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M/T Polartank To Polartank on the "Ships starting with P" page.
Manager: Melsom & Melsom, Larvik. Built by Barclay Curle & Co., Glasgow (645) in 1930. These men were on board for the duration of the war, without taking a vacation: Related item on this website: Her voyages are listed on these original images from the Norwegian National Archives:
Some of this information was found in a report written by Captain Christiansen, published in "Larviks Sjømannsforening 1849-1949". According to the captain, Polartank transported a total of 308 000 oil/fuel, 38 aircraft, 56 ambulance vehicles, 68 large motor vehicles and 4 small tugs from Oct. 6-1939 until July-1945. They were also equipped to supply the escorts at sea.
On Oct. 6-1939 Polartank departed Larvik, Norway in order to go to the floating factory N. T. Nielsen Alonso via Curaçao to load fuel oil and whale oil. They left the factory on Febr. 8, and when they were outside West Africa they were notified by the company to head for St. Vincent for further orders. 12 days were spent there before they were told to go to Sierra Leone to join a convoy for Manchester. At the convoy conference the captain was called over to the Commodore who reminded him that Polartank had the most valuable cargo of the entire convoy, and advised him to stay right behind him and do his very best to not lose the convoy. He was also given a type written sheet of paper that contained the most important convoy signals, and since none of the deck officers had previous experience with convoy sailing they all came up to the bridge to watch the signals and maneuvers during the first days of the voyage, even when they were not on duty (the captain had sailed in convoys during WW I). When war broke out in Norway on Apr. 9-1940 Polartank was on her way "up the Manchester canal"*, and after her cargo had been unloaded she was seized by the authorities, but the captain and some of the company's representatives travelled to London and were able to get her freed, and were also given a document from Ministry of Shipping for the attention of all British Consulates to allow the captain the necessary cash for the ship's disbursements in all the ports she may visit (more info on the initial money problems can be found on my page about Nortraship), whereupon they departed Manchester on Apr. 25 (Page 1 of the archive documents gives departure Manchester as Apr. 29).
She left Bermuda again on June 16, joining the Bermuda portion of Convoy HX 51, bound for Liverpool with a cargo of fuel oil. The following month, we find her in Convoy OB 184, departing Liverpool on July 15-1940, dispersed July 18. Her destination is not given, but going back to the archive document mentioned above, we learn that she arrived New York on July 28, making another voyage to Aruba the following month, and from there to Bermuda. According to Arnold Hague, she now joined the Bermuda portion of Convoy HX 71 on Sept. 4-1940. As will be seen when following the link to my own page for this convoy, she's not included there - I've linked directly to Hague's listing further down on this page. She later appears in Convoy OB 229, which left Liverpool on Oct. 15 and dispersed on the 18th. Again, no destination is given for Polartank, but from the archive document we learn that she arrived Table Bay on Nov. 13, proceeding to Port Elizabeth the next day. Both OB convoys mentioned here are available at the external website below. In Febr.-1941 she can be found in Convoy SL 65, which left Freetown on Febr. 10 and arrived Liverpool on March 8; Polartank was bound for Swansea, where she arrived March 9. Again, see the external website below for more convoy details; the Norwegian Belita, Belinda, Bur, Fernlane, Ørnefjell and Morgenen are also included. I've found some information on the Oranje Lijn website (external link) saying Polartank rescued survivors from the Dutch ship Prins Frederik Hendrik (ex Norwegian Taborfjell) after that ship had been bombed by German aircraft on March 8-1941 (voyage from Cardiff to Bathurst), and landed them in Swansea. According to Roger W. Jordan's "The World's Merchant Fleet 1939" there were 16 survivors, 8 had died. Later that month she's listed as bound for Aruba in ballast in station 54 of Convoy OB 302, which originated in Liverpool on March 24-1941 and dispersed 6 days later (also available at the external website below - several Norwegian ships are included). However, according to Page 1 of the archive documents, Polartank arrived New York on Apr. 6, having started out from Milford Haven on March 23; Aruba is not mentioned for this time period. On Apr. 16-1941 she shows up in Convoy HX 121 from Halifax, in which the Norwegian Caledonia was sunk. Cruising order/Commodore's notes are also