City of Simla
British Steam passenger ship
Photo courtesy of the Allen Collection
| Name | City of Simla | ||
| Type: | Steam passenger ship | ||
| Tonnage | 10,138 tons | ||
| Completed | 1921 - W. Gray & Co (1918) Ltd, West Hartlepool | ||
| Owner | Ellerman Lines Ltd, London | ||
| Homeport | Glasgow | ||
| Date of attack | 20 Sep 1940 | Nationality:  British | |
| Fate | Sunk by U-138 (Wolfgang Lüth) | ||
| Position | 55° 55'N, 8° 20'W - Grid AM 5365 | ||
| Complement | 350 (3 dead and 347 survivors). | ||
| Convoy | OB-216 | ||
| Route | London - Glasgow - Capetown - Bombay | ||
| Cargo | 3000 tons of general cargo | ||
| History | Completed in November 1921 | ||
| Notes on event | At 21.20 hours on 20 Sep 1940, U-138 attacked convoy OB-216 52 miles northwest of Rathlin Island and reported three ships totalling 20.000 grt sunk. The three ships sunk were New Sevilla, Boka and City of Simla. The City of Simla (Master Herbert Percival) remained afloat for a short time and sank later in 55°59N/08°16W. One crew member and two passengers were lost. 165 crew members and 153 passengers were rescued by the British steam merchant Guinean, transferred to HMS Vanquisher (D 54) (Lt A.P. Northey, RN) and landed at Londonderry two days later. 17 crew members and 12 passengers were picked up by the Belgian trawler Van Dyke and landed at Liverpool. | ||
| On board | We have details of 130 people who were on board. | ||
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