convoy consisting of the survey vessel HMS Challenger and the Flower-class corvettes Lavender, Petunia and Starwort. On 5 July 1941 Anselm and its escorts were in the mid-Atlantic about 300 nautical miles (560 km) north of the Azores when a Luftwaffe Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condor patrol spotted them and signaled the German Type VIIC submarine U-96 to attack the convoy. The submarine only managed to hit Anselm before fleeing from enemy fire.[5]

Anselm sank in 22 minutes and 254 people died; the 1,061 survivors were either picked up by the other escort ships or by Anselms lifeboats until Cathay arrived to offer assistance. It took on 900 survivors to relieve Anselms overloaded escorts and brought the survivors to Freetown without further incident.[5]

Refitting as troopship

On 5 February 1942, Cathay was returned to P&O and refitted as a troopship by the Bethlehem Steel Corporation at Brooklyn; it entered service again on 30 April of the same year.[5]

Operation Torch And sinking

SS Cathay was part of Operation Torch, which consisted of British and American troops invading French North Africa. It disembarked troops west of Algiers at the beginning of the operation on 8 November 1942.[6]

SS Cathay's ammunition explodes on 12 November 1942

While Cathay was returning to the port of Bougie, Algeria from Algiers on 11 November 1942, it was bombed by German aircraft at 1:30 pm. One person died as a result of the air raid, and the remaining crew tried to save the ship. The order to abandon ship was giving at 7:00 pm and all the remaining crew got off Cathay safely. Some of the survivors were picked up by the British Indian ship SS Karanja. At 10:00 pm a delayed action bomb exploded in the galley and started a serious fire that made the ship unreachable. The following day at 7:00 am, its ammunition exploded and blew off the stern. At 10:00 am, Cathay capsized on its starboard side and sank nearly 24 hours after being bombed.[5]

Gallery

• 
  SS Cathay in Brisbane 27 May 1933
• 
  A tug towing Cathay on the Brisbane River in 1932
• 
  SS Cathay in Sydney Harbour between 1932–1939
• 
  SS Cathay departing from West Circular Quay with spectators and streamers between 1932–1939
• 
  SS Cathay departing from West Circular Quay with spectators and streamers between 1932–1939
• 
  SS Cathay and SS Karanja on fire 12 November 1942

Footnotes

1. Losses of P. & O. Liners
2. "Cathay - 1924". passengersinhistory.sa.gov.au. Retrieved 6 July 2016.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
3. "SS Cathay [+1942]". wrecksite.eu. 25 February 2011. Retrieved 6 July 2016.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
4. "Cathay". passengersinhistory.sa.gov.au. Retrieved 6 July 2016.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
5. "SS Cathay". clydeships.co.uk. Retrieved 6 November 2019.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
6. "Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation Company / P&O Line". theshipslist.com. 3 December 2008. Retrieved 6 July 2016.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)

References

• "Losses Of P. & O. Liners". The Times (50056). London. 1 February 1945. col B, p. 2.
• Osborne, Richard; Spong, Harry & Grover, Tom (2007). Armed Merchant Cruisers 1878–1945. Windsor, UK: World Warship Society. ISBN 978-0-9543310-8-5.