available for this convoy. In May she's listed in Convoy OB 319 (link below), originating in Liverpool on May 7-1941, dispersed on the 13th, Polartank arriving New York on May 24. She returned to the U.K. in June in Convoy HX 131, bound for Londonderry with Pool oil in station 63, subsequently joining Convoy OB 341, which originated in Liverpool on June 30 and dispersed July 6 (again, ref. link below). Her destination is given as Aruba; according to Page 1, she had left Londonderry on July 3 and arrived Las Piedras on the 25th. The following month, we find her in Convoy HX 144 from Halifax, together with the Norwegian Suderøy, Orwell, Hallanger, Eidanger, Havprins, Grena, Evanger, Norse King, Vinland, Ranja and Sommerstad. This convoy left Halifax on Aug. 10-1941 and arrived Liverpool on Aug. 30 (Polartank, bound for Milford Haven, stopped at Belfast Lough on the 29th; arrived Milford Haven Aug. 31). The captain brings up an episode that he's obviously extremely proud of. One night, half way between Iceland and New Foundland the convoy they were in was attacked by U-boats, resulting in the loss of a large U. S. Navy transport with many people on board. 6 American destroyers were escorting, all of which went to assist the transport, letting the convoy carry on alone. Early the next morning one of the escorts came back to the convoy taking up position ahead of it, but around noon the commodore signalled "insufficient protection of convoy, ships of over 12 knots carry on alone at maximum speed - good luck". A little over 20 vessels, 2 of which were tankers, broke out of the convoy, and the "race" commenced. Polartank was the first to arrive New York, long before all the others. Captain Christiansen must be talking about Convoy ON 28*, in which Polartank is listed, and in which the fleet oiler Salinas was damaged by U-106 on Oct. 30-1941. According to "Nortraship's flåte" the Norwegian Brant County and Laurits Swenson were also in this convoy (in fact, so were several other Norwegian ships - see link to all ON convoys provided further down on this page). This book states that when the convoy was located by U-boats on Oct. 29 the Admiralty redirected it and ordered the fastest ships (including the 3 Norwegian ones) to go on alone. Arnold Hague ("The Allied Convoy System") says this convoy left Liverpool on Oct. 20 and was dispersed in 42 23N 58 44W on Nov. 3-1941. 1 ship damaged (Salinas). Polartank arrived New York on Nov. 4, having started out from Milford Haven on Oct. 19, according to Page 2. She had sailed without noteworthy mishaps until Dec.-1941, when she in the darkness ran into an underwater reef off Halifax, and was considerably damaged, causing the oil to start flowing all over her decks. The captain praises the crew for their courage and actions in the pitch darkness that night in their efforts to stop the leakage. They arrived port without injuries, and she was beached on the inside of the breakwater in the outer harbour. After repairs had been undertaken at St. John, N. B. they made 4 round trips New York-U.K.; on the eastbound voyages she was in convoy, and on the westbound voyages she was in convoy half way. (Going back to Page 2 of the archive docs, we find that she had arrived St. John, N.B. from Halifax on Dec. 2-1941, and did not leave again until Febr. 18-1942 - subsequent voyages are listed below). External links related to text above:
As already mentioned above, Polartank left St. John, N.B. on Febr. 18-1942. She arrived Halifax the next day, and on March 3 she can be found among the ships leaving Halifax for the U.K. in Convoy HX 178, arriving Liverpool on March 17. She later joined the westbound North Atlantic Convoy ON 83* (originated in Liverpool Apr. 4-1942), but returned to port (Belfast Lough) and later joined ON 87*, bound for Port Arthur, where she arrived on May 6. This convoy had left Liverpool on Apr. 16 and dispersed Apr. 26. On June 7, she headed back to the U.K. in Convoy HX 193 from Halifax, returning at the end of that month with the westbound Convoy ON 107*, bound for New York, where she arrived July 10 (departure Liverpool June 26-1942, dispersed July 9). Subsequent voyages are listed on Page 2; convoy information for some of these can be found by following the instructions provided at the external link above. In Sept.-1942 she was in Convoy HX 206 from Halifax, having been cancelled from the previous convoy, HX 205. She was bound for Glasgow with petrol, arriving there on Sept. 20, then went back to New York again with the westbound Convoy ON 133*, which originated in Liverpool on Sept. 25 and arrived New York Oct. 11 - see also Page 3. At the end of Nov.