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M/S Tungsha To Tungsha on the "Ships starting with T" page. Manager: Wilh. Wilhelmsen, Tønsberg Launched on June 14-1924 by Deutsche Werft A.G., Hamburg (Yard No. 65), completed Aug. 9-1924. First ship in the Scandinavian-Middle East Line. Other pages on this website with information related to this text:
Tungsha is listed as sailing in Convoy HG 27, which left Gibraltar for the U.K. on Apr. 21-1940. Her destination is given as Falmouth, and she had station 52 of the convoy. She was in London at the time of the evacuations of Dunkirk, and the captain reported that all 5 of the ship's lifeboats were requisitioned and towed to Dunkirk, along with hundreds of others. 3 were returned after the evacuations were completed June 4 (1940), and 2 of them were full of bullet holes, bearing witness to what had taken place. Later that month she shows up among the ships in Convoy OA 167, which left Southend on June 13-1940 and dispersed on the 16th. She was bound for New York at the time. Other Norwegian ships included in this convoy are Heina, Lysaker IV and Troja. (Svint was also scheduled, but did not sail - ref. external links below). She's listed among the ships in Convoy HX 92 in Nov./Dec.-1940, bound for Hull with a cargo of steel, sailing in station 81. On Febr. 18-1941 she collided with the British Middleton, which sank - see Convoy SC 21 as well as this thread on my Ship Forum. At the external website that I've linked to below she's listed as bound for Panama and Chile in Convoy OB 295, leaving Liverpool on March 8-1941. Follow the link provided to the first site about the OB convoys for the names of other ships in this convoy. In June-1941 she was scheduled for Convoy HX 133, but did not sail; this was the convoy in which Soløy and Vigrid were sunk, and Kongsgaard was torpedoed and damaged - several other Norwegian ships also took part. She was also cancelled from HX 134, but eventually got away with Convoy HX 135, carrying nitrates for Leith, station 92. Tungsha was involved in a collision with the Swedish Kaaparen on June 14-1942, 3 miles off Halifax East Lightvessel, while in convoy HX 194 from Halifax to the Clyde. The Swedish ship sank following the collision. The accident happened as the convoy was forming. Kaaparen was in fact the former Norwegian ship Larviksfjord, Den norske Amerikalinje, built 1930, which had been sold in 1932 to A/B Götaverken, Gothenburg for rebuilding (following a fire in Sept.-1931), then sold again in 1933 to Rederi-A/B Transatlantic (Gunnar Carlsson), Sweden and renamed Kaaparen. It looks like Tungsha may have returned to port after the collision, because she's listed again in the next convoy, HX 195, which left Halifax on June 21-1942. In Sept.-1942 she can be found in Convoy HX 207 from Halifax to the U.K. She was scheduled for Convoy HX 218 from New York in Dec. that same year, but did not sail. Instead she joined the next Convoy, HX 219, station 31, general cargo for Cardiff; she also carried 10 passengers. The convoy encountered bad weather and Tungsha became a straggler on Dec. 21. For her return voyage she joined the westbound Convoy ON 162 in Jan.-1943. At the end of June that year she was in Convoy HX 245, which had originated in New York on June 23, but Tungsha joined from Halifax on the 26th (as did Santos and Idefjord), taking station 37 of the convoy. She had a general cargo for Liverpool, and again several other Norwegian ships took part, as will be seen by following the above convoy link. In Aug.-1943 she was scheduled for HX 252 in which Santos was lost, but was cancelled. She was also cancelled from HX 253, but eventualy got away with HX 254 at the end of Aug., general cargo for Avonmouth, station 126, having joined the convoy from Halifax together with Oregon Express and Duala. In Jan.-1944 she was scheduled for the Halifax portion of Convoy HX 275, but did not sail. She subsequently joined HX 276, but returned to port, and does not show up again until Convoy HX 279 on Febr. 14, general cargo and mail for Liverpool. In July-1944 she sailed in Convoy HX 301 from New York, bound for Liverpool with sugar and general. A couple of months later, in Oct./Nov.-1944 she was in Convoy HX 317, general cargo for London, then early the following month she can be found among the ships in the westbound Convoy ON 270, along with several other Norwegian vessels. Further dates and info on these convoys are available by following the links provided above. In Febr.-1945 Tungsha acted as Commodore vessel for Convoy HX 340 (Commodore F. Batsey R.N.), which left New York on Febr. 23 and arrived Liverpool on March 10. This convoy is not available to me.
Sold on Dec. 8-1948 to Olaf Pedersen's Rederi (Olaf Pedersen, manager), Oslo and continued on charter to Wilh. Wilhelmsen. Renamed Sunny Queen in 1951. Sold in 1957 to Marconquista Cia. Nav. S.A., Liberia and renamed Roula. Arrived at Osaka on Febr. 21-1960 to be scrapped by Banno Tsusho K.K. who commenced work on Apr. 20-1960 at Kinoe, Hiroshima Prefecture. Related external links: Back to Tungsha on the "Ships starting with T" page. Wilh. Wilhelmsen later had another ship by this name, 1952-1972. The text on this page was compiled with the help of: Wilh. Wilhelmsen fleet list, Norwegian America Line fleet list, and misc. (ref. My sources).
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