D/S Ingerfire

To Ingerfire on the "Ships starting with I" page.

Crew List

(Uboat.net has a picture of Ingerfire - external link)

Some War Voyages:

(Much more will be added, including more westbound convoy voyages).

Ingerfire is listed among the ships in Convoy HN 9A from Norway to the U.K. in Jan.-1940. As will be seen by clicking on the link, several other Norwegian ships also took part.

She was in the Svalbard coal trade, but escaped to the U.K. in June-1940; see my page about D/S Finmarken for background history. (One of my sources says she had arrived Tromsø, Norway from U.S.A.(?) on Apr. 10-1940, the day after the German invasion).

At the end of Aug.-1940 she sailed in the slow Sydney (C.B.)-U.K. Convoy SC 2, in which the Norwegian Gro was sunk. Ingerfire had a cargo of pit props for Garston. A few months later, in Nov.-1940, she was scheduled for Convoy SC 12, but did not sail. She also cancelled from Convoy SC 15 at the beginning of Dec., but eventually got away with Convoy SC 17 on Dec. 23-1940, bound for London with steel and lumber in station 42 of the convoy.

In Apr.-1941 she was scheduled for the slow Halifax-U.K. Convoy SC 29, but did not sail. She also cancelled from Convoy SC 31, but is listed as sailing in SC 32, destination Sharpness, cargo of grain.

She also shows up, with a cargo of phosphates for Leith, in station 33 of Convoy SC 75 in March-1942 (having previously been cancelled from Convoy SC 71, SC 72 and SC 73), and that summer, in July-1942 she's listed in Convoy SC 91. The following month we find her in station 92 of the westbound North Atlantic Convoy ON 122, in which Trolla was sunk (a number of Norwegian ships took part in all these convoys).

She was later used as ammunition and supply ship in Operation Torch, which commenced in Nov.-1942. I have her in Convoy MKS 9 in March-1943. (My text under Athos has a list of other Norwegian ships taking part in these operations).

Final Fate - 1943:

Torpedoed and sunk by U-613* (Köppe) in 51 29N 42 59W on Apr. 11-1943. She had left Barrow in ballast for Halifax on March 28-1943 and the next day she joined up with Convoy ONS 2 which had departed Liverpool the day before (will be added to my Convoys section as soon as I can; in the meantime, please see this list of ships sailing in ONS convoys). However, by the morning of Apr. 6 she had lost track of the convoy in the stormy weather. By Apr. 11 the weather had improved, but she was still alone at about 20:25 GMT when, according to the captain's report, 2 torpedoes struck within just seconds of each other, both hitting the foreship on the port side, between No. 1 and 2 hatch. At the time of attack she was on a course 216° true, sailing at a speed of 8 1/2 knots (not zig-zagging), in clear weather with choppy seas, wind east/southeast force 2-3, no moonlight and limited visibility. The U-boat was not seen, but the wake of the torpedo had been seen about 100 yards distant slightly aft of the port beam.

* For info, Roger Jordan states she was sunk by U-571 (Möhlmann), and Clay Blair also says this U-boat was credited with the sinking of Ingerfire in his book "Hitler's U-boat War", saying Möhlmann had been joined by U-84 in the attack. The latter claimed one sinking and damage to another vessel, but these claims were not confirmed. Blair does not mention the fact that Ingerfire was alone at the time, but indicates she was attacked while in Convoy ONS 2, guarded by Canadian Escort Group C-1, commanded by A. H. Dobson. (Charles Hocking gives position as about 400 miles east of New Foundland). See also the external links at the end of this page, as well as the responses in this thread on my Ship Forum.

The 2 lifeboats on the port side were blown away by the explosion, but both starboard boats were successfully launched before a 3rd torpedo hit amidships, possibly in the engine room or in the forward part of No. 3 hold. This caused one of the boats to capsize, while the other was hit by a raft and filled with water. The ship sank in about 2 minutes.

As soon as they got the raft free from the lifeboat, both boats were tied to it and those who were closest to it were placed on the raft, while others bailed the lifeboat before picking up the men who were floating on debris in the water. When no more survivors could be found they rowed across to another raft and transferred all the equipment from it, then returned to the first raft and the capsized boat, which was righted and bailed. After all the equipment from the raft had been transferred to the lifeboat, the men were distributed in the 2 boats, with the 2nd mate and 14 men in one, the captain and 12 men in the other. Sail was set, the captain's boat towing the other, heading in a west/southwesterly direction.