-1942, she joined Convoy HX 217 from New York, bound for Clyde with aviation fuel. This convoy was attacked and 2 ships were sunk; follow link for more details - the Commodore's narrative is also available. She was scheduled to return to New York with Convoy ON 155 the following month (see also Commodore's narrative), but joined ON 157 instead - again, follow the links for convoy details. Captain Christiansen mentions 2 mishaps in the course of 1943, the first taking place off New York while the convoy was being formed. An American ship, loaded with ammunition, came from behind at great speed and ran into Polartank, hitting her in the starboard side near No. 7 and 8 tanks, tearing 2 large holes in her side and causing the oil to run out. Both ships had to return to New York. Having a cargo of aviation fuel, this encounter with the ammunition vessel could have been quite nasty for Polartank on that occasion. Arnold Hague has her in Convoy HX 227 at this time; in fact, the collison is mentioned in his notes, and we learn that the American ship was Robert Howe. The incident is also mentioned on the Warsailor Stories page, which says it happened in March-1943, but it was probably a little earlier, because Convoy HX 227 left New York on Febr. 18-1943. This convoy is not yet available among the HX convoys included in my Convoys section (will be added), but I've linked to Hague's listing at the end of this page. Acanthus and Eglantine are named among the escorts, and several Norwegian ships took part. Michael Onarheim, the author of the story in my "Warsailor Stories" section, says that Polartank was subsequently at a yard for 8 weeks, before heading to Oran with aviation fuel and 16 aircraft on a newly installed extra deck, in a convoy that was attacked several times, losing, among others, the Commodore vessel and a troop transport. Note that she's listed as bound for Oran in Convoy UGS 7, which left Hampton Roads on Apr. 1-1943 and is available at the external website below. The American James W. Denver is listed as sunk by U-195. The American Michigan and the French Sidi-Bel-Abbes, carrying over 1000 troops, were also sunk, both by U-565. See the external links at the end of this page for more on these attacks. Polartank arrived Oran on Apr. 20, and returned to the U.S. the following month in Convoy GUS 7 (link below - again, see also Page 3). She arrived New York on May 26, and a few days later she's listed among the ships in Convoy HX 242, which left New York on May 31-1943 and arrived Liverpool on June 15. Her destination is given as Bowling, and she had station 31 of the convoy. She subsequently joined the westbound Convoy ON 190* (departure Liverpool June 24-1943, arrival New York July 9), and is said to have collided with the American G. Harrison Smith in this convoy on July 8 - the Norwegian Norsol was also involved in a collision. At the end of Aug.-1943 we find Polartank in station 86 of Convoy HX 254 from New York, bound for Stanlow, where she arrived Sept. 12/13, subsequently joining the westbound Convoy ON 203*, which left Liverpool on Sept. 22-1943 and arrived New York Oct. 10. The 2nd incident mentioned by the captain happened in Oct.-1943. This time, in the middle of the night in pitch darkness, an American 20 000 tons Standard Oil tanker rammed her, damaging all the cabins on the starboard side, as well as the starboard lifeboat and both davits. The captain says that what saved the sleeping crew was the fact that the bunks on Polartank were built about 4 ft away from the ship's side. I'm wondering if he remembers the date wrong - as mentioned above, she was involved in a collision on July 8 that year, and G. Harrison Smith was a Standard Oil tanker. He says that after repairs had been undertaken in New York they were chartered by the British Admiralty for service in the Mediterranean and The Persian Gulf. They unloaded diesel oil north of Naples 8 days after that city had been taken by the Allies, and during the night they experienced a horrendous air attack which lasted for several hours, with bombs falling all around. The next morning they were ordered away from the place (the captain calls it Pussooli, 16 miles north of Naples) and down to Naples where the rest of the cargo was subsequently discharged. * During the week that so many ships were sunk at Bari (Dec.-1943, see Bollsta), Polartank made 3 unescorted trips with cargo between Port Augusta and Naples. (Unless some voyages are missing, this does not quite match up with the details found on Page 4, which shows her 1943 and some 1944 voyages. However, Pozzuoli is mentioned). Again, follow the instructions at the external link below for information on some of her other convoy voyages, and compare the results with the voyages listed on Page 4 as well as on Page 5 of the archive documents. As will be seen on Page 5, she did make some voyages between Augusta and Naples in 1944 - perhaps the captain remembers the time wrong.
