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M/S Høegh Silverstar To Høegh Silverstar on the "Ships starting with H" page.
Manager: Leif Høegh & Co. A/S, Oslo. General cargo vessel completed by Burmeister & Wain, Copenhagen in Jan.-1938. Managed during the war by S & J Thompson Ltd., London, managers of Silver Line Ltd., which had a joint service arrangement with Leif Høegh before the war. Captain of this ship in 1941 was Edgar Waaler (age 46), later of Høegh Silverdawn fame (ref. my page Norwegian victims of M/S Michel).
Høegh Silverstar was in Convoy UGS 30 which was attacked by German aircraft off Oran on Febr. 1-1944. This convoy had departed Hampton Roads on Jan. 14 with 66 ships; arrival date Port Said Febr. 10. According to "Nortraships Flåte" 40 bombers approached but British aircraft split the formation so that only 7 reached the convoy. 2 aircraft attacked at 18:50 ship's time, right after the convoy's escorts had returned to base (North Africa?). One of the ships (in station No. 11) was hit by a torpedo and damaged by the explosion, but was able to continue. I've been told this was the American Richmond P. Hobson. The other aircraft torpedoed a ship on the other side of the convoy (no details on damages, possibly sunk? This may have been the American Edward Bates listed as sunk by aircraft on Febr. 1 in Arnold Hague's "Allied Convoy System", with the loss of 1 man). The aircraft later returned to drop some bombs, but no hits were achieved. The voyage could then continue via the Suez Canal, the Red Sea to Karachi and Bombay. Høegh Silverstar was in station 21, and had been to New York. She can also be found listed among the ships in Convoy UGS 45 in June-1944. (German bombers, stationed in the south of France posed a more serious threat to allied shipping in the Mediterranean than the U-boats did at this time, their primary goal being the large UGS convoys from the U.S. carrying supplies to the allied forces in Italy. On the other hand, the convoys' anti aircraft defence system was very strong, with aircraft patrolling night and day. Additionally, the merchant ships' own armament played a part in the defence, as did the squadrons stationed in North Africa and the special anti aircraft cruisers which often joined the escorts from Gibraltar, as well as the radar installations in the escorts which could detect the aircraft early and thereby give the convoys time to prepare for attack).
Sold in Aug.-1954 to Rederi A/B Asta (Arthur Andersson, manager), Finland and renamed Alca. Transferred in 1956 to the management of Lennart Karlsson. Collided on Febr. 12-1963 in the River Scheldt with the Swedish M/S Alvafors, while outward bound from Antwerp for Jacksonville. Beached on fire and broke in two the next day. Related external links: To Høegh Silverstar on the "Ships starting with H" page. The text on this page was compiled with the help of: "Nortraships flåte", J. R. Hegland, and misc. others as named within above text - ref. My sources.
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