The next day, Apr.12 (about 12 hours after the sinking), a U-boat approached from a southerly direction and came alongside the lifeboats (this was U-84, commanded by Horst Uphoff - again, see the link to the thread on my forum mentioned above). They were asked whether they had been torpedoed, the name of their ship etc., while a photographer was "busily engaged in taking countless pictures" of the men in the lifeboats. In addition to the photographer and the commander, 2 crew members were also on deck, manning the AA guns. The commander, the only one who spoke to the survivors (in excellent English), was short and stocky, about 28-30 years old and of a light complexion. The boat was described by the survivors as being of the "517 ton class designated by ONI-220, with certain modifications which were: definitely curved stem, no net cutter, no bulge in deck for forward gun platform, antenna wires extending from bow to stern, suspended from elbow arms halfway up conning tower, rim of conning tower curved fore and aft instead of flat". Captain Stoutland said there was a "catwalk with railing around the conning tower on the same level as the after gun platform; the after gun platform was attached to the conning tower and on the same level as its floors was supported by steel grill work rather than solid sides as denoted by ONI-220". All the survivors agreed that the hull was newly painted a light grey, solid color with no scratches. Some survivors stated that the conning tower was painted a darker shade of grey than the hull, with the deck even a darker shade than the conning tower. A British gunner was quite certain that the forward gun was a 4", while the gun on the after platform was identified as approximately a 20 mm gun. On the starboard side of the conning tower an axe was painted in yellow, about 4' in length at an approximate angle of 45°. No masts or periscopes were visible. The boat subsequently took off in a northerly direction

About half an hour later the Canadian destroyer HMCS St Croix (I 81) approached and made ready to take them on board, but upon hearing about the above U-boat the destroyer took off to look for it. Several depth charges were dropped, but it was not believed a contact was made. At 14:30 GMT the destroyer returned together with the Canadian corvette Camrose (K 154) and the survivors were picked up; those in the 2nd mate's boat by the former and those in the captain's boat by the latter. Both were escorts from Convoy ONS 2, and the survivors later learnt they had been picked up 20 miles ahead of the convoy. It's possible the U-boat had taken off because it had seen the destroyer approaching.

Trimmer Hans Thorkildsen, who had been in the captain's boat, had injured his back and also had a broken ankle. He was in great pain so a doctor was sent on board to take care of him. They were landed in St. John's on Apr. 15, where the trimmer and Jr. Ordinary Seaman James Waterstreet were admitted to a hospital, the latter having a badly injured wrist. The 1st radio operator and the 1st and 2nd mates had also received some injuries, but less serious.

The maritime hearings were held in St. John's on Apr. 19-1943 with the captain, the 1st mate, the 2nd engineer (on duty in engine room - he had been on board since Sept.-1926) and Able Seaman Ingebrigtsen (helmsman) appearing. The latter had just joined the ship 3 weeks previously.

* My Guestbook has a message from Gunner Pearson's son-in-law. Sadly, Mr. Pearson has since passed away (June 15-2007) - see this message.
Here's another message from the son of Samuel Dick.

* Billy McGee, England has told me that John McMahon from Liverpool is commemorated at Tower Hill, Panel 58; further details on him can be found on this page (The Commonwealth War Graves Comm. website - external link).

Related external links:
Stavern Memorial commemorations - Only the Norwegians are commemorated at this memorial for seamen in Stavern, Norway. The Norwegian text here says Ingerfire was hit by 2 torpedoes from U-571 in position 51 48N 42 30W.

Operations information for U-613 - The site also has Operations information for U-571.

U-613

Town Class Canadian Destroyers

Flower Class Canadian Corvettes

Back to Ingerfire on the "Ships starting with I" page.

The text on this page was compiled with the help of: "Sjøforklaringer fra 2. verdenskrig", Volume I (Norwegian Maritime Museum), "The Allied Convoy System", Arnold Hague, "Hitler's U-boat War", Clay Blair, and misc. as named within text above - (ref. My sources). Description of the 2nd U-boat is from a memorandum based on statements by survivors, dated May 7-1943 and signed by U.S.N.R. Lieutenant J. C. Dea - received from Tony Cooper, England.