In July-1944 I have her in Convoy GUS 47, which left Port Said on July 24-1944; Polartank's voyage information is given as Abadan-Augusta/Naples, and she left the convoy on July 29 (for Augusta), as did the Norwegian Tricolor, which had also joined from Port Said, together with Fernplant, Kong Sverre, and Lidvard, while Topdalsfjord later joined from Bizerta. Polartank left Augusta again for Naples on Aug. 10, arriving Naples the next day. In Sept.-1944, she's said to have made a voyage from Augusta to Gibraltar in Convoy MKS 61*, which originated in Port Said on Sept. 6 and arrived Gibraltar on the 17th; Polartank had sailed from Augusta on Sept. 11. From Gibraltar, she headed back to the U.S. on Sept. 22, and arrived Baltimore on Oct. 8 (ref. link to Convoy GUS 52 at the end of this page). She now returned to service between U.S.A. and the U.K. On Nov. 9-1944 she joined Convoy HX 319 from New York, bound for Mersey and Heysham (arrived Liverpool Nov. 25, Heysham Nov. 26), returning with the westbound Convoy ON 269*, which originated in Liverpool on Nov. 29 and arrived New York Dec. 15; Polartank arrived Philadelphia Dec. 14, having left Heysham Nov. 28. On Dec. 19, we find her in Convoy HX 327, again bound for Heysham, where she arrived Jan. 4-1945, starting her return voyage to the U.S. already on Jan. 6, joining the westbound Convoy ON 277, which arrived New York on the 23rd. Polartank arrived Baltimore on Jan. 24, and it looks like she had joined from Belfast Lough on Jan. 9 (again, see Page 5). She subsequently went back to the U.K. with Convoy HX 337, leaving New York on Febr. 7-1945. Polartank returned the following month with the westbound Convoy ON 288*, together with 9 other Norwegian ships, namely Villanger, Viggo Hansteen, Tanafjord, Slemmestad, G. C. Brøvig, Dageid, Heranger, Harald Torsvik and Høyanger, all listed on this website. This convoy left Southend on March 2-1945, and arrived New York on March 19; Polartank had again joined from Belfast Lough. The Norwegian commodore, R. G. Bruusgaard was in the British Port Fremantle. According to A. Hague, Polartank subsequently went back to the U.K. in Convoy HX 346, which left New York on March 24-1945 and arrived Liverpool Apr. 7, and later that month we find her in the westbound Convoy ON 296* (from Liverpool Apr. 12, to New York Apr. 30; Polartank arrived Philadelphia that day). She headed back to the U.K. on May 9 with Convoy HX 355, which arrived Liverpool on May 25; Polartank arrived Immingham on May 28. Both the unlinked HX convoys mentioned here are available at the external website below. Her subsequent voyages, up to and including Apr.-1946, are listed on Page 6. The captain ends his report by praising his engine crew, saying that although it was often nerve racking for those on the bridge, it must have been a thousand times worse for those who were in the engine room. "Those guys did their duty as heroes. My hat off to them!". For information on Polartank's convoy voyages made in between those already noted on this page, please follow the instructions provided at the external link below, and compare the results with the voyages listed on the various archive doucments.
Sold to Skibs A/S Spervik in 1951, renamed Husvik. Sold to breakers and arrived Grimstad June 9-1959 to be broken up. Related external links: The attack on James W. Denver Back to Polartank on the "Ships starting with P" page. Other ships by this name: Norway had another Polartank later on. This ship was originally delivered in Nov.-1966 as Rødskjell from Seutelvens Verksted, Fredrikstad to A/S Ofottank (50/50 ownership Norske Shell - Ofoten Dampskibsselskap), Narvik, 199 gt, coastal tanker. Sold in Jan.-1986 to Norske Shell. Renamed Vestskjell in 1987. Sold in 1989 to K/S A/S Scan Tank, Borgheim, Tønsberg and renamed Polartank, but not for long, because she was sold again in June that same year to K/S Borgheim Shipping and renamed Norsupply. Used in the COB Line in Drammen for deliveries to the fishing fleet in the Barents Sea. Transferred to NIS in Sept.-1991, then sold in Febr.-1993 to Nor Bunker Maritime Co., Ltd., Valletta, Malta, keeping the same name, and in 1995 she was still in service for that owner. (Info from the Ofoten & Vesteraalens D/S fleet list, Finn R. Hansen). Additionally, The Clydebuilt Ships website lists another Polartank (Melsom & Melsom), built in Glasgow in 1953. There's also a picture of the ship. The text on this page was compiled with the help of: "Nortraships flåte", J. R. Hegland, "Larviks Sjømannsforening 1849-1949", a report written by Captain Christiansen, "The World's Merchant Fleets 1939", R. W. Jordan, "The Allied Convoy System", Arnold Hague, all listed in My Sources.
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