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 Homefleet Ships starting with B 

Norwegian Merchant Fleet 1939 - 1945
Ships starting with Bi through Bl

Ships in Foreign Trade (allied service)

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NS
= the ship was in Nortraship's Fleet
*
= the ship was sunk (or otherwise lost)

D/S
= steam ship
D/T
= steam tanker
M/S
= motor vessel
M/T
= motor tanker
T/T
= turbine tanker

Bi
Name of Ship
Managed By
Tonnage
  • M/T Bianca NS *
Arth. H. Mathiesen, Oslo
5688 gt
Built in Gothenburg 1926.

Captain Arne Grønningseter. On a voyage from Clyde to Curaçao in ballast on March 15-1941 when the battle cruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau attacked 4 tankers which had belonged to a dispersed westbound convoy, position 40 30N 43 45W. More details can be found on my page M/T Bianca - includes eye witness account and crew list, as well as pictures, and information on some of her previous voyages.

  • D/S Biarritz * neutral
Fred. Olsen & Co., Oslo
1753 gt
Built in Oslo 1922.

Torpedoed and sunk on January 25-1940 by U-14 - D/S Biarritz has more details and a picture of the ship.

  • M/S Bidevind NS *
Gunnar Knudsen, Porsgrunn
4956 gt
Built in Flensburg, Germany 1938.

Captain Marcus Roberg. Torpedoed and sunk by U-752 (Schroeter) on April 30-1942 - see M/S Bidevind for further details (includes crew list).

  • D/S Bill NS *
L. Gill-Johannessen, Oslo
2445 gt
Built in Moss 1939.

Torpedoed by U-155 (Piening) July 29-1942 and sunk in 11 58N 55 02W while on a voyage from Brazil to New York (via Trinidad) with general cargo. Read more about her loss (includes an eye witness account and crew list, as well as information on some of her previous voyages).

  • D/S Binna
Thoralf Holta, Porsgrunn
7815 gt
Built in San Francisco, California 1917. Previous name: Bessa.

Pre war history: Launched on Jan. 20-1917 by Union Iron Works Company, Alameda, Cal. (Yard No. 139), completed in March that same year as Bessa for Wilh. Wilhelmsen, Tønsberg. 7815 gt, 5847 net, 11 650 tdwt, 410.9' x 56.2' x 38.4', 3 cyl. Triple exp. steam engines of 2500 ihp by Union Iron Works Co., San Francisco, service speed 11 knots. Sold to Rederi A/S Henneseid (Thoralf Holta), Porsgrunn on Dec. 4 -1936. Renamed Binna in 1937.

SOLD IN 1939 to Yosiaki Tamaya, Japan and renamed Tamaki Maru. Sold in 1941 to Nissan Kisen K. K. Japan and renamed Nissyu Maru (Nishu Maru?). Torpedoed and sunk by the American submarine Cobia on July 18-1944 northwest of the Bonin Islands in position 28 43N 139 24E (28 17N 139 00E?). Info on this ship is from Wilh. Wilhelmsen fleet list.

Related external link:
Cobia (SS-245) - from DANFS - submarines - The Dictionary of American Naval Fighting ships.

Fred. Olsen & Co. had a ship by the name Binna after the war, built Aberdeen 1953. Sank following a collision on March 1-1953, raised from a depth of 230 ft and rapaired that same year. Sold to Liberia in 1968.

  • M/T Binta
Per Gjerding, Bergen
5873 gt
Built in Newcastle upon Tyne 1928.

SOLD TO Mexico in 1940 and renamed Cerro Azul.

Per Gjerding had another Binta post war, built in 1950 - the Clydebuilt Ships website has more details on this ship.

  • M/T Bisca
Per Gjerding, Bergen
6089 gt
Built in Newcastle upon Tyne 1930.

Picture of Bisca (from Bjørn Milde's postcard collection. He says it shows her in the Suez Canal).

SOLD in 1940 to Mexico and renamed Tampico.

  • D/S Biscaya NS
Fearnley & Eger, Oslo
1323 gt
Built in Tønsberg 1939.

Please continue to D/S Biscaya for more info, including a voyage record.

  • D/S Bisp * neutral
Olaus Kvilhaug, Haugesund
1000 gt
Built in Sunderland 1889. Previous name: Truno City.

Disappeared after having left Sunderland, England on Jan. 20-1940 with a cargo of coal for Åndalsnes, Norway. Read more about her loss.

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      Bj - Bl
  • D/S Bjerk NS
Kr. Gjølberg, Oslo
182 gt
Built in Oslo 1912.

Whaler catcher. Follow this link to D/S Bjerk for more.

  • D/S Bjerka NS
Bruusgaard & Bødtker-Næss, Oslo
1893 gt
Built in Michigan, U.S.A. 1916. Previous names: Launched as Clinchfield, then named Levisa until 1929.

My page about D/S Bjerka has information on her war voyages.

  • D/S Bjørkhaug NS *
A/S Elling Aarseth & Co., Ålesund
2058 gt
Built in Holland 1919. Previous name: Stad Zaandam until 1938.

Follow this link to D/S Bjørkhaug for information on her war voyages, as well as details on her final fate and a crew list.

  • M/S Bjørnhaug *
Finn Poulsen, Oslo
443 gt
Built at Nystad 1921. Previous names: Torborg, Kauko, Torborg 1937, Torborg I for Torgerson and Maaren A/S.

Most of the details on this ship were sent to me by a visitor to my site, his source: "Shipwreck Index of the British Isles", where she's listed as steamer Torborg I at the time of loss on Balcomie Briggs, Fife Ness on Apr. 5-1940, cargo of paper. According to this source she was a wooden steamer built at Nystads Skip & M.V. Co, Nystad, registered in Bergen. I found her listed as Bjørnhaug, ex Torborg I in Det Norske Veritas' "Norges, Sveriges og Danmarks Handelsflåter" which says she was a motor vessel, ran aground at Firth of Forth on the date given above, voyage Copenhagen-London with general cargo.

According to a posting to my Ship Forum she was purchased from Åland in 1937 as Torborg and renamed Torborg I by Torgersen & Maaren A/S, Bergen. Sold 1939 to S/A Madrino (Finn Poulsen), Oslo. She's still listed as Torborg I in "Fortegnelse over Norske Orlogs-og handelsfartøyer - 1940" which is a jour up to Jan. 1-1940, so she may have been renamed Bjørnhaug shortly before she was lost.

  • D/S Bjørnvik NS *
A. F. Bjørnstad, Oslo
812 gt
Built Selby 1918. Previous names: Runa, Reias, Flynarthen, Kildre. (Info from a visitor to my website; his source: "Shipwreck Index of the British Isles").

D/S Bjørnvik has more information on this ship, details on her final fate and a crew list.

  • D/S Blaafjeld I NS *
Harald Grieg Martens, Bergen
1146 gt
Built Trondheim 1918.

See Blaafjeld I.

  • D/S Blink NS *
K. Th. Einersen, Oslo
2701 gt
Built in Bristol 1920. Previous name: Arlette until 1933.

I once heard someone say that if you know nothing about what the merchant seamen went through during the war, read 1st Mate Birger Lunde's accout from the days spent in the lifeboat after Blink was sunk - it says it all. See for yourself on my page about D/S Blink (includes casualty list).

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