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M/T Velma To M/T Velma on the "Ships starting with V" page. Manager: Halfdan Ditlev-Simonsen & Co.,Oslo Built in Gothenburg 1930. Captains: C. B. Nielsen at first, but when he became ill, Captain Agvall Bertrand Henriksen took over the command in San Pedro on June 10-1940, remaining until the end of the war. Velma was under the control of The Ministry of War Transport from June 9-1940, and was operated by Anglo American Oil Company, London for the duration. M/T Vanja M/T Vav M/T Vera M/T Vilja M/T Vivi
(Parly based on Captain Henriksen's report) (More voyages will be added).
On Apr. 10-1940, the day after the German invasion of Norway Velma arrived San Pedro, California. Not sure where she had been at the time, but she was docked there for misc. minor repairs before departing in ballast for Talara on Apr. 27. She picked up some fuel oil there which was taken to Antofagasta and then she headed back to San Pedro again. On arrival there on June 9 she was taken over by Anglo American Oil Company, London. She subsequently loaded fuel oil for Wellington, New Zealand, from there she headed to Singapore where she was ordered to get degaussing and a gun installed, but due to the fact that it would take too long to wait for this to be done (there were a lot of ships at Singapore yards at the time) she was sent via Colombo to Abadan where crude oil was loaded for Melbourne. Having unloaded at the latter port she proceeded to Sydney where she was docked, and this time a gun platform was built and degaussing added. At the same time protection was built around the bridge and a motor was installed in the starboard lifeboat. By the time all this was completed it was the autumn of 1940 at which time she departed Sydney for Abadan in ballast. From there she took a cargo of sun oil to Suez via Aden to join a convoy (for the first time), with arrival Suez on Dec. 25 - This must have been Convoy BN 11, in which she's listed, together with several other Norwegian ships (external link).
Having unloaded, she returned to Abadan in ballast (it must have been 1941 by then - in fact, she's listed as bound for Abadan with Convoy BS 12 from Suez at the beginning of Jan.-1941 - external link), then picked up a cargo of crude oil for Swansea which she reached via Cape Town and Freetown (for convoy to Belfast). This may have been in Apr.-1941, because according to the 1st external website that I've linked to at the end of this page she sailed in Convoy SL 72, which departed Freetown on Apr. 17-1941 and arrived Liverpool on May 13; Velma's destination is indeed given as Swansea (the Norwegian Norma is also listed). Velma stayed in Swansea for quite a while because she had to be further equipped for sailing in the war zones; for instance, a new radio as well as an emergency set were installed. She was then ordered to New York (in convoy only as far as the Azores). Her degaussing cable was replaced in New York before she was ordered to Trinidad to load fuel oil for Gibraltar - 2 such voyages were made, both without convoy.
The next piece of information I have places her in Gibraltar in Dec.-1941. She left again at the end of that month for Trinidad where a cargo of fuel oil was loaded which was taken to the U.K. via Halifax for convoy, arriving Halifax in Jan.-1942. She's listed among the ships in Convoy HX 173, which departed Halifax on Febr. 1-1942 and arrived Liverpool on the 14th (several other Norwegian ships also took part). From then on until the end of the war Velma was in regular service between the U.K. and the U.S. with the exception of 1 voyage to Gibraltar. Most of the time her cargoes were loaded in New York, though some were picked up in Philadelphia, Boston and Norfolk. When on a voyage to New Orleans on March 18-1942 Velma rescued 14 survivors from the Norwegian Tønsbergfjord, torpedoed on the 6th (others had been rescued by a Dutch steamer on the 13th). This must have been while she was in the westbound North Atlantic Convoy ON 71*, which had left Liverpool on Febr. 26-1942 and dispersed on March 8. Velma's destination is indeed given as New Orleans. In New Orleans, Velma went in for repairs (possibly of damages caused by a heavy storm that month?), then headed for Houston where she loaded a cargo for the U.K. again, but travelled there in a roundabout way, because she first went to Curacao, then on to Freetown for convoy to the U.K. She's listed as sailing in Convoy SL 110, which left Freetown on May 13-1942 and arrived Liverpool on June 4. Her destination is given as Mersey, cargo of gas oil, station 53. The Norwegian Polarsol and Thorshøvdi also took part - again, see the first external website that I've linked to at the end of this page for more convoy information. Later that month she shows up in the westbound North Atlantic Convoy ON 105*, departing Liverpool on June 19, arriving Halifax, Velma's destination, on the 30th. * In Aug.-1942 Velma is listed as bound for Clyde with fuel oil in station 22 of Convoy HX 203, leaving Halifax on Aug. 16 (she had started out in the previous convoy, HX 202, but returned to Halifax with engine problems). The following month she's said to have collided with 2 other ships in convoy and had to return for repairs; in fact, in a document I have listing ships in the ON convoys, there's a note saying that she collided with the American John Winthrop on Sept. 11-1942, while in the westbound Convoy ON 129* (departure Liverpool Sept. 11). There's no mention of a collision with a 2nd ship, however. She shows up again in Convoy ON 137*, which departed Liverpool on Oct. 9 and arrived New York, Velma's destination at the time, on the 29th.**
Christmas that year was celebrated at sea while in Convoy HX 219, leaving New York on Dec. 13, arriving Liverpool on the 29th. Velma had a cargo of Admiralty fuel for Clyde, sailing in station 84.
