17 June 1942

June 17th, 1942 (WEDNESDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM: Minesweeping trawler HMS Gweal launched.

Minesweeper HMS Shippigan commissioned.

GERMANY:

U-466, U-664 commissioned.

U-527 launched.

U.S.S.R.: (Sergey Anisimov)(69)Baltic Fleet, Ladoga and Onega Flotillas: Shipping loss. GB "Volga" - by aviation, at Kopellaht bay.

MEDITERRANEAN SEA: Tug HMS Vixen lost in the Mediterranean.

NORTH AFRICA: The British 4th Armoured Brigade loses 30% of its tanks in an attack on Sidi Rezegh.

JAPAN: American diplomatic staff today board the Asama Maru at Yokohama. They have been interned in the US embassy compound since the outbreak of war. They had access to the Japanese media and one small radio, until being allowed to leave today.

39 year old Park Soowan is killed by police during an assassination attempt on Prime Minister Tojo Hideki. Later Ken Inukai is arrested and charged with financing and abetting the assassination attempt. (Lois Shapley Bassen and Sharon Domier)(132 and 133)

TERRITORY OF ALASKA: In the Aleutians, a Kiska Harbor bombing mission by the USAAF's 11th Air Force is cancelled due to weather as is a patrolling mission by heavy bombers.

CANADA: Fairmile HMC ML 080 commissioned.

Ordered, CT TANAC tugs, a total of 265 of these vessels ordered in Canada during WW II, all were completed including those underway when the war ended. There were two distinct styles, 35 wooden hulled and the other 230 were welded steel. They were all diesel powered and fitted with a variety of engines, Fairbanks Morse and Vivian being the most common. At first the British Government ordered them direct but most were in fact ordered and paid for by Canada under the 'Mutual Aid Board' concept. Deliveries started in January 1943 and some stragglers were completed in early 1946. The builders were: a. Central Bridge Company, Trenton, ON, 156 steel units. b. Canadian Bridge Company, Walkerville ON, 69 steel units. c. Russell Brothers Industries Ltd, Owen Sound, ON. 5 steel units (see below) d. Smith and Rhuland, Lunenburg NS, 10 wooden units. e. Industrial Shipping Ltd. Mahone Bay, 25 wooden units. TANAC units built were: a. Canadian Bridge built #1 to 30, 51 to 60, and 101 to 129. b. Central Bridge built 31 to 45, 51 to 60, 66 to 85, 130 to 250. c. Russell Brothers built 46 to 50. (They were to build 51 to 60 but these ten units were later transferred to Canadian Bridge allowing Russell to concentrate on Glen and Ville class tugs) d. Smith and Rhuland built 96 to 100 and 261 to 265. e. Industrial Shipping built 61 to 65, 86 to 95 and 251 to 260. The tugs were sent all over the world, about 38 served in the RN, (last one in naval service No.83, sold Aug 79) The TANAC tugs ended up in just about every Port you can think of. The last 50 vessels ordered were not completed at the end of the war. They were all completed and sold by the War Assets Disposal Corporation. Fifteen were sold to China and most of the balance remained in Canada. The wooden tugs were somewhat different in size, being longer, at 67.7'x 16.5'x7' and generally about 57grt. The wooden tugs also varied in size between the two building yards by a few inches in one direction or another. Wooden vessels are a lot harder to hold to standard dimensions than steel. The steel tugs also changed somewhat over the years in which they were built. The last group of 50 (35 steel and 15 wooden) had a reduced registered depth, at 6.5' in depth and 50 grt versus the 7.8' deep, 65grt versions. The change only seems to apply to the steel versions. It is not thought that the hulls were actually different on the outside but the measurement of tonnage is taken to the top of the floors in a vessel so deeper floors would in fact reduce the registered depth and hence the tonnage. It doesn't make sense but that is how it was done. They were actually given a slightly different name convention, (TANAC V 222 as an example. The V meant a Vivian engine was fitted versus the Fairbanks Morse engines fitted in the earlier hulls. The Vivian engined required deeper floors to get the engine high enough in the hull to maintain the shaft line and this triggered a reduction in the calculated tonnage. Vivian engines are a 4-cycle engine and have a greater height dimension than the Fairbanks-Morse engines, which are 2 cycle. Both engines have the same piston stroke, but the Vivians cylinder heads are higher, because of the valve mechanisms in the head, the Fairbanks-Morse had no valves in the heads, because of their 2-cycle design. Which may account for the different deck levels and registered tonnage. TANAC tugs prenamed "LAC" were actually some of the earlier ones built and they were all originally registered in England, then brought back to Canada years later. McKeil Marine had 4 of these tugs in service, although they have been modified and repowered. They are (1) LAC COMO (ex HALIFAX), (2) LAC ERIE (ex TANAC 74), (3) LAC MANITOBA (ex MANITOBA), (4) LAC VANCOUVER (ex VANCOUVER). The Irving Company at one time had the IRVING ALDER (ex TORONTO) and the IRVING POPLAR (ex TANAC 42). DOT had the TANAC V 222. Others were COLINETTE (ex LAC OTTAWA) owed by Waterman's Services Ltd, Toronto, still more LAC St LOUIS (ex HAMILTON), LAC QUEBEC (ex LAC MICHIGAN). A Capt J.E. McQueen had a contract to deliver CT tugs to different ports, during the WW.II. They would have a crew on each tug and would follow the leader to New York (via the ErieCanal) or to Chicago and down the Mississippi River. Then were then loaded on ship's and sent all over the world

U.S.A.: Japanese, German and Italian diplomatic staff today left the US on board the Swedish liner Gripsholm. They have been on board since June 11th. Prior to that they were interned at Greenbrier, a luxury resort owned by the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad in the Allegheny Mountains of West Virginia. They enjoyed access to US media and each other.

