M/S Thalatta

To Thalatta on the "Ships starting with T" page.


Received from Sverre Johansen, Norway (postcard collection).


Source: Historical Department, MAN B&W Diesel, Copenhagen, who also sent me this picture.

Misc. War Voyages:

According to the first external website that I've linked to at the end of this text, Thalatta was in Convoy SL 38, which left Freetown on July 1-1940 and arrived Liverpool on the 20th. Thalatta is listed as bound for Belfast in station 43. The Norwegian Dagrun is also included.

In Febr.-1941 she was scheduled for Convoy HX 111, but cancelled and instead sailed in HX 114, joining the convoy from Bermuda, bound for London with wood, steel and sugar. The Norwegian Hidlefjord was sunk, and Kaia Knudsen was damaged at the end of their voyages with this convoy. Follow the links for more details.

Thalatta was s cheduled for the slow Sydney (C.B.)-U.K. Convoy SC 60 in Dec.-1941, but instead joined the next convoy, SC 61, cargo of sugar and copper for Clyde.

She's one of several Norwegian ships listed in Convoy OS 22 in March-1942. Again, see the first external link below for more convoy information. She was on a voyage from Clyde to Capetown in station 103 on that occasion.

Fearing that Japan's strong fleet would make a move on Madagaskar, thereby posing a threat to the transports to the Middle East, the troop transports to India, the southern shipping routes to Australia, and the oil supplies from The Persian Gulf, the Allies decided to attack the Vichy French controlled air base at Diego Suarez in the north of Madagaskar (Operation Ironclad). In the course of Apr.-1942 war ships, troop transports and supply ships arrived Durban, which was to be the base for the operation. M/S Thalatta was one of these supply ships. She took on board equipment for an infantry brigade, landing barges and 120 Commando soldiers, and the convoy arrived its destination on May 5. The links below have more information.

In Sept.-1942 Thalatta rescued the survivors from the Panamanian ship Tambour which had been torpedoed on Sept. 26. ("Nortraships flåte" places this incident a year later, in Sept.-1943, but Rohwer agrees with 1942 - ref. external link below). On Nov. 3-1942 she was scheduled for the New York-U.K. Convoy HX 214, but did not sail. She's not listed in any of the subsequent HX convoys as far as I can see, so I'm not sure how she got to the U.K. - possibly with one of the SC convoys? The one closest to Nov. 3 is SC 109, which originated in New York City on Nov. 9-1942 and arrived Liverpool on the 30th (this convoy is not available to me).

In Jan.-1943 she can be found in the westbound Convoy ON 162, along with a number of other Norwegian vessels, as will be seen by following the link. Thalatta's destination is given as Table Bay, and she had station 45 of the convoy.

Going back to the external website below, she shows up in Convoy SL 135 / MKS 22, bound for Loch Ewe, cargo of copper. SL 135 had departed Freetown on Aug. 14-1943, joined up with MKS 22 from Gibraltar on the 26th, the combined convoy arriving Liverpool on Sept. 6. Thalatta is listed in the SL portion - follow the link for more details on this convoy.

In Jan.-1945 we find her in station 95 of the westbound North Atlantic Convoy ON 279. Other Norwegian ships were Ivaran, Dageid and Gefion.

POST WAR:

Went aground on July 5-1948 off Suvadiva Atoll (Maldive Islands) on a voyage from Shanghai to Oslo with passengers and general cargo. Reported later that month to have been (unofficially) renamed Aqua Queen (meaning Water Queen). Refloated on Oct. 26 and arrived at Colombo on Nov. 9, where she was found to be beyond economical repair, and on Apr. 20-1949 she was declared a constructive total loss. Sold on July 31-1949 by insurance underwriters to A. Ebrahim & Co., Bombay for scrapping. Demolition began in Nov. that year at Darukhana, Bombay.

Related external links:
SL Convoys - There's also a section on the OS and OS/KMS convoys, as well as the OB convoys and the Russian convoy series. This is a great resource, and well worth a visit. As can be seen, Thalatta is listed in Convoy SL 38, as well as Convoy OS 22 and Convoy SL 135 / MKS 22.

Operation Ironclad - Lists the units taking part.

Madagascar - Operation Ironclad has som details on the landings.

The attack on Tambour

Wilh. Wilhelmsen Today- with fleet list and company history.

Back to Thalatta on the "Ships starting with T" page.

Wilh. Wilhelmsen later had 2 more ships by this name. Germany also had a ship by this name - became British Empire Tegaya in 1945.

The text on this page was compiled with the help of: "Nortraships flåte", J. R. Hegland, Wilh. Wilhelmsen fleet list, and misc. (ref. My sources).