On Jan. 12-1943 she joined the westbound Convoy ON 161, and in Apr.-1943 she was one of several Norwegian ships in Convoy HX 233 from New York to the U.K., cargo of Admiralty fuel, station 32. She subsequently returned to the U.S. later that month with the westbound Convoy ON 180*, departure Liverpool Apr. 24, arrival New York May 14, and a few days later we find her in Convoy HX 240, which left New York City on May 19-1943 and arrived Liverpool on June 4. Her destination is given as Milford Haven, and she had station 83 of the convoy. About a week later she joined the westbound Convoy ON 188*, which left Liverpool on June 10 and arrived New York on the 26th, and already on June 30 she was ready to depart with Convoy HX 246, bound for Invergordon with a cargo of Admiralty fuel, station 31 (acting as escort oiler). At the end of July she joined the westbound Convoy ON 195*, departing Liverpool on July 31, arriving New York on Aug. 13, and towards the end of that month she shows up in Convoy HX 253, again bound for Invergordon, station 72. She subsequently returned across the Atlantic with the westbound Convoy ON 201*, which left Liverpool on Sept. 9 and arrived New York on the 24th. The external site that I've linked to below now has her in Convoy HX 259, which left New York on Sept. 28-1943 and arrived Liverpool on Oct. 13. This convoy is not available on my own site, but I've linked directly to it below. As will be seen from the next paragraph, there's now quite a gap in my voyage information for this ship. However, it looks like she must have headed back across the Atlantic shortly thereafter, because she shows up in the St. John's, N.F.-Sydney, C.B Convoy WB 73, as well as in the Sydney, C.B.-Halifax Convoy SH 112, and in the Halifax-Cape Cod Canal Convoy XB 84 in Nov.-1943 (all are external links).
She was scheduled for Convoy HX 277 in Jan.-1944, but did not sail*, and does not show up again until Convoy HX 288 in Apr. that year, returning the following month with the westbound Convoy ON 237*, which departed Liverpool on May 19 and arrived New York on June 3. Later that month she's listed in Convoy HX 295, and at the beginning of July we find her in the westbound Convoy ON 243*, departing Liverpool on July 3, arriving New York on the 18th. She subsequently returned to the U.K. towards the end of July with Convoy HX 301 from New York, bound for Swansea. As will be seen when following the link, this was a very large convoy, which arrived Liverpool on Aug. 8. She headed back to the U.S. on Aug. 18 with the westbound Convoy ON 249*, which arrived New York on Sept. 2, and later that month she's listed, with destination Devonport, in the Halifax section of Convoy HX 309. In Oct. she joined the westbound Convoy ONS 35, which departed Liverpool on Oct. 29 and arrived Halifax on Nov. 15 - Velma, however, was bound for New York on that occasion. Please see the page naming ships in all ONS convoys. At the beginning of Dec.-1944 she shows up in the slow Halifax-U.K. Convoy SC 162, destination Londonderry, and Christmas and New Years Eve of 1944 were celebrated while in the westbound Convoy ON 274*, which departed Southend on Dec. 23 and arrived New York on Jan. 8-1945.
In the middle of Jan.-1945 she was again in Halifax and ready to join Convoy SC 165, bound for Sheerness. The following month she appears in the westbound Convoy ON 284* (departure Southend Febr. 10, arrival New York on March 1). The external site below now has her returning to the U.K. in the slow Convoy SC 169, which left Halifax on March 7-1945 and arrived Liverpool on the 21st - this convoy is not available on my own site. A few days later she joined the westbound Convoy ON 293*, which left Southend on March 27 and arrived New York on Apr. 15. At the end of the following month she's listed in the slow Halifax-U.K. Convoy SC 177 (departure Halifax May 26, arrival Liverpool June 8) - again, see the external link provided below (not available on my own site).
Sold to a Liberian company in 1956 and renamed Valmar. Later transferred to Venezuela and was broken up during 1961-62. Related external links: Note also that by going to this section of the same site and clicking on "Ship Search", using "Velma" as keyword, a few convoys that are not mentioned in my own text will come up (most of the links noted as external above were found at this site). Here are OB 333, HX 259, SC 169, and SC 177, all mentioned in my text above. To M/T Velma on the "Ships starting with V" page. The text on this page was compiled with the help of: "Nortraships flåte", J. R. Hegland, "19 Oslo-skips historie under verdenskrigen, fra April 1940 til krigens slutt i 1945" (The story of 19 Oslo ships during WW II), Harald Nicolaisen - 1945, and "The Allied Convoy System", Arnold Hague - (ref. My sources).
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