The development of Pelican, an antisubmarine guided missile, was undertaken by the National defence Research Committee with the US Navy's Bureau of Ordnance sponsorship. This device consisted of a glide bomb which could automatically home on a radar beam reflected from the target.

The U.S. Navy awards a contract to Goodyear for the design and construction of a prototype model M scouting and patrol non-rigid airship with 50 percent greater range and volume, 625,000 cubic feet (17,698 cubic meters) than the K Class airship. Four model M airships were procured and placed in service during World War II.

The German submarine U-202 lands four German agents/saboteurs at Ponte Vedra Beach south of Jacksonville, Florida. These agents are part of the team that landed on Long Island on 13 June.

YANK, the weekly magazine for the U.S. armed services, begins publication.

The War Department announces that it will not “accept for service with the armed forces, Japanese or persons of Japanese extraction, regardless of citizenship status or other factors”. (Gene Hanson)

Minesweeper USS Staff launched.

Destroyer USS Mervine commissioned.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: After parting company with convoy HG.74, the British destroyer HMS WILD SWAN is damaged in an air attack by Ju.87's and sinks after colliding with a Spanish fishing vessel (three of which also sank after being hit by aircraft) south of Bantry Bay 49 52N, 10 44W. (Alex Gordon)(108)

A mine, laid by U-701, sinks the US merchant ship SANTORE, a collier, off Virginia, killing three of the crew. At 1348, the Santore struck a mine laid on 11 June by U-701 in the Chesapeake Bay. The ship was manoeuvring into her position in Convoy KS-511 when a explosion occurred on the port side and extensively damaged the #1, #2 and #3 side tanks and the #1 and #2 holds. The vessel was quickly flooded, developed a list of 90° to port and sank rapidly. The eight officers, 29 crewmen and nine armed guards (the ship was armed with one 4in, two .50cal and two .30cal guns) abandoned ship on one raft and by jumping overboard because no lifeboats could be launched due to the sharp list. Three crewmen were lost. The survivors were picked up after 30 minutes by US Coast guard vessels and landed at Little Creek, Virginia. The wreck of Santore was sold in August 1954 for scrapping.

About 1300, the unescorted Moira was hit by one torpedo from U-158 off Corpus Christi and was then sunk by gunfire after the crew had abandoned ship. One crewmember was lost and three were injured. The survivors in two lifeboats were found by a fishing boat the next day and towed to Port Isabel, Texas. On 20 Aug 1942, the master, William Thorsen, took over the command of the Frontenac, which was torpedoed and badly damaged by U-436 on 27 Oct 1942.

At 0450, U-158 fired two torpedoes at the unescorted San Blas, the first missed the stern but the second struck at the port quarter. The explosion destroyed the stern, blew away the #4 hatch cover and the mainmast, stopped the engines and caused the ship to sink by the stern with a heavy starboard list after four minutes. The master, 26 crewmembers and three armed guards of the 39 crewmembers and five armed guards on board were lost. The survivors had no time to launch any lifeboats and abandoned ship on four rafts. They were picked up on 29 June by a US Navy Catalina flying boat in position 28°01N/96°02W and landed at Corpus Christi. The master Anders Weesgaard had already experienced another sinking when his last ship, the Ontario was sunk by U-507.

U-129 sinks an armed US freighter off the north coast of Cuba. At 2303, the unescorted Millinocket was hit by one torpedo from U-129, while steaming on a nonevasive course at 9 knots off La Isabela, Cuba. The torpedo struck between the #4 and #5 holds above 12 feet below the waterline. The explosion opened a large hole in the hull, blew some men overboard and killed the chief gunner. The ship sank rapidly on even keel within three minutes. No distress signals were sent and the guns were never manned (the ship was armed with one 6pdr and two .30cal guns). Only one lifeboat and two rafts were launched, while some men had to jump into the water to escape. Witt questioned the second assistant engineer about the name of the ship, tonnage, cargo, origin and destination. He also gave them a first aid kit for the wounded men when the engineer asked him for one. The master, three officers, five crewmen and two armed guards of the seven officers, 22 crewmen and six armed guards on board were lost, most of them by drowning. The survivors were picked up by a Cuban motor boat and two Cuban fishing boats about 13 hours later and landed at La Isabela and taken to Sagua La Grande, where the eight injured were treated at the hospital. (Dave Shirlaw and Jack McKillop)

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17 June 1942